The DPP told the PA news agency: “We had an instance where a family marched their 14-year-old to the police station, having seen on social media that that individual had been involved in the disorder.
“And actually, we took the decision that the wrath that had been visited on that child by his parents was more effective than anything the criminal justice system could deliver.”
In contrast, Mr Parkinson said the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) had come across families who regarded joining in with rioting as a “day out”.
Last Tuesday, the youngest person to appear in court over the riots was given a 12-month referral order and a three-month curfew after pleading guilty to violent disorder.
The 12-year-old boy, who cannot be named, threw two stones at police officers.
“Sometimes the state, I’m afraid, has to intervene,” Mr Parkinson said.
“And the consequence of an intervention like the 12-year-old is a referral order, which would then mean that rehabilitation can take place and we can divert them from the path of criminality.
“That’s the objective with youngsters, not to criminalise them, it’s to put them on the right path.”
