A 10-year-old boy accused of raping an eight-year-old boy at knifepoint may withdraw his guilty plea after concerns were raised about his capacity to understand the court process.
The boy, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was in Perth Children's Court on Wednesday - sitting quietly on a chair beside his lawyer as his fitness to plea was discussed.
He had previously pleaded guilty to sexually penetrating a child and threatening to kill following an incident where he is alleged to have raped an eight-year-old boy in a local park at knifepoint in December.
Magistrate Andree Horrigan has requested a psychiatric report be prepared for the court before she decides if the earlier plea can be set aside, describing the boy as being at a "very tender age".
His lawyer requested the psychiatrist be provided with a copy of the police interview video with the boy as it was "quite telling" and contains information that may assist in their assessment of his capacity.
The boy, accompanied by his grandfather, nodded when asked if he understood what was happening and his bail conditions.
At 10-years-old, he is the youngest age someone can be considered criminally responsible.
The boy will reappear in court on May 12.
After learning of the boy's offences, concerned parents threatened to take their children out of the school if the offending child was not removed, leading the Department of Education to find alternative schooling for the boy away from other students.
The school said it was bound by privacy laws and unable to tell parents about the child's offences, but had two staff supervising him at all times.
Some parents, however, disputed that he was always supervised after learning of his offences.
"When it comes to someone at such a young age, everybody in the government, police etc, just really don't know how to handle it," a parent said during a meeting of concerned parents on February 21.
"Just try to get the rules and law balanced a bit more, balanced a bit more to the victims, to the innocent and the community rather than the perpetrator."
Under state government laws, juvenile offenders' identities are protected and schools are often left with their hands tied if a child has a violent conviction against their name.
A Department of Education spokeswoman has previously said it is an offence for anyone, including a school, to publish information which could lead to the identification of a child involved in court proceedings.
"WA's School Education Act guarantees the right of every child to an education, irrespective of a range of factors, which may include criminal charges," she said.
Under Western Australian law, a person aged under the age of ten cannot be charged with a criminal offence.
The 10-year-old boy's hearing comes after WAtoday revealed another convicted child rapist, 17, and an accused child rapist, 12, were attending a religious school south of Perth.
The 17-year-old was last month sentenced to a 12-month intensive youth supervision order in the Perth Children's Court in relation to three counts of sexual penetration of a child under 13 and four counts of indecent dealings with a child under 13.
WAtoday understands most of the offences related to a 12-year-old male victim at the same school as the teenager, who he groomed over an extended period.
The 12-year-old victim has also been charged with one count of sexual penetration against the nine-year-old boy and is expected to enter a plea to the charge next month.
The mother of the nine-year-old alleged victim and other parents at the school are appealing for the law to be changed to prevent convicted sex offenders from returning to schools.
Meanwhile, a panel of experts testifying at the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse on Tuesday said young people who abuse need better support.
Forensic psychologist Jessica Pratley told the inquiry that children who harm others "have their own vulnerabilities" and isolating them can put them at further risk.
"Unfortunately, what we sometimes see is quite an extreme reaction ... and sometimes that extreme reaction can be quite counterproductive to that young person's recovery," Ms Pratley said.
"A child who is attending school, for example, where the school says that every recess, every lunchtime, this child has to sit outside the principal's office and can't socialise with other children.
"That's viewed as being a protective strategy but actually isolates that child further and increases their risk and their likelihood to use inappropriate coping strategies."
