It comes as police back a new campaign aimed at children as young as thirteen – teaching them “no means no.”
In all 29 seventeen year olds in the southwest accused of a sexual assault on someone below seventeen were dealt with using restorative justice over the last year.
A police spokesperson said: “Restorative Justice is a voluntary problem solving approach. No one can ‘impose’ a solution on an ‘offender’, or person who has caused harm. The offender or person who has caused harm must accept responsibility for their actions. The use of restorative justice for such offences is strictly controlled and would only be
used where there is a clear rationale as to its use and the victim (including parents where appropriate) specifically agrees to this course of action.”
….Detective Inspector Andrea Kingdon, from Devon and Cornwall Police’s public protection unit, said: “The average age of a victim of rape or sexual assault is 16 so it is essential that we target this age group so that they feel confident to challenge and report sexually violent behaviour and avoid dangerous situations.
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