Jon Venables

Like most of the British population, I was sickened by the actions of the two children who killed Jamie Bulger. However, unlike most of the population, I could also understand that the children who tortured and killed the toddler were children themselves.

While at the age of ten, had they had the loving caring and supportive family life they should have had they would have known and understood what they were doing was very wrong, it is also clear that they did not have a good upbringing otherwise they would not have committed such an awful crime.

Therefore, as well as needing to be punished by having their liberty taken away, they also needed to be rehabilitated. As even if they were retained in prison, they had to be educated that abuse and bullying was not civilised. However, as they had been re-civilised by the time they were 18, it was probably the correct decision to release them, on licence, where they can be monitored, while keeping they away from the influence of other hardened criminals as would have happened had they entered an adult prison.

While I can understand the desire for revenge in the victims of crime, these were children that committed this horrific murder and even had there been the death penalty here in Britain, as children they would not have been executed. Therefore, it is doubtful that anything different would have happened to them regarding their release on licence.

Equally the vitriol thrown towards them by the populist press meant that it was right that they were given new identities. Not least to prevent two new murders taking place.

This was all old news until one of the trashy tabloids learnt that one of the boys, now a man of 27, had been recalled to prison under the terms of his licence. Thus the Ministry of Justice released a press release to the media. Probably in an attempt to prevent the media speculation that has unfortunately ensued. One of the effects of the media speculation could be that, if Jon Venables has committed a further crime, as the speculation says, any victim may not be able to get justice as Jon Venables may not be able to get a fair trial.

However, this is not just about the media over reacting and reporting speculation as facts, but about the way society has reacted. Although staying with the media for a moment, in a live interview on BBC radio, one former editor all but called for the public to take revenge by killing the young men as they are now. I was shocked to hear that, as no matter how heinous the crime, we must not have mob rule, or mob justice.

Then a few days latter there was a report that an innocent man has been driven into hiding as he resembles one of the boys. Fortunately, there are no pictures of them as young men, as wiser heads than me imposed an injunction preventing the media from publishing anything from that will identify them, their new identities nor where they live. Given the reaction from sections of the public, its a good job too.

The point is that, the system seems to have worked. Whatever Jon Venables has done to breach his licence, the monitoring picked up that breach and he was recalled to prison. As for the details, we have to wait for any court case when the facts will be revealed. Having the trashy tabloid media stirring up emotions and all but inciting people to murder, is a poor reflection upon our society.

Further, as there have been a series of stories in the media, regarding the lack of intervention by social services, often resulting in the children either being harmed or harming others, we should actually be calling for more children to get the help and rehabilitation that Jon Venables and Robert Thompson have had. As that way we really would reduce the cycle of learning to abuse that happens in society.

I am fully aware that my opinion here is a minority one, but compassion and protection has to be the norm within children's policy including the justice system.