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| 'Sexting' boy's naked selfie recorded as crime by police | 'Sexting' boy's naked selfie recorded as crime by police |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| A boy who sent a naked photograph of himself to a girl at school has had the crime of making and distributing indecent images recorded against him by police, the BBC has learnt. | A boy who sent a naked photograph of himself to a girl at school has had the crime of making and distributing indecent images recorded against him by police, the BBC has learnt. |
| The boy, aged 14, who was not formally arrested or charged, could have his details stored for at least 10 years. | The boy, aged 14, who was not formally arrested or charged, could have his details stored for at least 10 years. |
| The information could also be disclosed to future employers, his mother said. | The information could also be disclosed to future employers, his mother said. |
| The Criminal Bar Association said the case highlights the dangers of needlessly criminalising children. | The Criminal Bar Association said the case highlights the dangers of needlessly criminalising children. |
| The schoolboy, who lives in the north of England, told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme he took the naked photo of himself in his own bedroom. | The schoolboy, who lives in the north of England, told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme he took the naked photo of himself in his own bedroom. |
| He then sent it to a girl from his school using Snapchat - an app which deletes direct messages within 10 seconds. | He then sent it to a girl from his school using Snapchat - an app which deletes direct messages within 10 seconds. |
| However, before the image disappeared, the girl saved it on her own phone and it was then sent to other pupils at the school. | However, before the image disappeared, the girl saved it on her own phone and it was then sent to other pupils at the school. |
| 'Humiliated' | 'Humiliated' |
| The matter was brought to the attention of a police officer based at the school and it has now been officially recorded as a crime. | The matter was brought to the attention of a police officer based at the school and it has now been officially recorded as a crime. |
| If he had been aged over 18 he would have been the victim of so-called "revenge porn" and those who distributed the image prosecuted. | |
| However, his mother was told her son's details - along with those of the girl involved and another teenager - had been added to a police intelligence database and could be stored for at least 10 years. | However, his mother was told her son's details - along with those of the girl involved and another teenager - had been added to a police intelligence database and could be stored for at least 10 years. |
| She said the school police officer said the incident could be flagged up in an advanced CRB check, if her son ever wanted to get a job working with children. | She said the school police officer said the incident could be flagged up in an advanced CRB check, if her son ever wanted to get a job working with children. |
| She told BBC Radio 4's Today programme her son has been "humiliated", saying he was "at best naive" and at worst was just being "a teenager". | She told BBC Radio 4's Today programme her son has been "humiliated", saying he was "at best naive" and at worst was just being "a teenager". |
| Many children at the school now take part in so-called "sexting" as a form of "flirting", she said. | Many children at the school now take part in so-called "sexting" as a form of "flirting", she said. |
| The boy, who has asked to remain anonymous, said he felt "embarrassed and a bit intimidated" by the way the incident had been dealt with by police and his school. | The boy, who has asked to remain anonymous, said he felt "embarrassed and a bit intimidated" by the way the incident had been dealt with by police and his school. |
| He said he knew some people at the school still had the image. | |
| Asked about the consequences of the incident, he added: "It is just annoying really. | Asked about the consequences of the incident, he added: "It is just annoying really. |
| "Something that I did when I was 14 that could reflect badly in the future." | "Something that I did when I was 14 that could reflect badly in the future." |
| 'Important questions' | |
| The school said there was no aggression or intimidation during his questioning and that the boy admitted what he had done straight away. | |
| It said all students are taught about the dangers of sexting in assemblies and in class. | It said all students are taught about the dangers of sexting in assemblies and in class. |
| The boy's mother said police had only recently started filing crime reports about similar incidents, something her son says he was not aware of. | The boy's mother said police had only recently started filing crime reports about similar incidents, something her son says he was not aware of. |
| However, the school said all students were informed about the recent change in policy. | However, the school said all students were informed about the recent change in policy. |
| BBC Home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw said the case raises "important questions about the role of the police in dealing with disputes arising from social media". | BBC Home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw said the case raises "important questions about the role of the police in dealing with disputes arising from social media". |
| Olivia Pinkney, Sussex Police's assistant chief constable and the National Police Chief Council's lead on children and young people, said if a school chose to take an incident to the police, then officers must record the crime. | |
| She said the boy would be able to appeal against the decision before it was disclosed to future employers, saying she did not believe it would ever "be disclosed". | |
| Mark Fenhalls, the chairman of the Criminal Bar Association, said most people would be "pretty astonished that a boy who's done this has ended up with material on a police computer". |