Local media banned from naming Skelmersdale Asbo teen

Local news media have been banned from naming a local teen who has been found guilty of breaking his Asbo 21 times. Local magistrates say he is protected by the 1933 Childrens Act and Article 8 of the Human Rights Act

The 17-year-old was given a 12-month community rehabilitation order for the latest breaches by Ormskirk magistrates last Thursday. But when the local paper wanted to name him in the public interest magistrates Steve Jones and Derek Ashcroft imposed a gagging order.

The boy had broken a curfew order given to him in March over allegations of handling stolen goods. G4S, the company responsible for monitoring the curfew, showed that he had not been at home for 13 nights between March 28 and April 9.

The magistrates  extended the boy's curfew to August 19 and ordered him to pay £103 costs. But his solicitor Michael Flynn told the court: “My client should be protected because he is a targeted individual. He should not be named because he has not been named over previous instances where he has breached his ASBO” - and the magistrates agreed. They said “Having heard representations from both parties, and reference to section 49 of the 1933 Childrens Act and to Article 8 of the Human Rights Act we are not satisfied that is it in the public interest to publish details of the defendant in relation to today’s proceedings.”

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