Boys convicted of rape get non-custodial sentences as judge says they should not be criminalised unnecessarily | UK news

Three teenage boys convicted of raping two teenage girls at the knifepoint and other serious sexual offenses in Hampshire were given no jail time because the judge said he “must avoid needlessly criminalising them”.

The boys, who were between the ages of 13 and 14 at the time of the crimes, physically exerted pressure and sexually assaulted the girls, who were between the ages of 14 and 15, in separate incidents two months apart.

The boys, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were sentenced to youth rehabilitation orders ranging from 18 months to three years for their roles in the attacks, which prosecutors said were “brazenly filmed” on a mobile phone.

They were even found guilty of rape in cases where they aided and abetted another child to commit an attack.

A 15-year-old boy was found guilty of three counts of rape and four counts of taking indecent photographs of two victims who did not know each other. He will be subject to intense control and surveillance for 180 days.

The court heard his IQ was the same as “the bottom 1 per cent of his contemporaries” and he was diagnosed with ADHD. Another of the rapists (also 15) was diagnosed with ADHD and “long-standing anxiety”; It was stated that the third defendant, who is now 14 years old, has “mild cognitive impairment”.

Judge Nicholas Rowland told them: “None of you need to go to prison today.” In announcing his sentence, he stated that he wanted to support the boys’ reintegration into society, adding: “I must avoid unnecessarily criminalizing these children.”

He emphasized the “seriousness” of the boys’ crimes and said filming the attacks made them even more “serious”.

He added that he should remember that the boys were “very young”, their intelligence was low, their “understanding of consent was limited” and “peer pressure played a big part in what was going on”.

“I think you’re very young and none of you have ever been in any big trouble before,” he said. “You all did a great job with the restrictions imposed throughout the trial.”

Hampshire police and crime commissioner (PCC) Donna Jones said the sentences “offer little comfort to their victims”.

He added: “I am deeply concerned that these children think they can commit such horrific acts and share them online and not go to prison. Their sentences reflect a clear focus on rehabilitation rather than criminalisation. They are very lenient.”

The PCC added: “I will offer my support if victims and their families decide to appeal the sentences.”

Southampton Crown Court was told that in January 2025 the 14-year-old girl was threatened with a knife after being separated from her friends.

The woman, who was forced to leave her mobile phone and AirTag in a store so her movements could not be tracked, was forced to walk to a secluded area, where she was raped by two defendants who filmed the incident.

After she reported the assault to police, the investigation found that a second victim, aged 15, was raped by two of the same defendants in November 2024.

She had traveled alone to meet one of the boys for what she thought would be her first date after chatting with him on Snapchat.

Prosecutors said the victim was later raped by two boys in an underpass along the River Avon in Fordingbridge and video of her 90-minute ordeal was shared on social media, resulting in abusive messages.

The victim of the first incident came to court for the sentencing hearing and explained, in front of the boys, how her mental health had deteriorated since the incident.

He said: “I will never get that innocence back.”

He read aloud a poem he had written and said: “All I want to do is die, I don’t fear it coming anymore.”

In the statement read on behalf of the second victim, it was revealed that he now had difficulty going to school and was experiencing nightmares and insomnia. “I feel ashamed of my own body, insecure and uncomfortable,” she said. “The person I was before the incident is completely gone.”

The judge praised the courage of the two girls in coming forward and giving evidence.

Siobhan Blake, head of the Crown Prosecution Service’s Rape and Serious Sexual Offenses unit, said the incident was “extremely distressing” and part of a trend.

“Our prosecutors tell us they are seeing cases involving teenagers against teenagers, some of which involve more serious and violent behavior.

“It is vital that young people are educated and informed about consent, and that harmful and misogynistic attitudes are tackled as early as possible to prevent these crimes. Everyone has a role to play.

“Young people need to understand that sexual activity without consent is a serious offense that could lead to prosecution.”

Rebecca Hitchen, spokesperson for the Coalition to End Violence Against Women, said: “We are increasingly hearing about young men committing sexually violent crimes and this case is a terrible example of that.

“We must question what young men are being taught and what they are exposed to as a group that leads them to plan and carry out such horrific violence, especially given the additional harm and humiliation caused by the filmed attacks.”

He said sexual violence devastated the lives of victims and its effects spread through communities, “creating a heightened source of fear for women and girls trying to go about their daily lives.”

“While we do not know the online environments these children are exposed to, online misogyny is so pervasive that few young people can escape it. Questions must be asked about the extent to which misogynistic content online contributes to the extreme harm they do. While perpetrators are held accountable, we must also ensure that technology platforms are brought under scrutiny for their role in such harm,” she added.

All three boys were made subject to 10-year restraining orders against their victims.