On 20 September 2008, he was held on suspicion of affray over a street fight with a man who claimed Venables had attacked his girlfriend. fun to be with". During the trial, the full horror of James' death emerged. Susan Venables, mother of Jon - referred to throughout the trial as Boy B - blamed her son's 'weakness' for the murder of James Bulger, and said he was going through torment. He commented that the work "is emphatically not a comedy" but instead "intended as a serious moral examination of what contemporary society is doing to children". [9] One of the boys threw the blue paint that they had shoplifted earlier into Bulger's left eye. Photograph: PA. Jon Venables' psychiatrist, Dr. Susan Bailey, later reported that 'on visiting and revisiting the issue with Jon as a child, and now as an adolescent, he gives no account of any sexual element to the offence. [43], The boys, by then aged 11, were found guilty of Bulger's murder at the Preston court on 24 November 1993, becoming the youngest convicted murderers of the 20th century. [34] The attempted abduction charge related to an incident at the New Strand Shopping Centre earlier on 12 February 1993, the day of Bulger's death. November 24: Robert Thompson and Jon Venables, now both aged 11, are convicted of James Bulger's murder following a 17-day trial at Preston Crown Court. The pathologist's report, which was read out in court, found that Bulger's foreskin had been forcibly pulled back. To many, these two women (the boys' fathers seem somehow to have been absolved of blame) were ultimately responsible for the death of the two-year-old abducted by their sons in the Strand shopping centre in Bootle. Venables faced two charges under the Protection of Children Act 1978. How [27], Thompson and Venables laid James Bulger across the railway tracks and weighted his head down with rubble, hoping that a train would hit him and his death would be ruled an accident. It was Jon Venables, not Robert Thompson, who had a record of violence, having attempted to throttle another boy at school. After the trial, Mr Justice Morland laid the moral responsibility squarely with the parents. "[35] The prosecution admitted a number of exhibits during the trial, including a box of 27 bricks, a blood-stained stone, Bulger's underpants, and the rusty iron bar described as a railway fishplate. The game's developer, Legacy Interactive, released a statement in which it apologised for the image's inclusion in the game; according to the statement, the image's use was "inadvertent", and took place "without any knowledge of the crime, which occurred in the UK, and was minimally publicised in the United States". In the picture, it is Venables who is holding James's hand. Whilst inside the A.R. Both men were charged with a public order offence, but this was later dropped. The evidence for it is limited to say the least. Thompson and Venables moved away from Liverpool after their sons' convictions eight years ago. On one occasion, he said, Robert ran off down the street laughing, "You can't catch me". Alex Davies-Jones Family: Children, Parents, Siblings, Husband. The first involved downloading 57 indecent pictures of children on to his computer between February 2009 and February 2010. This is often given as a driver for serial killers from extremely abusive and chaotic backgrounds. Cases of children and teenagers who murder are shocking and terrible, but unfortunately they do happen. A Ministry of Justice spokesman declined to comment on the reports. The posts were seen by 24,000 people. He did like to be liked, and loved to have friends, and he has got involved with the wrong person.". Were the duo shaped into monsters by their troubled upbringings? "[46] David Omand later criticised this decision and outlined the difficulties created by it in his 2010 review of the probation service's handling of the case. They were convicted after a 17-day trial and only then were their names and faces revealed. Upon seeing him, she was "paralysed with hatred", and was unable to confront him. The fifth of seven children, he proved as difficult to his mother as the rest of her progeny. He has been educated. April Jones: the largest missing person search in UK police history, Crime + Investigation Play - What to watch in May 2023, 6 terrifying facts about the Green River Killer. Jon had a reputation for violence at school, often against younger children. There was a need for an informed public debate on crimes committed by young children. he lived a very terrible childhood. He has had his holidays like everyone else. [111] He pleaded guilty to charges of downloading and distributing child pornography, and was sentenced to two years' imprisonment. And wasnt known to have been bullied at school at any point. The moment was caught on CCTV and became the defining image of a horrific case. Born evil: What drove James Bulger's underage killers? He is broken- hearted over it. [128] On 7 February, Venables pleaded guilty to possession of indecent images of children for a second time. That being the case, the chances of both boys suffering from it is minimal. The report is full of violent instances, with details of such incidents as Ann taking her third son Philip to the police station after he had threatened his older brother Ian with a knife. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. What happened to 'forgotten' James Bulger killer Robert Thompson Robert Thompson and Jon Venables were only 10 years old when they became the countrys youngest murderers in 250 years. A term first coined in the 1980s when a swathe of violent horror films made their way into peoples homes via the exciting new medium of VHS, video nasties made for a convenient scapegoat. [36] The boys denied the charges of murder, abduction and attempted abduction. [70] Denise married Stuart Fergus, with whom she had two sons. He had so many injuries it was hard to determine which had been fatal. 'I even went up to the railway line because I knew the other boy had a den up there and was on the railway nearly all the time.'. It was also revealed that Cheshire police had produced a "threat assessment" to try to establish what could happen to Venables were his new identity revealed. Vizard also said that Thompson was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder after the attack on Bulger. Had he gone on to lead such a life, that might have been the last the British public ever heard about Jon Venables. "My heart really goes out to them. I have lost my son as well. He has never really been what you would call a sagger off school (a truant). Lord Justice Nigel Davis said that the offence was "close to the line" for an immediate prison sentence but suspended the sentence, after observing an early admission of guilt and remorse by the woman. Video, On board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry, Met Gala 2023: Stars celebrate Karl Lagerfeld, HSBC says 1 bank buyout boosted profit by $1.5bn, Yellen warns US could run out of cash in a month, Shooting suspect was deported four times - US media, Palestinian hunger striker dies in Israel prison. [144], A storyline in Hollyoaks, set to begin in December 2009, was cancelled after the makers gave Bulger's mother Denise Fergus a special screening. Bulger killer Jon Venables jailed over indecent images of children He's a good reader if he's interested in it. Jon Venables was just 10 years old when he and friend Robert Thompson murdered toddler James Bulger. For they themselves will always feel guilty. But things were difficult. "[9] Prime Minister John Major said that "society needs to condemn a little more, and understand a little less. [94], Shortly before his 2001 release, when aged 17, Venables was alleged to have had sex with a woman who worked at the Red Bank secure unit where he was held. The Old Bailey also heard that in 2008 Venables had posed as a mother offering to sell her daughter for sex during three online chats. He is far from it. James Bulgers death. The ban relating to Venables was partially lifted on Friday at the Old Bailey after he was jailed for the offences under the 1978 Protection of Children Act. [63][64] It was reported that both boys "were given new identities and moved to secret locations under a 'witness protection'-style programme. [141][142] In August 2009, Australia's Seven Network used real footage of the abduction to promote its crime drama City Homicide. Jon did take the separation poorly, though. [34] Thompson is said to have asked police whether Bulger had been taken to hospital to "get him alive again. . The boys were taught to conceal their real names and the crime they had committed which resulted in their being in the units. [14], Each boy sat in view of the court on raised chairs so they could see out of the dock designed for adults, and were accompanied by two social workers and guards. Social worker who looked after But at the age of 27, Venables finds himself back in the headlines and back behind bars having been jailed for two years after pleading guilty to charges of downloading and distributing indecent images of children. I used to get them for myself at night time. The level of brutality involved in the sadistic killing was far beyond what anyone might imagine two primary school children to be capable of. He pleaded guilty to these charges. Robert Thompson and Jon Venables were only 10 years old when they became the countrys youngest murderers in 250 years. Little James was led away by the depraved duo while his mother was in a butcher's shop at the busy shopping centre. He has had more love and attention than a lot of children I know. Before their trial in November 1993, the press ferreted around the doorways and back alleys of Walton village, Liverpool, looking for any thing that might determine that these two 10-year-olds were indeed evil or the product of evil. [9] Throughout the day, Thompson and Venables were seen shoplifting various items, including sweets, batteries, a troll doll, and a can of blue Humbrol modelling paint. [24][31] When Thompson and Venables were questioned about this aspect of the attack by detectives and a child psychiatrist, Eileen Vizard, the pair were reluctant to give details. [135][136], In August 2001, a stage play titled The Age of Consent by Peter Morris was performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Jonathan Foster reports", "Drug dealer who found James Bulger's body jailed after crashing into family's car", "Death of James Bulger: Pt 4, Ten-Year-Old Suspects", "Death of James Bulger: Pt 5, Robert Denies, Jon Cries", "Liverpool Tries to Reconcile Murder and a Boy Next Door", "James Bulger documentary: Jon Venables so haunted by toddler victim he detected 'baby smell' on everything he wore, C5 show claims", "The secret meetings that set James's killers free", "Bulger ruling: If the defendants could not talk about their crime, how could they conduct a defence? Venables was later charged with three offences. After a number of "young girlfriends", it was presumed that Venables was having a delayed adolescence. As David James Smith, who interviewed Thompson, observed: "Ann lives in terror of being discovered by neighbours or anyone who might recognise her when she is out shopping. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. she said. [72][73] The Observer revealed that both Venables and Thompson had passed A-Levels during their sentences. [112] At the court hearing, it emerged that Venables had posed in online chat rooms as 35-year-old Dawn "Dawnie" Smith, a married woman from Liverpool who boasted about abusing her 8-year-old daughter, in the hope of obtaining further child sexual abuse material. "He is easily led. He pleaded guilty to these charges. Venables and Thompson were released from prison many years later and given new identities. He didn't want to hurt James. If they breached the rules or were deemed a risk to the public, they could be returned to prison. When the officer arrived at his flat, Venables was attempting to remove or destroy the hard drive of his computer with a knife and a tin opener. AI chatbots 'may soon be more intelligent than us', Russia troop deaths hit 20,000 in five months - US, The 17 most eye-catching looks at the Met Gala, Cat-and-mouse chase with China in hotly contested sea, The burden of being cricket legend Tendulkar's son, 'My wife and six children joined Kenya starvation cult', Indian officials wife distraught as his killer is freed, On board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry. Jon Venables was responsible for a sickening crime that horrified the nation. Thompson and Venables were charged on 20 February 1993 with abduction and murder. Mr Venables said it had never crossed their minds that the video pictures from the security cameras in the shopping centre from which James went missing showed their own son. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. [7] Venables was detained in Vardy House, a small eight-bedded unit at Red Bank secure unit in St. Helens on Merseyside. But was it the parents' fault? A lifetime ban was placed on reporting anything about either his or Thompson's whereabouts or their new identities after their release. ", James Bulger's killers are once again being branded monsters. document.write(new Date().getFullYear()) Later, a TV and games console were added, and in his teenage years he decorated the walls with prints of paintings by L.S. Some seven years later, the Court of Human Rights would rule that they should never have been tried in an adult court. To find out what drove these two young children to such depravity, we must look, not only into the boys' backgrounds but also examine the wider issue of what motivates people in general - regardless of age - to carry out such abhorrent, deviant and wicked acts. [4], Up to 500 protesters gathered at the Magistrates' Court in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton during the boys' initial court appearances. The report was ultimately dismissed; however, his lack of remorse at the time, in stark contrast to Venables, led to considerable scrutiny from the parole panel. Jon Venables Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty . He said a public debate about the parenting and family background of Thompson and Venables was required. The order, and its enforcement, is therefore intended to protect not only Venables and Thompson, but also those members of the public who have been incorrectly identified as being one of the two men. Jon Venables was just 10 years old when he and friend Robert Thompson murdered toddler James Bulger. The nurture side can exacerbate the condition, but this abnormality of brain function is primarily an inherited, DNA-caused condition. The court dismissed their claim that the trial was inhuman and degrading treatment but upheld their claim they were denied a fair trial by the nature of the court proceedings. Ann Thompson had been deserted by her husband five years before the killing of Jamie Bulger, and in the week after he left the family home burned down in an accidental fire. Some of the grislier details of the murder of Jamie Bulger may indicate this here to a lesser degree, but while that was a working theory of Merseyside Police for a time, its not widely believed to be a motivator now. You know, we just try and help him as best we can to try to come to terms with things. 'I think about little James and what he must have gone through, how they must feel. Three months later, police cautioned him for possessing cocaine, and a requirement was added to his licence ordering him to address his alcohol and drug problems, the court was told. A mental disorder where a person manifests completely amoral behaviour and a lack of ability to love or empathise, psychopathy is the root of many of historys most infamous crimes. Head trauma, autism and childhood abuse more common in killers, study finds, In October of 2012, a little girl from Machynlleth, Powys, Wales, vanished after being sighted willingly climbing into a car near her home. v. Secretary of State for the Home Department, Ex parte V. and Reg. But he also laid blame with their parents, calling for a public debate about "the home background, upbringing, family circumstances, parental behaviour and relationships" of children who commit "grave crimes". Thompson and Venables had attempted to lead away another two-year-old boy, but had been prevented by the boy's mother. In passing sentence, Deputy High Bailiff Alastair Montgomerie said that the teenager had "put that person at significant risk of serious harm" and in a "perilous position" by making the allegation. [4][95] A spokesman for St Helens Borough Council denied that the incident had been covered up, saying: "All allegations were thoroughly investigated by an independent team on the orders of the Home Office and chaired by Arthur de Frischling, a retired prison governor. The man's computer was seized for further investigations. [13][14] The moment was caught on CCTV at 15:42. [75], The Manchester Evening News published details that suggested the names of the secure institutions in which the pair were housed, in breach of the injunction against publicity that had been renewed early in 2001. [4], In 1999, lawyers for Thompson and Venables appealed to the European Court of Human Rights that the boys' trial had not been impartial, since they were too young to follow proceedings and understand an adult court. [97] On 7 March, media reports said that he had been accused of child pornography offences. Could the pair of them have sought out a younger boy in order to gain dominion over him? Born evil: What drove James Bulger's underage killers? According to BBC legal correspondent Clive Coleman, the purpose of the prosecution was to ensure that the public was aware that Internet users were also subject to the law of contempt. [109][110] On 23 July, Venables appeared at a court hearing at the Old Bailey via a video link, visible only to the judge hearing the case. More horrific still was the revelation that his killers were only children themselves, 10 year olds Jon Venables and Robert Thompson. A spokesman commented: "There are many different images circulating online claiming to be of Venables or Thompson; potentially innocent individuals may be wrongly identified as being one of the two men and placed in danger. Merseyside police clearly didn't like her and briefed the press that her manner in the interview room was inhibiting the confession of her newly-arrested son. [47][118] Venables was eligible for parole in July 2011. The author Blake Morrison obtained notes from an NSPCC case conference on the Thompson family. [4] Details of the boys' lives were recorded twice daily on running sheets and signed by the member of staff who had written them; the records were stored at the units and copied to officials in Whitehall. He has had Christmas presents. Venables was formally warned by the Probation Service for breaking a "good behaviour" clause in his licence. Case notes observe that her "serious depressive problem" made Venables suicidal. Yet these are haunted by the fear of being found and blamed all over again. [37] These aspects were later criticised by the European Court of Human Rights, which ruled in 1999 that they had not received a fair trial by being tried in public in an adult court. [9][68][69] In 2001, Blunkett stated: "The injunction was granted because there was a real and strong possibility that their lives would be at risk if their identities became known. [48] This campaign was successful, and Howard announced in July 1994 that the boys would be kept in custody for a minimum of fifteen years,[48][49] meaning that they would not be considered for release until February 2008, by which time they would be 25 years old. Venables's identity uncovered before news of breach "You look at him and you say to yourself, 'How could you be involved in anything like this?'" ]]> The breakthrough came when a woman, upon seeing slightly enhanced images of the two boys on national television, recognised Venables, and remembered seeing him playing truant with Thompson in the Bootle area that day. Mr Venables said that the two boys had played truant together four times before, adding that he caught them twice. The parents of the accused were moved to different parts of the country and assumed new identities following death threats from vigilantes. I wish we could turn the clocks back,' Mrs Profile: Jon Venables - BBC News Venables' parents regularly visited their son at Red Bank, just as Thompson's mother did, every three days, at Barton Moss. Little James was led away by The Venables household was also fraught but contrastingly so. Venables served seven years of a life sentence for the 1993 murder before he was freed in June 2001, aged 18. I would get him something like a cartoon.". A lifetime ban was placed on reporting anything about either his or Thompson's whereabouts or their new identities after their release. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of Terms and Conditions. It was a place that left a moral vacuum for two children who would go on to kill and leave the unanswered question: why did they do it? The editors of The Sun handed a petition bearing nearly 280,000 signatures to Michael Howard, the Home Secretary, in a bid to increase the time spent by both boys in custody. Venables later described how Bulger seemed to like him, holding his hand and allowing him to pick him up on the meandering journey to the scene of his murder. Quite obviously, overseeing a home environment in which physical, emotional, verbal and sexual violence is rife is bad parenting. But can such guilt be so neatly apportioned? Faced with the near-inconceivability of the crime itself, and two suspects below the age at which the law judges young people as morally capable, the media and the public needed surrogate criminals to bear the blame, to be the object of their sense of outrage and desire for retribution. The Ministry of Justice declined to comment on the reports. In court, Venables was the more emotional of the two defendants, crying openly and leaning against the shoulder of his social worker. Recollections from key people involved in the Bulger trial, ten years on. "What he's done is wrong so he needs to be punished. "He tends to be a bit hyperactive so his concentration did go a bit, but apart from that he is quite bright, no worries.". The image in question is the CCTV frame of Bulger being led away by Thompson and Venables. But in damaged children that are easily influenced? [7], On 2 March 2010, the Ministry of Justice revealed that Venables had been returned to prison for an unspecified violation of the terms of his licence of release. After they left the scene, his body was cut in half by a train. [11], That same afternoon, James Bulger, from Kirkby, went with his mother, Denise, to the New Strand Shopping Centre. [4] Finally, the boys dropped a 10kg (22lb) railway fishplate on Bulger. 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