He was a little past 13. And she was just shy of her 12th birthday.

They connected on social media, arranging a middle school meet up that ended in sexual contact. After, they both said "I love you."

Two days later, she accused him of sexual assault — a charge he denied.

The age of consent

The trial that followed saw the boy acquitted in a shocking case that highlights issues of sex between minors and exceptions to the age of consent in Canada.

The details are contained in a provincial court decision handed down this July, but only recently posted online. The location of the court and the city where the incident happened — somewhere in B.C. — have been redacted in accordance with the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

According to a provincial court decision, the two met on social media in

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