Criminal Justice

Scotland's criminal justice system was put under the public spotlight the other day - when it was revealed that a 13-year old boy has been charged with raping an 8-year old girl on a bus in east Ayrshire.

Police Scotland confirmed - in response to a Freedom of Information request - that the boy was alleged to have attacked the girl on the bus in Kilmarnock in November 2012 - although the incident was not reported at the time because police said the case was "wrapped up quickly".

Apparently the authorities decided that it was not in the public interest to prosecute the  teenager in the adult court system - and instead the case has been sent to the Children's Reporter who will decide whether there is enough evidence to take it a formal Children's Hearing.

Now clearly this is a very unusual and troubling incident - but I, for one, would still like to understand the reasoning behind the decision to refer the matter to the Children's Reporter - which doesn't sound all that serious, to me at least

Because a violent sex attack of this nature on an 8-year old child suggests to me that this teenager is a real threat to other young girls - and possibly other women as he grows older, stronger and, potentially, more bold.

So, where exactly is he - is he in a secure environment, for example, or out on the streets - where are his parents and what are the boy's family circumstances - for such a terrible crime to have been committed in the first place?

Maybe, for good reason, the answer to some of these points is better kept private at this stage - but nonetheless I would like to know how Scotland's criminal justice system deals with these issues because - as in many other areas - what happens in and around our courts seems to get decided over the heads of the general public. 

Yet, I take the view that the public should have the right to know - ultimately - how these matters are handled on our behalf and in our names.