Jon Venables Face And Name Revealed
BECAUSE someone has posted what he claims to be photos of Jon Venables on the internet, one of James Bulger’s killers will have to be given a new identity and be re-housed (he was living in Cheshire).
A spokesman for the Ministry of Justice says:
“Such a change of identity is extremely rare and granted only when the police assess that there is clear and credible evidence of a sustained threat to the offender’s life on release into the community.”
The Sun reports:
The activist, who again The Sun cannot name, said: “The picture has now been seen by millions. I don’t believe Jon Venables or any convicted sex offender has the right to anonymity or a protected identity. It is the public that needs protection.”
How is the public protected by being shown photos of a man the State says cannot be named nor revealed for his own safety? Have we lost faith in the system and the rule of law, achieved by consensus?
The Liverpool Post reports:
Ralph Bulger, James’ dad, was not at the Old Bailey yesterday to see Venables jailed for two years.
But his solicitor Robin Makin was there on his behalf and believes the authorities have to answer for their actions.
He also said they had hoped Venables would be given an indefinite jail term for public protection (IPP).
Mr Makin said: “No-one has taken into account the danger this man poses. The public was not protected in this case.
“We are upset because no-one considered a sexual element in the original crime, the murder of James, so it could not be brought up here to show past history…
“It was a ticking timebomb waiting to go off, putting him so close to Liverpool and to the scene of it all. It will only have upped the pressure. They gave him a new identity but if he was so close, that cannot have helped.”
What now..?
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James Bulger the 2 year old boy who went missing in the Bootle area of Liverpool. 2/2/01 Proceedings which could decide the release of the killers of toddler James were getting under way in private. * Lawyers for Robert Thompson and Jon Venables, both 18, were presenting their arguments before a parole board hearing, held at a secret location believed to be somewhere in London, for the first time. The killers were not at the preliminary hearing but were being informed of its outcome at the separate secure accommodation centres in northern England where they have been since their convictions for James' murder in 1993. The three-strong parole board panel was today listening to legal arguments, examining reports and dossiers and discussing which witnesses are required for the full hearing. * 3/12/93 3 youths being questioned. 4/5/93 Two 10yr olds pleaded not guilty to the abduction and murder of James. 31/10/93 Boys go on trial 24/11/93 Court verdict 25/5/94 12/6/97 Home Secretary Michael Howard to increase the sentence to 15 years Undated library filer of murdered toddler James Bulger, from Liverpool. 30/07/1996 - James Bulgers killers Jon Venables and Robert Thompson were sentenced to indefinite life sentences. 12/06/97: The House of Lords is due to rule on whether former Home Secretary Michael Howard was right to increase the sentences of the two boys convicted of James' murder from eight to fifteen years. 06/03/98: Lawyers for Robert Thompson and Jon Venables, the two boys convicted of murdering James, are taking their case to the European Commission of Human Rights, claiming they were not given a fair trial. 16/12/1999 - Thw Euorpean Court of Human Rights rules that Jon Venables and Robert Thompson were given an unfair trial. Judges ruled that the environment of an adult court and the intense publicity surrounding the trial prejudiced the hearing and breached human rights 12/3/00 British shadow home secretary Ann Widdecombe reacted with 'great disappointment' to news that killers of toddler James Bulger could be freed in three years. She said the Bulger family would be 'devastated' by moves to release Robert Thompson and Jon Venables so soon after the 1993 murder of the two-year-old on a Liverpool railway line. The Home Office has refused to comment on reports that Home Secretary Jack Straw will this week announce he will stand by the minimum 10-year sentences set by the Lord Chief Justice. 8/1/2001: Family Division President Dame Elizabeth Butler-Sloss ruled that the boys identities and whereabouts must be kept confidential for the rest of their lives. 20/6/01: The Parole Board was beginning its deliberations on the second schoolboy killer of toddler James Bulger. Robert Thompson, now 18, was due to attend the meeting at a secret location after the panel completed its examination of his partner in the February 1993 murder, Jon Venables. Both could be freed within days if the panel decides they are no longer a risk to the public. 20/06/01 The Parole Board was, beginning its deliberations on the second schoolboy killer of toddler James Bulger. Robert Thompson, now 18, was due to attend the meeting at a secret location after the panel completed its examination of his partner in the February 1993 murder, Jon Venables. Both could be freed within days if the panel decides they are no longer a risk to the public. The pair were just 10 when they abducted two-year-old James from the Strand shopping precinct in Bootle, Merseyside, before torturing him and battering him to death on a railway line. *07/08/2001....Undated handout family collect photo of murdered boy James Bulger. A controversial comedy centered on a teenager who abducts and kills a child was, taking to the stage at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The Age of Consent has faced a barrage of criticism by some people who say the story is too similar to that of James Bulger. The play by award-winning writer Peter Morris tells the story of a toddler's murder through the eyes of teenage killer Timmy. 12/2/03: Thousands of Merseysiders were expected to observe a one-minute silence, to mark the tenth anniversary of the murder of toddler James Bulger. The Liverpool Town Hall flag was being flown at half-mast in memory of the two-year-old Kirkby boy whose battered body was found on an isolated railway line.
Spotter: Karen
Posted: 4th, May 2011 | In: Reviews Comments (133) | TrackBack | Permalink