A 16-year-old girl from Vancouver Island is at the centre of a potentially precedent-setting case that could decide whether youth sexting constitutes child pornography.
The Saanich high schooler, who can’t be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, is accused of sharing nude photos of her boyfriend’s former girlfriend.
She’s facing trial later this year on counts of possessing and distributing child pornography, charges her lawyer Christopher Mackie said amount to age discrimination.
“The conduct that’s being alleged is lawful for adults to engage in,” Mackie told CTV News Wednesday.
“There’s nothing criminal at this stage about adults forwarding sexts they’ve received to others. Presently, however, that could be termed child pornography if it’s conducted by a youth.”
Mackie has launched a constitutional challenge against the charges, but a Youth Justice Court judge ruled Thursday that the case must be heard before the challenge can move forward.
“For the court, it sounds like it’s important to have some of the factual context to ultimately decide on the constitutional question,” Mackie said.
The accused’s mother, who also can’t be named, said the education system is failing teenagers by not properly informing them about the consequences of sending and sharing sexual images.
She said a courtroom is not the place for her daughter, who has been left devastated by the charges.
“She’s a shell of the child she was. She was an accomplished athlete, musician, social butterfly. She was very outgoing, and she’s no longer any resemblance of that child,” she told reporters outside court.
Mackie argued child pornography legislation was designed to combat pedophiles, and crafted long before the age of smart phones and sexting.
If his client is found guilty but the case is overturned by a constitutional challenge, Mackie said there will be repercussions across Canada.
With a report from CTV British Columbia’s Lisa Rossington
