England: Criminal bar chief calls for ‘sexting’ offences to be dealt with out of court

The chairman of the Criminal Bar Association has said “sexting” offences should be tackled outwith the courts.

Francis Fitzgibbon QC told The Times that cases “where young people are fooling about” could be removed from the trial process.

He advocated restorative justice instead, in which victims meet offenders so long as the victims consent.

Mr Fitzgibbon, of Doughty Street Chambers, said: “It’s a matter of proportionality - each case would have to be scrutinised extremely carefully.

“I am not belittling sexting, these things can be very damaging to victims. But there may be a better way of dealing with it than putting people on trial and giving them sentences.”

The barrister, whose practice consists of serious crime and terrorism, also warned that cautions still brought offenders within the criminal justice system.

“Cautions are quite a big deal. I am not saying it could be done as a blanket policy and it would only be if the victim signed up,” he said.