In the UK, there is a broad legal framework that has been designed and implemented with the overarching aim of keeping children safe from sexual abuse.
This framework includes a wide variety of acts, from those involving the abuse of children themselves to those involving the normalisation and depiction of acts of sexual activity, regardless of specific victims.
Part of this includes the criminalisation of indecent images, but what does that actually mean? In this article, we take a broad look at the related offences, from the Acts involved to sentencing guidelines.
The legal definition of indecent images
Offences involving indecent images aren’t singularly defined, and they aren’t cleanly dealt with in just a single act. Rather, these offences are defined across the Sexual Offences Act 2003, the Protection of Children Act 1978, and the Criminal Justice Act 1988.
According to the Protection of Children Act 1978 (and its amendment through the Sexual Offences Act 2003), it is an offence to make, take, circulate or possess with the intention to distribute any indecent photographs of children. This has been amended since the original creation of the act, to also include pseudo-photographs, including AI-created images. In these contexts, a child is anyone under the age of 18 years of age.
Section 160 of the Criminal Justice Act extends this offence, to make possession of these images an offence of its own.
The role of the court in deciding indecency
Whether or not the image in question is considered indecent will sometimes be decided by a jury or magistrate, using an objective test. This does not mean that they will use their own moral or subjective judgement, but rather that they will judge it based on reasonable contemporary standards.
In many cases, the image will already have been ‘graded’ by the police, through image databases like the Child Abuse Image Database (CAID). As a result, contesting the indecency of the images involved in the trial will rarely be a primary concern of the court.
Categories of indecent images
When it comes to sentencing, indecent images are typically placed into one of three categories – A, B, or C.
- Category A images are the most serious, involving penetrative sexual activities, sadism, or sexual acts involving an animal.
- Category B images are all those involving non-penetrative sexual acts.
- Category C images are those which are still indecent, but do not fall into either categories A or B.
In most cases, moving images (videos, for example) are treated as more serious offences compared to still photographs. This is due to their tendency to capture more sustained scenes of distress and abuse.
The CAID allows the police to compare images that they’ve seized with other images that have already been assessed (by at least three different police forces) to make these categorisations. Nowadays, these comparisons are carried out via a combination of AI tools and specially trained officers.
Sentencing guidelines
The sentencing guidelines illustrate just how seriously these offences are considered by the legal system.
Those found guilty of the crime of possession of indecent photographs of a child under Section 160 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 can face a maximum sentence of 5 years in prison, with an offence range of between a community order and 3 years in prison.
Those found guilty of the more serious offence of indecent photographs of children under Section 1 of the Protection of Children Act 1978 (which pertains to making and sharing rather than just possessing indecent images) can face a maximum sentence of up to 10 years in prison, with an offence range of between a community order and 9 years in prison.
How sentencing is decided
When it comes to sentencing, the severity of a specific offence is determined by assessing both the category of the image(s) involved and whether the offender possessed, distributed, or produced the images involved.
The most serious offences will be those involving category A images (those involving sexual acts that include penetration, sadism or animals) where the offender is also responsible or involved in their production. Here, the sentencing starting point is 6 years’ custody, with a category range of 4 to 9 years’ custody.
The least serious offences will be those involving category C images, where the offender is only guilty of possessing those images, but not of their distribution or production. In these situations, the sentencing starting point is a high-level community order, with a category range of between a medium-level community order and 26 weeks’ custody.
Other impacting factors
There will also be a range of both aggravating and mitigating factors that can influence sentencing.
Aggravating factors that can lead to a higher sentence include those where the child was particularly young or vulnerable, large numbers of images, or situations where the child was either drugged or intoxicated.
Mitigating factors that may lead to a reduced sentence include those where the offender is of otherwise good character, where there is a mental disorder involved, or where there have been clear, demonstrable steps that have been taken to address the offending behaviour.
Your legal team will be able to assess which of these factors might be applicable and include them in any defence strategy you decide to pursue.
Defending these cases
If you are charged with an offence involving indecent images, or believe that you may currently be under investigation, it is imperative that you seek legal counsel from an experienced criminal defence solicitor as soon as reasonably possible.
Your legal team will be able to advise you before and during any interviews under caution with the police, and instruct experts to potentially review and then challenge the ways in which images in your case have been categorised.
The sooner you reach out for legal assistance, the bigger the potential positive impact on your case. These offences often involve a lot of social stigma, but it is crucial that you do not delay seeking legal advice. The longer you and your legal team have to work together on building your defence, the better the outcome will likely be.
Facing charges or need further advice? We can help. Call our team now on 0161 234 0020 (Manchester) /0203 053 8625 (London) / 07956 555979 (24 hour). You can also contact our team at Ashcott Solicitors via our contact form. We will respond to you as soon as possible.
