"Victims of child exploitation and grooming will have their child prostitution convictions disregarded after years of appalling injustice. New measures announced by the government this week will see victims who were convicted or cautioned as children for loitering and soliciting for prostitution offences automatically have these disregarded and pardoned. Announcing the scheme, the Home Office acknowledged that instead of being supported as victims, those affected were criminalised for actions that occurred under duress, fear and coercion."
"In many such cases, the true criminals the adults who exploited them escaped prosecution, while the victims were left with the stain of permanent criminal records, the Home Office said. It added the measures, expected to help hundreds of people, would remove the lasting psychological burden, social stigma and barriers to employment and other freedoms these historic convictions have caused."
The Independent sends journalists to cover reproductive rights, climate change and Big Tech and rejects paywalls, asking for donations to keep reporting freely accessible. It produces documentaries like 'The A Word' that spotlight American women fighting for reproductive rights. The government will automatically disregard and pardon child prostitution convictions for victims of child exploitation and grooming who were convicted or cautioned as children for loitering and soliciting offences. The Home Office acknowledged victims were criminalised for actions under duress, fear and coercion while the adults who exploited them often escaped prosecution, and the measures aim to remove criminal records, stigma and barriers to employment.
Read at www.independent.co.uk
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