{{short description|1993 child murder in Liverpool, England}} {{about|the 1993 murder in England|the 2018 killing in the United States|Whitey Bulger#Death}} {{Use British English|date=February 2020}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2018}} {{Infobox civilian attack | title = Murder of James Bulger | location = [[Walton, Liverpool]], England | date = {{start date and age|df=yes|1993|02|12}} | image = James bulger.jpg | caption = James Bulger | type = [[Child-on-child murder]] by [[bludgeoning]], [[torture murder]], [[Child abduction|kidnapping]], [[mutilation]], [[dismemberment]] | weapons = Bricks, stones, [[fishplate]], others | victim = James Bulger | perpetrators = {{plainlist| * Robert Thompson *Jon Venables }} | motive = Inconclusive | verdict = [[Guilt (law)|Guilty]] | convictions = [[Murder in English law|Murder]], [[Kidnapping|abduction]] {{Infobox event | title = | child = yes | sentence = [[Life imprisonment in England and Wales|Indefinite sentence]] in [[His Majesty's Young Offender Institution|juvenile detention]] ([[parole]]d after 8 years) }} }} On 12 February 1993 in [[Merseyside]], England, two 10-year-old boys, '''Robert Thompson''' and '''Jon Venables''', abducted, tortured, and murdered a two-year-old boy, '''James Patrick Bulger''' (16 March 1990<ref name="CNN">{{Cite news |date=22 June 2001 |title=The killers and the victims |publisher=CNN |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/06/21/bulger.profiles/ |url-status=live |access-date=8 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100328110337/http://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/06/21/bulger.profiles/ |archive-date=28 March 2010 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> – 12 February 1993).<ref name="legal">{{cite web |url=http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/legalprof/tariffs/tariff_t_v.htm |website= hmcourts-service.gov.uk |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051226231440/http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/legalprof/tariffs/tariff_t_v.htm |url-status= dead |archive-date=26 December 2005 |title=Thompson & Venables Recommendations as to Tariffs to the Secretary of State for Home Affairs |date=26 October 2000 |access-date=}}</ref><ref name="STM">{{Cite journal |author=Smith, David James |title=The Secret Life of a Killer |journal=[[The Sunday Times Magazine]] |url=http://www.pressawards.org.uk/userfiles/files/Winners2011/entries-301100613-01445.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131112145748/http://www.pressawards.org.uk/userfiles/files/Winners2011/entries-301100613-01445.pdf |url-status= dead |archive-date=12 November 2013 |pages= 22–34 |date=3 April 2011}}</ref> Thompson and Venables led Bulger away from the [[New Strand Shopping Centre]] in [[Bootle]], where Bulger was visiting shops with his mother. His mutilated body was found on a railway line {{convert|2+1/2|mi|km|0|abbr=off}} away in [[Walton, Liverpool]], two days later.

Thompson and Venables were found guilty of abduction and murder on 24 November, making them the [[youngest convicted murderers]] in modern British history. They were sentenced to indefinite detention at [[Her Majesty's pleasure]], and remained in custody until a [[Parole Board for England and Wales|Parole Board]] decision in June 2001 recommended their release on a [[Life imprisonment in England and Wales#Parole|life licence]] at age 18.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/bulger-killers-to-be-released-on-parole-9274011.html |title=Bulger killers to be released on parole |date=22 June 2001 |work=The Independent |access-date=7 February 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180208005901/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/bulger-killers-to-be-released-on-parole-9274011.html |archive-date=8 February 2018 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Venables was sent to prison in 2010 for possessing [[child pornography]] images on his computer, was released on parole again in 2013, before being returned to prison in November 2017 for the same offence. His 2023 appeals for parole were rejected.

The case has prompted widespread debate about how to handle [[young offender]]s when they are sentenced or released from custody.<ref name= "yorkshirepost">{{cite web |url=http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/opinion/Paul-Firth-A-question-of.6121871.jp |title=A question of release and redemption as Bulger killer goes back into custody |last=Firth |first=Paul |date=3 March 2010 |work=[[Yorkshire Post]] |publisher=[[Johnston Press]] |access-date= 8 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180211083407/https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/opinion/paul-firth-a-question-of-release-and-redemption-as-bulger-killer-goes-back-into-custody-1-2564012 | archive-date=11 February 2018}}</ref>

== Abduction == [[File:Bulger cctv.jpg|right|thumb|upright|Shopping centre CCTV still image of Bulger’s abduction (Venables holding Bulger's hand, Thompson in front)]] [[Closed-circuit television]] (CCTV) at the New Strand Shopping Centre in [[Bootle]] on 12 February 1993 showed Thompson and Venables casually observing children, apparently selecting a target.<ref name="bbc_parole">{{Cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/991849.stm |title=Bulger killers eligible for release |date=26 October 2000 |publisher=BBC |access-date=16 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021224220018/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/991849.stm |archive-date=24 December 2002 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> The boys were playing [[truant]] from their primary school, which they did regularly.<ref name=odnb>{{cite ODNB |last=Davenport-Hines |first=Richard |title=Bulger James Patrick (1990–1993), Oxford Dictionary of National Biography |url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/76074 |year=2004 |doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/76074 |access-date=2 October 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924161916/http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/76074 |archive-date=24 September 2015 |df=dmy-all}} (''Subscription Required'')</ref> 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.<ref name="trutv_1">{{cite web |last=Scott |first=Shirley |title=Death of James Bulger: Pt 1, The Video Tape |url=http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090121191737/http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=21 January 2009 |date=29 August 2009 |publisher=[[truTV]].com |access-date=29 August 2009}}</ref> One of the boys later said that before they abducted Bulger, they were planning to abduct a child, lead him to the busy road alongside the shopping centre, and push him into the oncoming traffic.<ref>{{cite web |last=Blease |first=Stephen |title=Young know what is wrong |url=http://www.nwemail.co.uk/young_know_what_is_wrong_1_517280?referrerPath=write_stuff_2_1793 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605084111/http://www.nwemail.co.uk/young_know_what_is_wrong_1_517280?referrerPath=write_stuff_2_1793 |url-status=dead |archive-date=5 June 2011 |date=23 February 2009 |publisher=[[North-West Evening Mail]] |access-date=29 August 2009}}</ref>

That same afternoon, two-year-old James Bulger, from [[Kirkby]], was at the New Strand Shopping Centre with his mother, Denise. At approximately 15:40, while in A.R.&nbsp;Tym's butcher's shop on the lower floor, Denise momentarily let go of James's hand to pay for her shopping and discovered he was missing.<ref name="STM" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Sharratt |first=Tom |title=James Bulger 'battered with bricks' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/02/bulger.tomsharratt |date=2 November 1993 |work=The Guardian |access-date=11 March 2010 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105092508/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/02/bulger.tomsharratt |archive-date=5 November 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Thompson and Venables had approached Bulger, taken him by the hand, and led him out of the shopping centre.<ref name="bbc_cctv">{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/991562.stm |title=Every parent's nightmare |author=McKay, Mike |work=BBC News |date=26 October 2000 |access-date=2 October 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120302174804/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/991562.stm |archive-date=2 March 2012 |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="trutv_2">{{cite web |last=Scott |first=Shirley |title=Death of James Bulger: Pt 2, Abduction |url=http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/2.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081002060559/http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/2.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2 October 2008 |publisher=[[truTV]].com |access-date=12 March 2010}}</ref> This act was caught on CCTV at 15:42.<ref name="cctv">{{Cite news |date=2002-08-13 |title=CCTV: Does it work? |work=[[BBC News]]|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/2071496.stm |url-status=live |access-date=2023-04-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100731065002/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/2071496.stm |archive-date=31 July 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.webdoodles.org/webimages/bulger_cctv.jpg |title=Uncropped Mothercare CCTV still of the abduction, showing the timestamp at 15:42:32 |access-date=15 January 2012 |archive-date=6 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120306165447/http://www.webdoodles.org/webimages/bulger_cctv.jpg |url-status=live }}</ref>

Thompson and Venables took Bulger to the [[Leeds and Liverpool Canal]], around {{convert|1/4|mi|m|abbr=off}} from the New Strand Shopping Centre. There, they dropped him on his head, causing facial injuries, and joked about pushing him into the canal.<ref name="odnb" /><ref name="trutv_3">{{cite web |last=Scott |first=Shirley |title=Death of James Bulger: Pt 3, The Trial |url=http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/3.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081002060604/http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/3.html |archive-date=2 October 2008 |access-date=29 August 2009 |publisher=[[truTV]]}}</ref> An eyewitness later described Bulger at the canal as "crying his eyes out".<ref name="guardian_bystanders">{{Cite news |last=Pilkington |first=Edward |date=5 November 1993 |title=James Bulger in distress, say passers-by |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/05/bulger |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221080344/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/05/bulger |archive-date=21 December 2016 |work=The Guardian |location=London |df=dmy-all}}</ref> The boys took Bulger on a {{convert|adj=on|2+1/2|mi|km|0|abbr=off}} walk across Liverpool, during which they were seen by around 38 people; however, most bystanders did not intervene.<ref name="guardian_bystanders" /><ref name="bystanders">{{Cite news |date=9 November 1993 |title=Schoolboy tells of James Bulger's tears: Children said murder case victim was a brother, court told |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/schoolboy-tells-of-james-bulgers-tears-children-said-murder-case-victim-was-a-brother-court-told-1503012.html?cmp=ilc-n |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107021326/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/schoolboy-tells-of-james-bulgers-tears-children-said-murder-case-victim-was-a-brother-court-told-1503012.html?cmp=ilc-n |archive-date=7 November 2012 |access-date=25 March 2010 |work=The Independent |location=London |df=dmy-all}}</ref> When questioned, Thompson and Venables claimed that Bulger was either their brother or a lost child they were taking to a police station.<ref name="thetimes">{{Cite news |last=Coslett |first=Paul |date=4 December 2006 |title=Murder of James Bulger |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/liverpool/content/articles/2006/12/04/local_history_bulger_feature.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090602205545/http://www.bbc.co.uk/liverpool/content/articles/2006/12/04/local_history_bulger_feature.shtml |archive-date=2 June 2009 |publisher=BBC |df=dmy-all}}</ref> At one point, the boys took Bulger into a pet shop, from which they were ejected.<ref name="trutv_6">{{cite web |last=Scott |first=Shirley |date=29 August 2009 |title=Death of James Bulger: Pt 6, The Trial |url=http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/6.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081002060620/http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/6.html |archive-date=2 October 2008 |access-date=29 August 2009 |publisher=[[truTV]].com}}</ref>

== Torture and murder == Eventually, the boys arrived in [[Walton, Liverpool|Walton]]. With Walton Lane Police Station across the road, they hesitated, then led Bulger up a steep bank to a railway line near the former [[Walton & Anfield railway station]].<ref name="odnb" /> One of the boys threw the blue paint that they had shoplifted earlier into Bulger's left eye.<ref name="blue paint">{{Cite news |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/feb/09/bulger.childprotection |title=Ten years on |first=Euan |last=Ferguson |date=9 February 2003 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170510175640/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/feb/09/bulger.childprotection |archive-date=10 May 2017 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> They kicked him, stamped on him, and threw bricks and stones at him. They forced batteries into Bulger's mouth<ref name="bulger_murder">{{cite web |last=Mikkelson |first=Barbara |date=21 July 2001 |title=Murder of Jamie Bulger |url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/jamie-bulger/ |access-date=26 May 2022 |website=[[Snopes.com]]}}</ref> and may have inserted some into his anus, though none were found there.<ref name="STM" /> Finally, the boys dropped a {{cvt|10|kg|lb|adj=on|abbr=}} railway [[fishplate]] on Bulger, resulting in ten [[skull fracture]]s.<ref name="pathologist2" /><ref name="guardian_murder">{{Cite news |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/02/bulger.tomsharratt |title=James Bulger murder |first=Tom |last=Sharratt |date=2 November 1993 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105092508/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/02/bulger.tomsharratt |archive-date=5 November 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="guardian2">{{Cite news |first=Paul |last=Coslett |title=Lessons of an avoidable tragedy |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/25/bulger2 |work=The Guardian |date=25 November 1993 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170510175028/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/25/bulger2 |archive-date=10 May 2017 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> [[Pathologist]] Alan Williams concluded that Bulger sustained a total of 42 injuries, none of which could be identified as the fatal blow.<ref name="fractures">{{Cite news |last=Foster |first=Jonathan |title=James Bulger suffered multiple fractures: Pathologist reveals two-year-old had 42 injuries including fractured skull. Jonathan Foster reports|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/james-bulger-suffered-multiple-fractures-pathologist-reveals-twoyearold-had-42-injuries-including-fractured-skull-jonathan-foster-reports-1503297.html |date=10 November 1993 |work=The Independent |access-date=28 August 2009 |location=London, UK |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090829081547/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/james-bulger-suffered-multiple-fractures-pathologist-reveals-twoyearold-had-42-injuries-including-fractured-skull-jonathan-foster-reports-1503297.html |archive-date=29 August 2009 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

Thompson and Venables laid Bulger across the railway tracks and weighted his head down with rubble. Their intention was for a passing train to strike him, making his death appear accidental. His body was severed by a train after they had departed the scene.<ref name="Sharratt">{{Cite news |first=Tom |last=Sharratt |title=James Bulger 'battered with bricks' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/02/bulger.tomsharratt |work=Guardian |date=2 November 1993 |access-date=14 July 2009 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105092508/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/02/bulger.tomsharratt |archive-date=5 November 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Bulger's remains were discovered by four boys looking for footballs two days later.<ref name="odnb" /><ref name="riley">{{Cite news |first=Neil |last=Docking |title=Drug dealer who found James Bulger's body jailed after crashing into family's car |url=https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/drug-dealer-who-found-james-13043014 |work=Liverpool Echo |date=17 May 2017 |access-date=31 May 2021 |archive-date=2 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602214450/https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/drug-dealer-who-found-james-13043014 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="trutv_4">{{cite web |last=Scott |first=Shirley |title=Death of James Bulger: Pt 4, Ten-Year-Old Suspects |url=http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/4.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081002060609/http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/4.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2 October 2008 |date=29 August 2009 |publisher=[[truTV]].com |access-date=4 March 2010}}</ref> Forensic examination later determined that Bulger had died from his injuries before being struck by the train.<ref name="Sharratt" />

== Investigation == Upon discovering Bulger's body, police suspected sexual assault, as Bulger's shoes, socks, trousers, and underpants had been removed. The pathologist's report, which was read out in court, noted that Bulger's [[foreskin]] had been forcibly retracted.<ref name="pathologist2">{{Cite news |last=Foster |first=Jonathan |title=James Bulger suffered multiple fractures: Pathologist reveals two-year-old had 42 injuries including fractured skull. |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/james-bulger-suffered-multiple-fractures-pathologist-reveals-twoyearold-had-42-injuries-including-fractured-skull-jonathan-foster-reports-1503297.html |date=10 November 1993 |work=The Independent |access-date=11 March 2010 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100202214809/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/james-bulger-suffered-multiple-fractures-pathologist-reveals-twoyearold-had-42-injuries-including-fractured-skull-jonathan-foster-reports-1503297.html |archive-date=2 February 2010 |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="pathologist">{{Cite news |last=Sereny |first=Gitta |title=Re-examining the evidence |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/reexamining-the-evidence-a-year-ago-this-week-james-bulger-was-murdered-by-two-11yearold-boys-the-crime-shook-the-nation-the-boys-were-tried-convicted-and-locked-away-but-what-do-we-know-about-them-do-we-know-why-they-did-it-after-months-of-research-including-interviews-with-parents-of-both-boys-we-publish-in-two-parts-the-story-that-has-not-been-told-1392400.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100401044635/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/reexamining-the-evidence-a-year-ago-this-week-james-bulger-was-murdered-by-two-11yearold-boys-the-crime-shook-the-nation-the-boys-were-tried-convicted-and-locked-away-but-what-do-we-know-about-them-do-we-know-why-they-did-it-after-months-of-research-including-interviews-with-parents-of-both-boys-we-publish-in-two-parts-the-story-that-has-not-been-told-1392400.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=1 April 2010 |date=6 February 1994 |work=The Independent |access-date=10 March 2010 |location=London}}</ref> When questioned about this aspect of the attack, Thompson and Venables were reluctant to provide details.<ref name="STM" /><ref name="trutv_6" /><ref name="trutv_5">{{cite web |last=Scott |first=Shirley |title=Death of James Bulger: Pt 5, Robert Denies, Jon Cries |url=http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/5.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081002060615/http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/5.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2 October 2008 |publisher=[[truTV]].com |access-date=12 March 2010}}</ref> Years later, after Venables was released, his psychiatrist, [[Susan Bailey]], reported his continued denial of any sexual element to the crime.<ref name="STM" />

The police investigation quickly yielded low-resolution video images showing two unidentified boys abducting Bulger from the New Strand Shopping Centre.<ref name="odnb" /> One boy, detained for questioning but later released, was forced to flee the city with his family due to threats from [[vigilantes]]. The breakthrough came when a woman, upon seeing enhanced images of the two boys on national television, recognised Venables. She recalled seeing him that day playing truant with Thompson in the Bootle area, and her call to the police led directly to their arrest.<ref name="trutv_4"/>

==Legal proceedings==

===Arrest=== [[File:ThompsonVenables.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|[[Mug shot]]s of Jon Venables and Robert Thompson taken at the time of their arrest]] Forensic tests confirmed that both boys had the same blue paint on their clothing as was found on Bulger's body. Both had blood on their shoes; the blood on Thompson's shoe was matched to Bulger's through [[DNA profiling]]. A pattern of bruising on Bulger's right cheek matched the features of the upper part of a shoe worn by Thompson; a paint mark in the toecap of one of Venables's shoes indicated he must have used "some force" when he kicked Bulger.<ref name="blood shoe">{{Cite news |first=Edward |last=Pilkington |title=Blood on boy's shoe 'was from victim' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/11/bulger |work=Guardian |date=11 November 1993 |access-date=14 July 2009 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131112152918/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/11/bulger |archive-date=12 November 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Thompson is said to have asked the police if they had taken Bulger to a hospital to "get him alive again".<ref name="channel_5">{{Cite news |first=Adam |last=Lusher |title=James Bulger documentary: Jon Venables so haunted by toddler victim he detected 'baby smell' on everything he wore, C5 show claims |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/james-bulger-documentary-jon-venables-robert-thompson-murder-new-revelations-channel-5-guilt-remorse-a8633051.html |work=The Independent |date=14 November 2018 |access-date=15 November 2018 |location=London |archive-date=14 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181114180022/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/james-bulger-documentary-jon-venables-robert-thompson-murder-new-revelations-channel-5-guilt-remorse-a8633051.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The boys were each charged with the murder of James Bulger on 20 February 1993,<ref name=odnb/> and they appeared at South Sefton Youth Court on 22 February 1993, where they were remanded in custody to await trial.<ref name=trutv_1/><ref name="bulger_murder"/> In the aftermath of their arrest, and throughout the media accounts of their trial, the boys were anonymised as "Child A" (Thompson) and "Child B" (Venables).<ref name="CNN"/> Awaiting trial, they were held in the secure units where they would eventually be sentenced to be detained [[at Her Majesty's pleasure]].<ref name=STM/>

===Trial=== Up to 500 protesters gathered at the [[Magistrates' court (England and Wales)|Magistrates' Court]] in the [[Metropolitan Borough of Sefton]] during the boys' initial court appearances. The full trial opened at [[Sessions House, Preston]], on 1 November 1993,<ref name="odnb" /> and was conducted as an [[adult trial]] with the accused in the dock away from their parents, and the judge and court officials in legal regalia.<ref name="bbc_strasbourg" /> The boys denied the charges of murder, abduction and attempted abduction.<ref name="blood shoe" /> 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. Thompson and Venables had attempted to lead away another two-year-old boy, but had been prevented from doing so by the boy's mother.<ref name="trutv_2" />

Each boy sat in view of the court on raised chairs so that they could see out of the dock designed for adults, and were accompanied by two social workers and guards. Although they were separated from their parents, they were within touching distance when their families attended the trial. News stories reported the demeanour of the defendants.<ref name="guardian_harris">{{Cite news |first=Paul |last=Harris |author2=Bright, Martin |title=The secret meetings that set James's killers free |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2001/jun/24/bulger.paulharris |work=The Guardian |date=24 June 2001 |location=London, UK |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131112152925/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2001/jun/24/bulger.paulharris |archive-date=12 November 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> These aspects of the trial 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.<ref name="odnb" /> At the trial, the lead prosecution counsel [[Richard Henriques]] successfully rebutted the principle of ''[[doli incapax]]'', which presumes that young children cannot be held legally responsible for their actions.<ref name="doli incapax">{{Cite news |last=Foster |first=Jonathan |title=Bulger ruling: If the defendants could not talk about their crime, how could they conduct a defence? |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/bulger-ruling-if-the-defendants-could-not-talk-about-their-crime-how-could-they-conduct-a-defence-739709.html |date=17 December 1999 |work=The Independent |access-date=12 March 2010 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100411080625/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/bulger-ruling-if-the-defendants-could-not-talk-about-their-crime-how-could-they-conduct-a-defence-739709.html |archive-date=11 April 2010 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

Thompson and Venables were considered by the court to be capable of "mischievous discretion", meaning an ability to act with criminal intent as they were mature enough to understand that they were doing something seriously wrong.<ref name="intent">{{Cite news |last=Morrison |first=Blake |title=Let the circus begin |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/apr/11/bulger-trial-juvenile-crime-edlington |date=11 April 2009 |work=The Guardian |access-date=1 February 2015 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222125204/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/apr/11/bulger-trial-juvenile-crime-edlington |archive-date=22 December 2015 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> A child psychiatrist, Eileen Vizard, who interviewed Thompson before the trial, was asked in court whether he would know the difference between right and wrong, that it was wrong to take a young child away from his mother, and that it was wrong to cause injury to a child. Vizard replied, "If the issue is on the balance of probabilities, I think I can answer with certainty." Vizard also said that Thompson was suffering from [[post-traumatic stress disorder]] after the attack on Bulger.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gillan |first=Audrey |title=Fear and trauma in courtroom |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1999/dec/17/bulger.audreygillan1 |date=17 December 1999 |work=The Guardian |access-date=26 July 2010 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131112154446/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/1999/dec/17/bulger.audreygillan1 |archive-date=12 November 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> [[Susan Bailey]], the [[Home Office]]'s [[forensic psychiatrist]] who interviewed Venables, said unequivocally that he knew the difference between right and wrong.<ref name=psychiatrists>{{Cite news |last=Foster |first=Jonathan |title=Right and wrong paths to justice |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/right-and-wrong-paths-to-justice-739587.html |date=2 December 1993 |work=The Independent |access-date=16 March 2010 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107013753/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/right-and-wrong-paths-to-justice-739587.html |archive-date=7 November 2012 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

Thompson and Venables did not speak during the trial, and the case against them was largely based on the more than 20 hours of tape-recorded police interviews with the boys, which were played back in court.<ref name="doli incapax"/> Thompson was considered to have taken the leading role in the abduction process, though it was Venables who had apparently initiated the idea of taking Bulger to the railway line. 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.<ref name=STM/> Laurence Lee, who acted as [[solicitor]] for Venables during the trial, later said that Thompson was one of the most frightening children he had seen, and compared him to the [[Pied Piper]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2008/mar/02/ukcrime.prisonsandprobation1 |title='James would be 18 now – the pain of losing him will never go away' |date=2 March 2008 |newspaper=The Observer |access-date=24 August 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160921131448/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2008/mar/02/ukcrime.prisonsandprobation1 |archive-date=21 September 2016 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> After his appearances in court, Venables would strip off his clothes, saying: "I can smell James like a baby smell."<ref name="channel_5" /> 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 pathologist spent 33 minutes outlining the injuries sustained by Bulger; many of those to his legs had been inflicted after he was stripped from the waist down. [[Brain damage]] was extensive and included a [[haemorrhage]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/james-bulger-suffered-multiple-fractures-pathologist-reveals-twoyearold-had-42-injuries-including-fractured-skull-jonathan-foster-reports-1503297.html |title=James Bulger suffered multiple fractures: Pathologist reveals two-year-old had 42 injuries including fractured skull. Jonathan Foster reports |first=Jonathan |last=Foster |newspaper=The Independent |location=London |date=10 November 1993 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090829081547/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/james-bulger-suffered-multiple-fractures-pathologist-reveals-twoyearold-had-42-injuries-including-fractured-skull-jonathan-foster-reports-1503297.html |archive-date=29 August 2009 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

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.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Edwards |first=Richard |date=4 March 2010 |title=James Bulger case: timeline of key quotations |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/7360966/James-Bulger-case-timeline-of-key-quotations.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100307212509/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/7360966/James-Bulger-case-timeline-of-key-quotations.html |archive-date=7 March 2010 |access-date=2023-04-15 |website=The Telegraph}}</ref> The judge, [[Michael Morland|Mr Justice Morland]], told Thompson and Venables that they had committed a crime of "unparalleled evil and barbarity{{nbsp}}... In my judgment, your conduct was both cunning and very wicked."<ref>{{cite web |author=Law Lords Department |url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld199798/ldjudgmt/jd970612/vandt01.htm |title=Judgments – Reg. v. Secretary of State for the Home Department, Ex parte V. and Reg. v. Secretary of State for the Home Department, Ex parte T |publisher=Publications.parliament.uk |access-date=15 January 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120119073610/http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld199798/ldjudgmt/jd970612/vandt01.htm |archive-date=19 January 2012 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Morland sentenced them to be detained at Her Majesty's pleasure, with a recommendation that they should be kept in custody for "very, very many years to come", recommending a minimum term of eight years.<ref name="odnb" /> At the close of the trial, the judge lifted reporting restrictions and allowed the names of the killers to be released, saying: "I did this because the public interest overrode the interest of the defendants{{nbsp}}... There was a need for an informed public debate on crimes committed by young children."<ref name="naming">{{Cite news |url=http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/philipjohnston/100028218/bulger-killers-identifying-them-was-a-mistake/ |title=Bulger killers: identifying them was a mistake |date=3 March 2010 |work=Daily Telegraph |access-date=8 November 2014 |location=London, UK |first=Philip |last=Johnston |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141108101525/http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/philipjohnston/100028218/bulger-killers-identifying-them-was-a-mistake/ |archive-date=8 November 2014 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> [[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.<ref name="omand"/>

===Post-trial=== Shortly after the trial, and after the judge had recommended a minimum sentence of eight years, [[Lord Taylor of Gosforth]], the [[Lord Chief Justice]], recommended that the two boys should serve a minimum of ten years,<ref name=odnb/> which would have made them eligible for release in February 2003 at the age of 20. The editors of ''[[The Sun (United Kingdom)|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.<ref name="Guardian03Mar2010">{{Cite news |last=Siddique |first=Haroon |date=2010-03-03 |title=James Bulger killing: the case history of Jon Venables and Robert Thompson |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/mar/03/james-bulger-case-venables-thompson |url-status=live |access-date=2023-04-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130709061058/http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/mar/03/james-bulger-case-venables-thompson |archive-date=9 July 2013 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> This campaign was successful, and Howard announced in July 1994 that the boys would be kept in custody for a minimum of fifteen years,<ref name="Guardian03Mar2010" /><ref name="BBC3008191">{{Cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/3008191.stm |title=New sentencing rules: Key cases |date=7 May 2003 |publisher=BBC |access-date=11 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040730061644/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3008191.stm |archive-date=30 July 2004 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> meaning that they would not be considered for release until February 2008, by which time they would be 25 years old.<ref name="odnb" />

[[John Donaldson, Baron Donaldson of Lymington|Lord Donaldson]] criticised Howard's intervention, describing the increased tariff as "institutionalised vengeance{{nbsp}}... [by] a politician playing to the gallery".<ref name=odnb /> The increased minimum term was overturned in 1997 by the [[House of Lords]] that ruled it "unlawful" for the Home Secretary to decide on minimum sentences for young offenders.<ref name=bbc_outrage>{{Cite news |title=Outrage at call for Bulger killers' release |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/492487.stm |publisher=BBC |date=28 October 1999 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222181631/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/492487.stm |archive-date=22 December 2015 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> The [[High Court of Justice]] and European Court of Human Rights have since ruled that although the parliament may set minimum and maximum terms for individual categories of crime, it is the responsibility of the trial judge, with the benefit of all the evidence and argument from both prosecution and defence counsel, to determine the minimum term in individual criminal cases.<ref name=BBC3008191 />

[[Tony Blair]], then [[Shadow Home Secretary]], gave a speech in [[Wellingborough]] during which he said: "We hear of crimes so horrific they provoke anger and disbelief in equal proportions{{nbsp}}... These are the ugly manifestations of a society that is becoming unworthy of that name."<ref name=odnb /> The Prime Minister, [[John Major]], said that "society needs to condemn a little more and understand a little less."<ref name=odnb /> The trial judge Mr Justice Morland stated that exposure to violent videos might have encouraged the actions of Thompson and Venables; this was disputed by [[David Maclean]], the Minister of State at the Home Office at the time, who said that police had found no evidence linking the case with "[[video nasties]]".<ref name="video_nasties">{{Cite web |last=Kirby |first=Terry |date=1993-11-26 |title=Video link to Bulger murder disputed |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/video-link-to-bulger-murder-disputed-1506766.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118070353/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/video-link-to-bulger-murder-disputed-1506766.html |archive-date=18 January 2012 |access-date=2023-04-15 |website=The Independent }}</ref>

Some British tabloid newspapers claimed the attack on Bulger was inspired by the film ''[[Child's Play 3]]'', specifically a scene depicting the doll [[Chucky (Child's Play)|Chucky]] being splattered with blue paint during a [[paintball]] game. This led them to campaign for tighter regulations on "video nasties".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Morrison |first=Blake |date=2003-02-06 |title=Life after James |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/feb/06/bulger.ukcrime |url-status=live |access-date=2023-04-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140319191744/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/feb/06/bulger.ukcrime |archive-date=19 March 2014 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> Police investigation found that ''Child's Play 3'' was among the films that Venables's father had rented in the months prior to the killing, but there was no evidence that Venables himself ever watched it.<ref name="videos">{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/25/bulger |title=Two youngsters who found a new rule to break |newspaper=The Guardian |date=25 November 1993 |access-date=10 March 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151223004954/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/1993/nov/25/bulger |archive-date=23 December 2015 |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="chucky">{{cite news |last=Nowicka |first=Helen |date=19 December 1993 |title=Chucky films defended |newspaper=The Independent |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/chucky-films-defended-1468498.html |url-status=live |access-date=11 March 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107010434/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/chucky-films-defended-1468498.html |archive-date=7 November 2012 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Investigators reviewed some 200 titles rented by the Venables family and concluded that there was "nothing—no scene, or plot, or dialogue—where you could put your finger on the freeze button and say that influenced a boy to go out and commit murder."<ref name="video_nasties" /> Inspector Ray Simpson of Merseyside Police commented: "If you are going to link this murder to a film, you might as well link it to ''[[The Railway Children (1970 film)|The Railway Children]].''"<ref>{{Cite news |date=1999-03-21 |title=Demon ears |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/1999/mar/21/uk.politicalnews2 |url-status=live |access-date=2023-04-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170213090555/https://www.theguardian.com/politics/1999/mar/21/uk.politicalnews2 |archive-date=13 February 2017 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> Despite the police's findings, the intense public debate surrounding media influence contributed to the [[Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994]], which clarified rules on the availability of certain types of video material to children.<ref name="odnb" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts1994/ukpga_19940033_en_11#pt7-pb2-l1g90 |title=Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994. Obscenity and Pornography and Videos – Section 90, Video recordings: suitability |publisher=Opsi.gov.uk |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071030201647/http://opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts1994/ukpga_19940033_en_11 |archive-date=30 October 2007 |url-status=dead |access-date=15 January 2012}}</ref>

===Detention=== [[File:Red Bank youth detention centre.jpg|thumb|The Red Bank secure unit in 2022]] Following the trial, Thompson was detained at Barton Moss Secure Children's Home, which was then known as Barton Moss Secure Care Centre,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ofsted Communications Team |date=2024-04-05 |title=Find an inspection report and registered childcare |url=http://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/inspection-reports/find-inspection-report |access-date=2024-07-16 |website=reports.ofsted.gov.uk}}</ref> in [[Salford]].

Venables was detained in Vardy House, a small eight-bed unit at [[Red Bank Secure Unit]] in [[Newton-le-Willows]] on [[Merseyside]]. These locations were not publicly known until after the boys' release.<ref name="STM" /> 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]].

The boys were taught to conceal their real names and the crime they had committed that resulted in their being in the units. Venables's parents regularly visited their son at Red Bank, just as Thompson's mother did, every three days, at Barton Moss.<ref name="STM" /> The boys received education and rehabilitation; despite initial problems, Venables was said to have eventually made good progress at Red Bank, resulting in him being kept there for the full eight years, despite the facility only being a short-stay remand unit.<ref name="STM" />

Both boys were reported to suffer [[post-traumatic stress disorder]], and Venables in particular told of experiencing nightmares and flashbacks of the murder.<ref name="STM" />

===Appeal and release=== 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. The court dismissed their claim that the trial was [[Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights|inhuman and degrading treatment]] but upheld their claim they were denied a [[fair trial]] by the nature of the court proceedings.<ref>{{cite web |title=Bulger killers' trial ruled unfair |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/567440.stm |url-status=live |access-date=2023-04-15 |df=dmy-all |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100429103441/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/567440.stm |archive-date=29 April 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Penrose |first=Justin |date=2010-03-07 |df=dmy-all |title=Jon Venables sent back to prison over child porn offence |newspaper=[[Daily Mirror|The Mirror]] |url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/jon-venables-sent-back-to-prison-205816 |url-status=live |access-date=2023-04-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100309140837/http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2010/03/07/jon-venables-sent-back-to-prison-over-child-porn-offence-115875-22090622/ |archive-date=9 March 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Summary of the judgement of the ECHR |date=16 December 1999 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/567631.stm |access-date=15 January 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120508091929/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/567631.stm |archive-date=8 May 2012}}</ref> The court also held that the Home Secretary's intervention had led to a "highly charged atmosphere", which resulted in an unfair judgment.<ref>{{Cite news |title=The Bulger case chronology |date=16 September 1999 |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |location=London, UK |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1999/dec/16/bulger2 |access-date=16 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140218212313/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/1999/dec/16/bulger2 |archive-date=18 February 2014}}</ref> On 15&nbsp;March 1999, the court in [[Strasbourg]] ruled by 14&nbsp;votes to five that there had been a violation of [[Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights|Article&nbsp;6]] of [[the European Convention on Human Rights]]; regarding the fairness of the trial, they stated: "The public trial process in an adult court must be regarded in the case of an 11-year-old child as a severely intimidating procedure."<ref name=bbc_strasbourg>{{cite news |title=Young suspects 'intimidated' by trial |date=15 March 1999 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/296971.stm |access-date=16 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030707115942/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/296971.stm |archive-date=7 July 2003}}</ref>

In September 1999, Bulger's parents appealed to the European Court of Human Rights but failed to persuade the court that a victim of a crime has the right to be involved in determining the sentence of the perpetrator.<ref name=odnb/><ref>{{cite news |last=Bates |first=Stephen |date=16 September 1999 |title=Bulger's mother puts her case |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |location=London, UK |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1999/sep/16/bulger.stephenbates |access-date=16 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150104000012/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/1999/sep/16/bulger.stephenbates |archive-date=4 January 2015}}</ref> The European Court case led to the new Lord Chief Justice, [[Harry Woolf]], reviewing the minimum sentence. In October 2000 he recommended the tariff be reduced from ten to eight years,<ref name=odnb/> adding that [[Her Majesty's Young Offender Institution]] was a "corrosive atmosphere" for the juveniles.<ref name="bbc_release">{{cite news |title=Bulger killers 'released' |date=22 June 2001 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1402527.stm |access-date=16 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090217015900/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1402527.stm |archive-date=17 February 2009}}</ref>

In June&nbsp;2001, after a six-month review, the [[Parole Board for England and Wales|parole board]] ruled that Thompson and Venables were no longer a threat to public safety and could be released, as their minimum tariff had expired in February of that year. The Home Secretary, [[David Blunkett]], approved the decision, and they were released a few weeks later on [[Life imprisonment in England and Wales#Paroles|life licence]] after serving eight years.<ref name=bulger_blunkett_statement>{{cite news |title=Bulger statement in full |date=2001-06-22 |df=dmy-all |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1402798.stm |url-status=live |access-date=2023-04-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040311225737/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1402798.stm |archive-date=11 March 2004 }}</ref><ref name=bbc_bulger_victims_danger>{{cite news |title=Bulger killers 'face dangers' |date=2001-06-24 |df=dmy-all |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1405142.stm |url-status=live |access-date=2023-04-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040409101846/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1405142.stm |archive-date=9 April 2004 }}</ref> It was reported that Thompson and Venables "were given new identities and moved to secret locations under a '[[witness protection]]'–like programme."<ref name=witness>{{cite news |first=Peter |last=Walker |date=22 January 2010 |title=Bulger killers prove child criminals can be rehabilitated |location=London, UK |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/jan/22/edlington-brothers-bulger-rehabilitation |access-date=13 May 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103233954/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/jan/22/edlington-brothers-bulger-rehabilitation |archive-date=3 January 2015}}</ref> This was supported by the fabrication of passports, national insurance numbers, qualification certificates, and medical records. Blunkett added his own conditions to their licence and insisted on being sent daily updates on their actions.<ref name=STM/>

The terms of their release included the following: They were not allowed to contact each other or Bulger's family; they were prohibited from visiting the Merseyside region;<ref name=times_prison>{{cite news |last=Booth |first=Jenny |date=3 March 2010 |title=James Bulger mother: Killer Jon Venables is 'where he belongs' |newspaper=[[The Times]] |location=London, UK |publisher=[[News Corporation]] |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/crime/article/james-bulger-mother-killer-jon-venables-is-where-he-belongs-2pqclkqwr58 |url-status=live |access-date=6 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100526183333/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article7047752.ece |archive-date=26 May 2010}}</ref> curfews were imposed on them, and they were obliged to report to [[probation officers]]. If they breached the rules or were deemed a risk to the public, they could be returned to prison.<ref name=bbc_blunkett>{{cite news |title=Bulger killers released: What the home secretary said |date=2 March 2010 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8546544.stm |access-date=6 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220106070741/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8546544.stm |archive-date=6 January 2022 }}</ref>

A court [[injunction]] was imposed on the media after the trial, preventing the publication of details about Thompson and Venables. The worldwide injunction was kept in force following their release on parole, so their new identities and locations could not be published.<ref name=odnb/><ref>{{cite news |title=Young men, full of remorse |date=2000-10-27 |df=dmy-all |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |issn=0261-3077 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2000/oct/27/bulger |url-status=live |access-date=2023-04-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170510182730/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2000/oct/27/bulger |archive-date=10 May 2017 }}</ref><ref name=gaurdian_bulger>{{cite news |title=James Bulger murder |date=September 2023 |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |type=composite of news articles |via=guardian.co.uk |url=https://www.theguardian.com/bulger/0,,192515,00.html |access-date=25 April 2005 |archive-date=19 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220519193908/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/bulger |url-status=live }}</ref> 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."<ref name=bbc_blunkett/>

==Later developments==

=== Divorce of James Bulger's parents === In the months after the trial, and following the birth of their second son, the marriage of Bulger's parents, Ralph and Denise, broke down; they divorced in 1995.<ref>{{cite news |title=The bad seeds |date=11 February 2013 |newspaper=[[Sydney Morning Herald]] |location=Sydney, NSW, AU |url=http://www.smh.com.au/world/the-bad-seeds-20130210-2dt7k.html |access-date=19 May 2022 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220519193911/https://www.smh.com.au/world/the-bad-seeds-20130204-2dt7k.html |archive-date=19 May 2022 }}</ref>

Denise Bulger later married Stuart Fergus, with whom she had two sons.<ref>{{cite news |first=Susan |last=Lee |date=11 February 2013 |title=Twenty years after the murder of Liverpool toddler James Bulger, his mum Denise Fergus reflects on the past and the battles still to come |newspaper=[[The Liverpool Echo]] |url=http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/twenty-years-after-murder-liverpool-3322165 |access-date=8 November 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141108105834/http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/twenty-years-after-murder-liverpool-3322165 |archive-date=8 November 2014 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Ralph Bulger also remarried, and had three daughters with his second wife.<ref>{{cite news |first=Will |last=Pavia |date=8 March 2010 |title='It was like my son had been taken again' |newspaper=[[The Times]] |location=London, UK |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article7053350.ece |access-date=11 March 2010 |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100603050050/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article7053350.ece |archive-date=3 June 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Bulger's father visits murder scene |publisher=BBC |date=4 February 2003 |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2723145.stm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080321064311/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2723145.stm |archive-date=21 March 2008 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

=== Bulger memorial and legal activism === On 14&nbsp;March 2008, an appeal to set up a [[Red Balloon Learner Centre]] in Merseyside in memory of James Bulger was launched by his mother and [[Esther Rantzen]].<ref name=bbc_memorial>{{cite news |title=Bulger 'refuge' appeal launched |date=14 March 2008 |work=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/merseyside/7295910.stm |url-status=live |access-date=13 April 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080317225041/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/7295910.stm |archive-date=17 March 2008 |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name=telegraph_memorial>{{cite news |last=Franklin |first=Katie |date=14 March 2008 |title=James Bulger memorial appeal launched |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1581652/James-Bulger-memorial-appeal-launched.html |url-status=live |access-date=13 April 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080316074800/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=%2Fnews%2F2008%2F03%2F14%2Fnbulger114.xml |archive-date=16 March 2008 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> A memorial garden in Bulger's memory was created in Sacred Heart Primary School in his hometown of Kirkby, the school he would have been expected to attend had he not been murdered.<ref name=odnb/>

In March&nbsp;2010, a call was made by England's Children's commissioner [[Maggie Atkinson]] to raise the age of criminal responsibility from ten to twelve. She said that the killers of James Bulger should have undergone "programmes" to help turn their lives around, rather than being prosecuted. The [[Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Justice]] rejected the call, saying that children over the age of ten knew the difference "between bad behaviour and serious wrongdoing".<ref name=atkinson>{{cite news |title=Calls to raise age of criminal responsibility rejected |date=13 March 2010 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8565619.stm |access-date=13 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111215181605/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8565619.stm |archive-date=15 December 2011 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

===Vandalism of Bulger's grave=== On 26 February 2026, a woman walking her dog near Kirkdale Cemetery reported two smashed cherub statues next to Bulger's headstone. The incident is being investigated by the Merseyside Police.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Humphries |first=Jonny |date=27 February 2026 |title=Grave of murdered toddler James Bulger vandalised |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cg4g3yw547zo |access-date=9 March 2026 |work=BBC News}}</ref> Denise Fergus launched a GoFundMe page to raise funds for repairs.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Whittingham |first=Stewart |date=28 February 2026 |title=Donations of £15k over James Bulger's grave damage |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gqpn4dlpko |access-date=9 March 2026 |work=BBC News}}</ref>

===Court protective injunction and violations=== During Venables's and Thompson's incarcerations, the court order protecting their identities was renewed, but details about them, both real and fabricated, gradually leaked into the press via the Internet.

==== Early reports about prison life ==== ''[[The Observer]]'' revealed that both Venables and Thompson had passed their [[GCSE]]s and [[A-Level]]s during their sentences. The paper also stated that the Bulger family's lawyers had consulted psychiatric experts in order to present the parole panel with a report that suggested Thompson was an undiagnosed [[psychopath]], citing his lack of remorse during his trial and arrest. That report was ultimately dismissed; however, Thompson's lack of remorse at the time, in stark contrast to Venables, led to considerable scrutiny from the parole panel.

Upon release, both Thompson and Venables had lost all trace of their [[Scouse]] accents.<ref>{{cite news |first1=Paul |last1=Harris |first2=Martin |last2=Bright |date=24 June 2001 |orig-date=23 June 2001 |title=The secret meetings that set James's killers free |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |agency=[[The Observer]] |location=London, UK |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2001/jun/24/bulger.paulharris |access-date=3 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131112152925/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2001/jun/24/bulger.paulharris |archive-date=12 November 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

In a psychiatric report prepared in 2000 before Venables's release, he was described as posing a "trivial" risk to the public and unlikely to reoffend. The chances of his successful rehabilitation were described as "very high".<ref>{{cite news |first=Aislinn |last=Laing |date=10 March 2010 |title=Bulger killer Jon Venables posed 'trivial' risk to the public, said psychiatrist |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |location=London, UK |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/7409376/Bulger-killer-Jon-Venables-posed-trivial-risk-to-the-public-said-psychiatrist.html |access-date=10 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100313161006/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/7409376/Bulger-killer-Jon-Venables-posed-trivial-risk-to-the-public-said-psychiatrist.html |archive-date=13 March 2010 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

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. In December that year, the paper was fined £30,000 for [[contempt of court]] and ordered to pay costs of £120,000.<ref>{{cite news |last=Dyer |first=Clare |date=5 December 2001 |title=Paper fined for Bulger order breach |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |location=London, UK |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2001/dec/05/bulger.uknews |access-date=15 April 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140510004314/http://www.theguardian.com/media/2001/dec/05/bulger.uknews |archive-date=10 May 2014 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> No significant publication or vigilante action against Thompson or Venables has occurred. Despite this, Bulger's mother, Denise, told how in 2004 she received a tip-off from an anonymous source that helped her locate Thompson. Upon seeing him, she was "paralysed with hatred", and was unable to confront him.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Bulger mother 'sees son's killer' |date=28 November 2004 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4048957.stm |access-date=26 October 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090213172024/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4048957.stm |archive-date=13 February 2009 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

In April&nbsp;2007, documents released under the [[Freedom of Information Act 2000]] confirmed that the Home Office had spent £13,000 on an injunction to prevent a foreign magazine from revealing the new identities of Thompson and Venables.<ref name="13k_protect_killers">{{cite web |title=£13K to protect Bulger killers' new IDs-injunction |date=8 April 2007 |website=[[Sky News]] |url=http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30100-1259668,00.html |via=news.sky.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070410075357/http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0%2C%2C30100-1259668%2C00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=10 April 2007 |access-date=8 April 2007}}</ref><ref name=protect_killers>{{cite news |last=Barrett |first=David |date=9 April 2007 |title=£13,000 spent protecting Bulger killers' identities |newspaper=[[The Independent]] |location=London, UK |url=http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/legal/article2434965.ece |access-date=13 April 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080112044228/http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/legal/article2434965.ece |archive-date=12 January 2008 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

==== False identification and Internet trolling ==== In April&nbsp;2010, a 19-year-old man from the [[Isle of Man]] was given a three-month [[suspended prison sentence]] for falsely claiming in a [[Facebook]] message that one of his former colleagues was Thompson. 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.<ref name="isle of man bbc">{{cite news |title=Man sentenced for lying over James Bulger killer |date=23 April 2010 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/isle_of_man/8641162.stm |access-date=26 April 2010 |archive-date=19 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220519193929/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/isle_of_man/8641162.stm |url-status=live }}</ref>

In March&nbsp;2012, a 26-year-old man from [[Chorley]], [[Lancashire]], was arrested after allegedly setting up a Facebook group with the title "What happened to Jamie Bulger was fucking hilarious". The man's computer was seized for further investigations.<ref name=chorley>{{cite news |last=McConville |first=Tony |date=6 March 2012 |title=Denise Fergus calls for crack down after sickening James Bulger Facebook group |website=Click Liverpool (clickliverpool.com) |url=http://www.clickliverpool.com/news/national-news/1215471-denise-fergus-calls-for-crack-down-after-sickening-james-bulger-facebook-group.html |url-status=unfit |access-date=7 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140203005822/https://www.clickliverpool.com/news/national-news/1215471-denise-fergus-calls-for-crack-down-after-sickening-james-bulger-facebook-group.html |archive-date=3 February 2014}}</ref>

==== Internet photo posts ==== On 25&nbsp;February 2013, the [[Attorney General's Office]] announced that it was instituting contempt of court proceedings against several people who had allegedly published photographs online showing Thompson or Venables as adults.<ref name=contempt_2>{{cite news |title='Bulger killer Jon Venables images' appear online |date=14 February 2013 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-21455860 |access-date=25 February 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130217055552/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-21455860 |archive-date=17 February 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> 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. 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."<ref name=contempt>{{cite news |title=Attorney general takes action over 'Bulger killer images' |date=25 February 2013 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-21577475 |access-date=25 February 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130225170501/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-21577475 |archive-date=25 February 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

On 26&nbsp;April 2013, two men received suspended jail sentences of nine months after admitting to contempt of court, by publishing photographs that they claimed to be of Venables and Thompson on Facebook and Twitter. The posts were seen by 24,000&nbsp;people. 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.<ref name=bbc_contempt>{{cite news |title='Bulger killers' images': Two admit contempt of court |date=26 April 2013 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-22310412 |access-date=26 April 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130428055308/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-22310412 |archive-date=28 April 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

On 27&nbsp;November 2013, a man from Liverpool received a 14-month suspended prison sentence for posting images on Twitter claiming to show Venables.<ref name=bbc_contempt2>{{cite news |title='James Bulger killer picture': James Baines sentenced |date=27 November 2013 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-25122155 |access-date=28 November 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131130031258/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-25122155 |archive-date=30 November 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

On 31&nbsp;January 2019, a man and a woman pleaded guilty to eight contempt-of-court offences at the High Court after they admitted to posting photos on social media that they claimed identified Venables; both received suspended prison sentences.<ref>{{cite news |title=Two admit posting 'Bulger killer photos' |date=2019-01-31 |df=dmy-all |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-merseyside-47074573 |url-status=live |access-date=2019-01-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190131180433/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-merseyside-47074573 |archive-date=31 January 2019}}</ref> In March&nbsp;2019, actress [[Tina Malone]] was given an eight-month suspended prison sentence for posting Venables's alleged identity on Facebook.<ref>{{cite news |title=Tina Malone avoids jail for contempt of court over Bulger killer ''Facebook'' post |date=13 March 2019 |newspaper=The Rhyl Journal |agency=[[Press Association]] |url=https://www.rhyljournal.co.uk/news/national/17497676.tina-malone-avoids-jail-for-contempt-of-court-over-bulger-killer-facebook-post/ |access-date=3 April 2019 |via=rhyljournal.co.uk |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403141816/https://www.rhyljournal.co.uk/news/national/17497676.tina-malone-avoids-jail-for-contempt-of-court-over-bulger-killer-facebook-post/ |archive-date=3 April 2019 }}</ref>

In January&nbsp;2020, a 53-year-old woman from [[Ammanford]] in [[South Wales]] received a prison sentence of eight months, suspended for 15&nbsp;months: in November&nbsp;2017, she had published an alleged photograph of Venables on Facebook, with the advice "share this as much as possible". 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.<ref>{{cite news |title=Jon Venables: Woman who posted picture said to show killer avoids jail |date=24 January 2020 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-51233590 |access-date=19 February 2020 |archive-date=25 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200125141004/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-51233590 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Trolling and stalking of James's mother === On 14&nbsp;July 2016, a woman from [[Margate]] in [[Kent]] was jailed for three years after sending Twitter messages to Bulger's mother, in which she posed as one of his killers, and as Bulger's ghost.<ref name="margate">{{cite news |title=Margate woman jailed for 'cruel' James Bulger tweets |date=14 July 2016 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-36794888 |access-date=14 July 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160714161024/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-36794888 |archive-date=14 July 2016 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> The sentence was reduced to {{frac|2|1|2}} years on appeal.<ref name=reduced>{{cite news |last=Duffy |first=Tom |date=12 October 2016 |title=Web troll who targeted James Bulger's mum has sentence reduced on appeal |newspaper=[[The Liverpool Echo]] |url=http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/web-troll-who-targeted-james-12016026 |via=liverpoolecho.co.uk |url-status=live |access-date=26 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161026172021/http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/web-troll-who-targeted-james-12016026 |archive-date=26 October 2016 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

On 25&nbsp;October 2016, a man was jailed for 26&nbsp;weeks for stalking Denise Fergus; he had previously received a police warning for stalking her in 2008.<ref name=stalker>{{cite news |last=Bunyan |first=Nigel |date=25 October 2016 |title=Man jailed for stalking mother of murdered toddler James Bulger |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/oct/25/man-jailed-stalking-mother-murdered-toddler-james-denise-bulger |url-status=live |access-date=26 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161025202547/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/oct/25/man-jailed-stalking-mother-murdered-toddler-james-denise-bulger |archive-date=25 October 2016 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

===Later life of Jon Venables=== ==== Relationships ==== Shortly before his 2001 release, when aged&nbsp;17, Venables was alleged to have had sex with a woman who worked at the [[Red Bank secure unit]] where he was held. In April&nbsp;2011, in the aftermath of his 2010 imprisonment, these allegations were outlined in a ''[[Sunday Times Magazine]]'' article written by David James Smith, who had been following the Bulger case since the 1993 trial, and again later in a BBC documentary titled ''Jon Venables: What went wrong?''. The female staff member was suspended for sexual misconduct; she never returned to work at Red Bank.<ref name=STM/><ref>{{cite web |last=Sharp |first=Aaron |date=27 March 2011 |title=Mother of James Bulger calls for Venables parole inquiry after reports he slept with carer |url=http://www.clickliverpool.com/news/national-news/1212824-mother-of-murdered-toddler-james-bulger-calls-for-inquiry-into-jon-venables-parole-after-reports-he-had-sex-with-carer.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120729013022/http://www.clickliverpool.com/news/national-news/1212824-mother-of-murdered-toddler-james-bulger-calls-for-inquiry-into-jon-venables-parole-after-reports-he-had-sex-with-carer.html |archive-date=29 July 2012 |access-date=15 January 2012 |publisher=Click Liverpool}}</ref> A spokesman for [[St Helens 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."<ref name=cover_up_denial>{{cite news |first=Tony |last=McConville |date=28 March 2011 |title=Cover-up denial in case of Bulger killer's sex romps |website=Click Liverpool |url=http://www.clickliverpool.com/news/national-news/1212839-cover-up-denial-in-case-of-bulger-killers-sex-romps.html |access-date=24 April 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130119120546/http://www.clickliverpool.com/news/national-news/1212839-cover-up-denial-in-case-of-bulger-killers-sex-romps.html |archive-date=19 January 2013}}</ref>

==== Misdemeanours while on release 2002–2008 ==== Venables began living independently in March&nbsp;2002. Some time thereafter, he began a relationship with a woman who had a five-year-old child; it is not known whether Venables had already begun downloading child abuse images at the time of dating the woman, although he denies having ever met the child.<ref name=STM/>

After a period of apparently reduced supervision, Venables began excessively drinking, taking drugs, and downloading child abuse images, as well as visiting Merseyside, which was a breach of his licence. In September&nbsp;2008, Venables was arrested on suspicion of [[affray]], following a fight outside a nightclub; he claimed he was acting in self-defence, and the charges were later dropped after he agreed to go on an alcohol-awareness course. Three months later, he was found to be in possession of [[cocaine]]; he was subjected to a curfew.<ref name=STM/>

In 2005, when Venables was age&nbsp;23, his probation officer met another girlfriend of his, who was aged&nbsp;17. After a number of "young girlfriends", it was presumed that Venables was having a [[delayed adolescence]].<ref name=STM/> In 2008, a new probation officer said that Venables spent "a great deal of leisure time" playing [[video game]]s and on the Internet.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

==== 2010 imprisonment ==== Venables contacted his probation officer in February&nbsp;2010, reporting that he feared that his new identity had been compromised at his place of work. 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.<ref name=STM/> The officer's suspicions were aroused, and the computer was taken away for examination leading to the discovery of the child sexual abuse material, which included children as young as two being raped by adults,<ref name=dawn>{{Cite news |last=Pidd |first=Helen |date=23 July 2010 |title=Child porn charges send James Bulger's killer back to jail |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |location=London, UK |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/jul/23/james-bulger-killer-jon-venables |url-status=live |access-date=24 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103225113/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/jul/23/james-bulger-killer-jon-venables |archive-date=3 January 2015 |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name=independent_jailed>{{cite news |title=Jon Venables jailed for two years over child porn |date=23 July 2010 |newspaper=[[The Independent]] |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/jon-venables-jailed-for-two-years-over-child-porn-2033788.html |access-date=24 July 2010 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100725071909/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/jon-venables-jailed-for-two-years-over-child-porn-2033788.html |archive-date=25 July 2010 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> and penetrative rape of seven- or eight-year-olds.<ref name=STM/>

On 2&nbsp;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. Justice Secretary [[Jack Straw]] stated that Venables had been returned to prison because of "extremely serious allegations", and stated that he was "unable to give further details of the reasons for Jon Venables's return to custody, because it was not in the public interest to do so".<ref name=bbc_straw>{{cite news |title=Bulger killer Venables faces 'extremely serious' claim |date=6 March 2010 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/merseyside/8553056.stm |access-date=6 March 2010 |archive-date=19 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220519193916/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/merseyside/8553056.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> On 7&nbsp;March, media reports said that he had been accused of offences related to possession of [[child sexual abuse material]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Jamieson |first=Alastair |date=7 March 2010 |title=James Bulger killer Jon Venables 'accused of child porn offences' |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |location=London, UK |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/7390615/James-Bulger-killer-Jon-Venables-accused-of-child-porn-offences.html |url-status=live |access-date=7 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100310012548/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/7390615/James-Bulger-killer-Jon-Venables-accused-of-child-porn-offences.html |archive-date=10 March 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first1=Alison |last1=Chung |first2=Tom |last2=Bonnett |date=8 March 2010 |title=Bulger killer Jon Venables jailed again 'for child porn' |website=news.com.au |url=http://www.news.com.au/world/bulger-killer-jon-venables-jailed-again-for-child-porn/story-e6frfkyi-1225837945932 |access-date=7 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100310074851/http://www.news.com.au/world/bulger-killer-jon-venables-jailed-again-for-child-porn/story-e6frfkyi-1225837945932 |archive-date=10 March 2010 |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name=guardian_2010>{{cite news |last=Walker |first=Peter |date=7 March 2010 |title=Jon Venables back in prison 'over child pornography offences' |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/mar/07/jon-venables-alleged-child-porn-offences |url-status=live |access-date=8 November 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141108112126/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/mar/07/jon-venables-alleged-child-porn-offences |archive-date=8 November 2014 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

In a statement to the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] on 8&nbsp;March 2010, Straw reiterated that it was "not in the interest of justice" to reveal the reason why Venables had been returned to custody.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Jenkins |first1=Russell |last2=Ford |first2=Richard |date=4 March 2010 |title=Jack Straw refuses to reveal why Bulger killer has returned to jail |newspaper=[[The Times]] |issn=0140-0460 |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/crime/article/jack-straw-refuses-to-reveal-why-bulger-killer-has-returned-to-jail-c58s6tm8kdl |access-date=2023-04-15 }}</ref> [[Baroness Butler-Sloss]], the judge who made the decision to grant Venables anonymity in 2001, warned that Venables could be killed if his identity was revealed.<ref>{{cite news |date=2010-03-08 |title=Ex-judge backs Venables anonymity |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/merseyside/8556826.stm |url-status=live |access-date=2023-04-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170827174409/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/8556826.stm |archive-date=27 August 2017 }}</ref>

Bulger's mother, Denise Fergus, said she was angry that the parole board did not tell her that Venables had been returned to prison, and called for his anonymity to be removed if he was charged with a crime.<ref name=bbc_fergus>{{cite news |title=Bulger's mother says Venables 'should be identified' |date=6 March 2010 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/merseyside/8553634.stm |access-date=6 March 2010 |archive-date=19 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220519193916/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/8553634.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> A spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice stated that there was a worldwide injunction against publication of either killer's location or new identity.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Dodd |first=Vikram |date=2010-03-02 |df=dmy-all |title=James Bulger killer back in prison |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |issn=0261-3077 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/mar/02/james-bulger-jon-venables-prison |url-status=live |access-date=2023-04-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170510182530/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/mar/02/james-bulger-jon-venables-prison |archive-date=10 May 2017}}</ref> Venables's return to prison revived a false claim that a man from [[Fleetwood]], [[Lancashire]], was Venables. While the claim was reported and dismissed in September 2005,<ref name="blackpool gazette 2005">{{cite web |title=I'm living in fear over 'child killer' rumours |date=10 September 2005 |newspaper=[[The Blackpool Gazette]] |url=http://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/blackpoolnews/Im-living-in-fear-over.1142127.jp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100311211400/http://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/blackpoolnews/Im-living-in-fear-over.1142127.jp |archive-date=11 March 2010 |access-date=10 March 2010 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> it reappeared in March&nbsp;2010 when it was circulated widely via text messages and Facebook.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Carter |first=Helen |title=My ordeal at being mistaken for Jon Venables: Terror of young father accused of being Bulger killer |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/mar/09/david-calvert-jon-venables-facebook-jamie-bulger |date=9 March 2010 |work=The Guardian |access-date=8 November 2014 |location=London, UK |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141108110821/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/mar/09/david-calvert-jon-venables-facebook-jamie-bulger |archive-date=8 November 2014 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Chief Inspector Tracie O'Gara of [[Lancashire Constabulary]] stated: "An individual who was targeted four-and-a-half years ago was not Jon Venables, and now he has left the area."<ref name=calvert>{{cite news |first=Andrew |last=Hough |date=10 March 2010 |title=Jon Venables: Man wrongly accused of being James Bulger killer 'living in fear of vigilantes' |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |location=London, UK |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/7412162/Jon-Venables-man-wrongly-accused-of-being-Bulger-killer-living-in-fear-of-vigilantes.html |access-date=11 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100312225204/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/7412162/Jon-Venables-man-wrongly-accused-of-being-Bulger-killer-living-in-fear-of-vigilantes.html |archive-date=12 March 2010 |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="blackpool gazette">{{cite web |title='I'm not Jon Venables' |date=10 March 2010 |newspaper=[[The Blackpool Gazette]] |url=http://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/blackpoolnews/Im-not-Jon-Venables.6137991.jp |url-status=dead |access-date=10 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100311230329/http://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/blackpoolnews/Im-not-Jon-Venables.6137991.jp |archive-date=11 March 2010 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

On 21&nbsp;June 2010, Venables was charged with possession and distribution of indecent images of children. It was alleged that he had downloaded 57&nbsp;indecent images of children over a 12-month period to February&nbsp;2010, and had allowed other people to access the files through a [[peer-to-peer]] network. Venables faced two charges under the [[Protection of Children Act 1978]].<ref name=bbc_porn_charges>{{cite news |title=Bulger killer Jon Venables faces child porn charges |date=21 June 2010 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10369277 |access-date=21 June 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220519193922/https://www.bbc.com/news/10369277 |archive-date=19 May 2022 }}</ref><ref name=standard_porn_charges>{{cite news |last=Cheston |first=Paul |date=21 June 2010 |title=James Bulger killer Jon Venables is 'suspected paedophile' |newspaper=[[The Evening Standard]] |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/hp/front/james-bulger-killer-jon-venables-is-suspected-paedophile-6483087.html |url-status=live |access-date=21 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100624021137/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23847494-james-bulger-killer-jon-venables-is-suspected-paedophile.do |archive-date=24 June 2010}}</ref> On 23&nbsp;July, Venables appeared at a court hearing at the [[Old Bailey]] via a video link, visible only to the judge hearing the case.<ref>{{cite web |last=Rayner |first=Gordon |date=23 July 2010 |title=James Bulger killer Jon Venables jailed for two years for downloading child pornography |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/7906539/James-Bulger-killer-Jon-Venables-jailed-for-two-years-for-downloading-child-pornography.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170827170331/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/7906539/James-Bulger-killer-Jon-Venables-jailed-for-two-years-for-downloading-child-pornography.html |archive-date=27 August 2017 }}</ref> He pleaded guilty to charges of downloading and distributing child sexual abuse material, and was sentenced to two years' imprisonment.<ref name=sky_porn_charges>{{cite news |last=Jack |first=Andy |date=23 July 2010 |title=James Bulger Killer guilty of child porn |website=[[Sky News]] |url=http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/UK-News/Jon-Venables-Appears-By-Video-Link-At-Old-Bailey-On-Child-Pornography-Charges/Article/201007415669778?lpos=UK_News_Carousel_Region_1&lid=ARTICLE_15669778_Jon_Venables_Appears_By_Video-Link_At_Old_Bailey_On_Child_Pornography_Charges |url-status=dead |access-date=23 July 2010 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130202193321/http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/UK-News/Jon-Venables-Appears-By-Video-Link-At-Old-Bailey-On-Child-Pornography-Charges/Article/201007415669778?lpos=UK_News_Carousel_Region_1&lid=ARTICLE_15669778_Jon_Venables_Appears_By_Video-Link_At_Old_Bailey_On_Child_Pornography_Charges |archive-date=2 February 2013}}</ref> At the court hearing, it emerged that Venables had posed in online chat rooms as 35-year-old Dawn "Dawnie" Smith, a supposedly married woman from Liverpool, who boasted about abusing her eight-year-old daughter, in the hope of obtaining further child sexual abuse material.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

The judge, Mr&nbsp;Justice [[David Bean (judge)|David Bean]], ruled that Venables's new identity could not be revealed, but the media were allowed to report that he had been living in [[Cheshire]] at the time of his arrest.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Spence |first1=Alex |date=21 December 2010 |type=profile |title=Mr.&nbsp;Justice Bean |newspaper=[[The Times]] |place=London, UK |url=https://www.thetimes.com/best-law-firms/profile-legal/article/profile-mr-justice-bean-6xdt3vtbks9 |access-date=7 March 2016 |archive-date=7 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307170135/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/law/article2851589.ece |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=Jon_Venables_Pleads_Guilty>{{cite news |first=Helen |last=Pidd |date=23 July 2010 |title=Jon Venables jailed for two years over child pornography charges |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |edition=online |location=London, UK |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/jul/23/jon-venables-pleads-guilty |access-date=23 July 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141108115203/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/jul/23/jon-venables-pleads-guilty |archive-date=8 November 2014 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> The High Court also heard that Venables had been arrested on suspicion of affray in September&nbsp;2008, following a drunken street fight with another man. Later that year, he was [[Police caution|cautioned]] for [[Possession (law)|possession]] of cocaine.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Batty |first1=David |last2=Pidd |first2=Helen |date=24 July 2010 |department=Jon Venables case |title=Inquiry ordered into parole supervision |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/jul/24/james-bulger-jon-venables-inquiry |via=theguardian.com |url-status=live |access-date=2017-07-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170827173741/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/jul/24/james-bulger-jon-venables-inquiry |archive-date=27 August 2017 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> In November 2010, a review of the [[National Probation Service]] handling of the case by David Omand found that probation officers could not have prevented Venables from downloading child sexual abuse material. Harry Fletcher, the assistant general secretary of the [[National Association of Probation Officers]], said that only 24-hour surveillance would have stopped Venables.<ref name=omand>{{cite web |series=Omand Review |title=The Case of Jon Venables |date=23 November 2010 |url=https://www.scribd.com/doc/43766244/Venables-Omand-Review |via=Scribd.com |access-date=15 January 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105135827/http://www.scribd.com/doc/43766244/Venables-Omand-Review |archive-date=5 November 2012 |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name=Jon_Venables_Probation>{{cite news |title=Report finds no probation lapse over Venables images |date=23 November 2010 |website=[[BBC News]] |location=London, UK |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-11818188 |access-date=23 November 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101124202235/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-11818188 |archive-date=24 November 2010 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Venables was eligible for parole in July&nbsp;2011. On 27&nbsp;June 2011, the parole board decided that he would remain in custody, and that his parole would not be considered again for at least another year.<ref name="Jon Venables denied parole">{{cite news |title=James Bulger killer Jon Venables denied parole |date=27 June 2011 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-13927361 |access-date=27 June 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629055017/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-13927361 |archive-date=29 June 2011 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

====2011 new identity==== On 4 May 2011, it was reported that Venables would once again be given a new identity, following what was described as a "serious security breach", which revealed an identity that he had been using before his imprisonment in 2010; details of the breach could not be reported for legal reasons.<ref name=new_identity>{{cite news |last=Brunt |first=Martin |date=4 May 2011 |title=Security breach sees child killer Venables get new ID |website=[[Sky News]] |location=London, UK |url=https://news.sky.com/story/breach-sees-child-killer-venables-get-new-id-10488268 |url-status=live |access-date=4 May 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110507231237/http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/UK-News/James-Bulger-Killer-Jon-Venables-To-Be-Given-New-ID-After-Security-Breach-Revealed-Old-Identity/Article/201105115985161?lpos=UK_News_First_Home_Article_Teaser_Region_1&lid=ARTICLE_15985161_James_Bulger_Killer_Jon_Venables_To_Be_Given_New_ID_After_Security_Breach_Revealed_Old_Identity |archive-date=7 May 2011}}</ref> A spokesman for the Ministry of Justice commented: "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."<ref name="echo_identity">{{cite news |title=James Bulger's killer Jon Venables could get second new identity after pictures leaked on internet |date=4 May 2011 |newspaper=[[The Liverpool Echo]] |url=http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-news/local-news/2011/05/04/james-bulger-s-killer-jon-venables-could-get-second-new-identity-after-pictures-leaked-on-internet-100252-28637186/ |access-date=4 May 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121013054846/http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-news/local-news/2011/05/04/james-bulger-s-killer-jon-venables-could-get-second-new-identity-after-pictures-leaked-on-internet-100252-28637186/ |archive-date=13 October 2012 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> The incident occurred after a man from [[Exeter]] posted photographs on a website devoted to identifying [[paedophiles]], allegedly showing Venables as an adult, and revealing his name.<ref name=echo_exeter>{{cite news |title=City man defends decision to publish photos of Bulger killer |date=5 May 2011 |newspaper=[[Express & Echo]] |url=http://www.thisisexeter.co.uk/news/City-man-defends-decision-publish-photos-Bulger-killer/article-3522436-detail/article.html |via=thisisexeter.co.uk |url-status=dead |access-date=6 May 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110508223654/http://www.thisisexeter.co.uk/news/City-man-defends-decision-publish-photos-Bulger-killer/article-3522436-detail/article.html |archive-date=8 May 2011 }}</ref>

====2013 parole hearing and release==== In November&nbsp;2011, it was reported that officials had decided that Venables would stay in prison for the foreseeable future, as he would be likely to reveal his true identity if released. A Ministry of Justice spokesman declined to comment on the reports.<ref name="pa">{{Cite news |title=Venables 'locked up indefinitely' |date=9 November 2011 |agency=[[Press Association]] |url=http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5hgBtaHLHgwvw-iPeQPdG0Ht2-D0w?docId=N0546841320832544731A |access-date=9 November 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240525141821/https://www.webcitation.org/634BEo5Ia?url=http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5hgBtaHLHgwvw-iPeQPdG0Ht2-D0w%3FdocId=N0546841320832544731A |archive-date=25 May 2024}}</ref> On 4&nbsp;July 2013, it was reported that the [[Parole Board for England and Wales]] had approved the release again of Venables.<ref name=parole_2013>{{cite news |last=Osley |first=Richard |date=4 July 2013 |title=James Bulger killer Jon Venables to be freed |newspaper=[[The Independent]] |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/james-bulger-killer-jon-venables-to-be-freed-8688769.html |url-status=live |access-date=4 July 2013 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130704175125/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/james-bulger-killer-jon-venables-to-be-freed-8688769.html |archive-date=4 July 2013}}</ref><ref name=parole_2013b>{{cite news |title=James Bulger killer Jon Venables to be freed |date=4 July 2013 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-23190447 |access-date=4 July 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130704170613/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-23190447 |archive-date=4 July 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> On 3&nbsp;September 2013, it was reported that Venables had been released from prison.<ref name=2013_release>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-23941699 |title=Bulger killer Jon Venables released from prison |date=3 September 2013 |work=[[BBC News]] |access-date=3 September 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130903104723/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-23941699 |archive-date=3 September 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

====2017 imprisonment==== On 23&nbsp;November 2017, it was reported that Venables had again been recalled to prison for possession of more [[child sexual abuse]] imagery. The Ministry of Justice declined to comment on the reports.<ref name="2017_prison">{{cite news |last=Thomas |first=Joe |date=23 November 2017 |title=Child killer Jon Venables 'back in jail' after latest arrest |newspaper=[[The Liverpool Echo]] |url=http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/child-killer-jon-venables-back-13941586 |url-status=live |access-date=23 November 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171123125151/http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/child-killer-jon-venables-back-13941586 |archive-date=23 November 2017 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> On 5&nbsp;January 2018, Venables was charged with unspecified offences relating to indecent images of children.<ref>{{cite news |title=James Bulger killer Jon Venables charged over indecent images |date=5 January 2018 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-42582561 |access-date=5 January 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180105143841/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-42582561 |archive-date=5 January 2018 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> On 7&nbsp;February 2018, Venables pleaded guilty to possession of indecent images of children for a second time. He pleaded guilty via video link to three charges of making indecent images of children, and one of possessing a "paedophile manual", that included advice for would-be child molesters, including instructions on [[child grooming]] and evading detection.<ref>{{cite news |title=Jon Venables jailed for owning 'paedophile manual' and a thousand indecent images of children |date=7 February 2018 |newspaper=[[The Yorkshire Post]] |url=https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/crime/jon-venables-jailed-owning-paedophile-manual-and-thousand-indecent-images-children-49965 |access-date=19 September 2021 |archive-date=13 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211113000438/https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/crime/jon-venables-jailed-owning-paedophile-manual-and-thousand-indecent-images-children-49965 |url-status=live }}</ref> He was sentenced to three years and four months in prison. In September&nbsp;2020, he was denied parole.<ref>{{cite news |title=James Bulger killer Jon Venables denied parole over child abuse images |date=29 September 2020 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-merseyside-54339662 |access-date=30 September 2020 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201004151011/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-merseyside-54339662 |archive-date=4 October 2020}}</ref> On 13 December 2023, Venables was again denied parole, with the Parole Board saying that "The panel was not satisfied that release at this point would be safe for the protection of the public."<ref>{{cite news |date=13 December 2023 |title=James Bulger killer Jon Venables has parole bid rejected|work=Sky News |url=https://news.sky.com/story/james-bulger-killer-jon-venables-has-parole-bid-rejected-13017955|accessdate=13 December 2023}}</ref>

====2019 legal challenge to lift anonymity refused==== On 4&nbsp;March 2019, Bulger's father, Ralph, lost a legal challenge to lift the lifelong order protecting Venables's anonymity. Judge [[Andrew McFarlane (judge)|Andrew McFarlane]] turned down the request, saying that the "uniquely notorious" nature of the case meant there is "a strong possibility, if not a probability, that if his identity were known, he would be pursued, resulting in grave and possibly fatal consequences."<ref>{{cite news |title=James Bulger's father loses Jon Venables identity challenge |date=4 March 2019 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-47400408 |access-date=4 March 2019 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190304143116/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-47400408 |archive-date=4 March 2019 }}</ref>

====Potential overseas resettlement==== In late June 2019, it was reported that British officials had considered resettling Venables in Canada, Australia or New Zealand, due to the high costs behind protecting his anonymity. British authorities had reportedly spent £65,000 in legal fees to keep Venables's identity a secret.<ref>{{cite news |title=Child killer of 2&nbsp;year-old James Bulger, Jon Venables, might be sent to New Zealand |date=24 June 2019 |newspaper=[[New Zealand Herald]] |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12243206 |access-date=24 June 2019 |archive-date=24 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190624023336/https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12243206 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Wood |first=Richard |date=24 June 2019 |title=James Bulger murder: Infamous child killer could move to Australia |website=[[Nine News]] |url=https://www.9news.com.au/world/james-bulger-murder-why-uk-infamous-child-killer-jon-venables-could-move-to-australia/1a7fb426-5bfe-4f38-8eeb-87360c3f8d94 |url-status=live |access-date=24 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190624073546/https://www.9news.com.au/world/james-bulger-murder-why-uk-infamous-child-killer-jon-venables-could-move-to-australia/1a7fb426-5bfe-4f38-8eeb-87360c3f8d94 |archive-date=24 June 2019 }}</ref> In response to media coverage, New Zealand prime minister [[Jacinda Ardern]] remarked that, due to his criminal history, Venables would need an exemption under the [[Immigration Act 2009|New Zealand Immigration Act 2009]], and that he should "not bother" applying.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Cheng |first1=Derek |title=Jacinda Ardern on UK child-killer Jon Venables' possible relocation to NZ - 'Don't bother applying' |date=24 June 2019 |newspaper=[[New Zealand Herald]] |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12243475 |access-date=24 June 2019 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190624145507/https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12243475 |archive-date=24 June 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title='Don't bother applying' – PM's message to Jon Venables, killer of two-year-old James Bulger |date=24 June 2019 |publisher=[[1News]] |url=https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/don-t-bother-applying-pms-message-jon-venables-killer-two-year-old-james-bulger |url-status=live |access-date=24 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190624073548/https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/don-t-bother-applying-pms-message-jon-venables-killer-two-year-old-james-bulger |archive-date=24 June 2019 }}</ref>

====2026 parole hearing====

In January 2026, it was reported that Venables would have a new parole hearing. Denise Fergus was granted permission to attend the hearing.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Mullen |first=Tom |date=13 January 2026 |title=Bulger killer Jon Venables set for parole hearing |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c89qeyzgp9lo |access-date=23 January 2026 |work=BBC News}}</ref>

==In popular culture==

=== ''The Age of Consent'' === In August&nbsp;2001, a stage play titled ''The Age of Consent'' by [[Peter Morris (playwright)|Peter Morris]] was performed at the [[Edinburgh Festival Fringe]]. The play featured an 18-year-old character called Timmy, who was due to be released from a secure unit after luring a toddler away from his mother and beating him to death.

The play generated controversy due to the similarities between the character and James's killers.<ref>{{cite news |title=Festival defends 'Bulger' play |date=6 August 2001 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1475836.stm |access-date=2 April 2021 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220519193917/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1475836.stm |archive-date=19 May 2022 }}</ref> Although she had not seen the play, Denise Fergus denounced it as a work that was "just designed to try and shock people and grab publicity" and that "anyone who would stoop so low as to use my son's death as a subject for comedy is sick and pathetic."<ref>{{cite news |last=Gibbons |first=Fiachra |date=6 August 2001 |title=Family attacks use of Bulger case in 'funny' Fringe play |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2001/aug/06/edinburghfestival2001.edinburgh |url-status=live |access-date=2 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210822100445/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2001/aug/06/edinburghfestival2001.edinburgh |archive-date=22 August 2021}}</ref>

In response to the controversy, Morris stated that the humour in his play was "never at the expense of the various people, Mrs Fergus included, who have suffered so much in the aftermath of James's murder". 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".<ref name=Morris>{{cite news |first=Peter |last=Morris |date=8 August 2001 |title=In defence of my play |location=London, UK |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/comment/story/0,,533615,00.html |access-date=2 April 2021 |archive-date=10 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210410152214/https://www.theguardian.com/comment/story/0,,533615,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Computer game === In June 2007, a computer game based on the television series ''[[Law & Order]]'', titled ''[[Law & Order: Double or Nothing]]'' (made in 2003), was withdrawn from stores in the UK following reports that it contained an image of Bulger. The image in question is the [[:Image:Bulger cctv.jpg|CCTV frame of Bulger being led away]] by Thompson and Venables. The scene in the game involves a computer-generated detective pointing out the picture, which is meant to represent a fictional child abduction that the player is then asked to investigate. Bulger's family, along with many others, complained, and the game was subsequently withdrawn by its UK distributor, GSP.

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".<ref name="legacy_apologise">{{cite web |date=21 June 2007 |title=Legacy Apologises For Law And Order Crime Photo |url=http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=14423 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080429180539/http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=14423 |archive-date=29 April 2008 |access-date=13 April 2008 |publisher=gamasutra.com |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

=== ''Monsters'' === In 2008, Swedish playwright [[Niklas Rådström]] used the interview transcripts from interrogations with the murderers and their families to recreate the story. His play, ''Monsters'', opened at the [[Arcola Theatre]] in [[London]] in May 2009.<ref name=monsters>{{cite news |first=Michael |last=Billington |date=9 May 2009 |title=''Monsters'' |type=theatre review |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |location=London, UK |url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2009/may/09/monsters-michael-billington-theatre-review |access-date=11 March 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140809040527/http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2009/may/09/monsters-michael-billington-theatre-review |archive-date=9 August 2014 |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=McAlpine |first=Emma |date=15 May 2009 |title=''Monsters'' at the Arcola Theatre |website=Spoonfed London |url=http://www.spoonfed.co.uk/spooners/emma-422/monsters-at-the-arcola-theatre-1135 |access-date=2023-04-15 |df=dmy-all |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090523095110/http://www.spoonfed.co.uk/spooners/emma-422/monsters-at-the-arcola-theatre-1135 |archive-date=2009-05-23}}</ref>

===Australian television publicity stunt=== In August&nbsp;2009, Australia's [[Seven Network]] used real footage of Bulger's abduction to promote its crime drama ''[[City Homicide]]''. The use of the footage was criticised by Bulger's mother, and Seven apologised.<ref name="Seven 'sorry' for Bulger ad">{{cite web |date=30 August 2009 |title=Seven 'sorry' for Bulger ad |url=https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/seven-sorry-for-bulger-ad-20090830-f3l4.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240129164806/https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/seven-sorry-for-bulger-ad-20090830-f3l4.html |archive-date=29 January 2024 |access-date=29 January 2024 |website=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |publisher=[[Nine Entertainment co.]] |location=Australia}}</ref>

On 24&nbsp;August, co-hosts on Seven's breakfast show [[Sunrise (Australian TV program)|''Sunrise'']] asked whether the killers were now living in Australia, in an apparent tie-in with that week's episode of ''City Homicide''. They answered the question the next day by relaying the Australian government's denial that the killers had been settled in the country.<ref name="Rumour-Fuelled Ratings Chase">{{cite web |title=Rumour-fuelled ratings chase |date=31 August 2009 |website=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation|ABC]] (abc.net.au) |url=https://www.abc.net.au/mediawatch/episodes/rumour-fuelled-ratings-chase/9974808 |access-date=1 September 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090904153206/http://www.abc.net.au/mediawatch/transcripts/s2672289.htm |archive-date=4 September 2009 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

=== Soap opera storyline === A storyline in the British soap opera ''[[Hollyoaks]]'' was set to begin in December&nbsp;2009, but cancelled after the series makers gave Bulger's mother Denise Fergus a private screening.

The storyline was to feature [[Loretta Jones]] and her friend Chrissy, who had been given new identities before arriving in the village, after being convicted of murdering a child at the age of 12.<ref>{{cite news |title=Hollyoaks producers drop scenes echoing the killing of James Bulger |date=15 November 2009 |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |place=London, UK |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/6812785/Hollyoaks-producers-drop-scenes-echoing-the-killing-of-James-Bulger.html |access-date=8 November 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141108111852/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/6812785/Hollyoaks-producers-drop-scenes-echoing-the-killing-of-James-Bulger.html |archive-date=8 November 2014 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

=== Scholarly reference === In 2010, the critical theorist [[Terry Eagleton]] introduced his book ''On Evil'' with the story of Bulger's murder.<ref>{{cite news |last=Coles |first=Richard |date=30 May 2010 |title=''On Evil'' by Terry Eagleton |type=book review |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |location=London, UK |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/may/30/terry-eagleton-evil-book-review |access-date=8 January 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140108160232/http://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/may/30/terry-eagleton-evil-book-review |archive-date=8 January 2014 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

=== 2019 Oscars nomination === In January&nbsp;2019, the short film ''[[Detainment (film)|Detainment]]'' was nominated for [[Best Live Action Short Film]] at the [[91st Academy Awards]]. The film is based on transcripts of the police interviews with Thompson and Venables after their arrests.<ref>{{cite news |title=''Detainment'' makes Oscars short list |date=21 December 2018 |newspaper=Winchester Today |url=http://www.winchestertoday.co.uk/2018/12/detainment-makes-oscars-shortlist/ |access-date=7 January 2019 |archive-date=7 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190107233028/http://www.winchestertoday.co.uk/2018/12/detainment-makes-oscars-shortlist/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=James Bulger's mother 'disgusted' over nomination |date=22 January 2019 |website=[[BBC News]] |department=Oscars 2019 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-46964691 |access-date=22 January 2019 |archive-date=22 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190122164215/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-46964691 |url-status=live }}</ref> Bulger's mother was not consulted before the film's release. She criticised its nomination and circulated a petition to have the film removed from the nominations.<ref>{{cite news |title=Bulger mother calls on director to drop out of awards |date=24 January 2019 |website=[[BBC News]] |department=Oscars 2019 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-46984472 |access-date=24 January 2019 |archive-date=24 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190124134001/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-46984472 |url-status=live }}</ref> Director [[Vincent Lambe]] refused to withdraw the film from consideration, saying that "it would defeat the purpose of making the film".<ref>{{cite news |title=Bulger film director 'won't withdraw' from Oscars race |date=24 January 2019 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-46995039 |access-date=24 January 2019 |archive-date=24 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190124204613/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-46995039 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==See also== *[[Edlington attacks]] *[[Mary Bell]] *[[Sharon Carr]] *[[Murder of Brianna Ghey]] *[[Murder of Alesha MacPhail]]

==References== {{reflist|colwidth=25em}}

==External links== {{refbegin|colwidth=25em|small=yes}} * {{cite web |title=The murder of James Bulger |department=Notorious murders / Young |series=Crime Library |website=[[truTV]] (trutv.com) |url=http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/1.html |url-status=dead <!-- presumed --> |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090121191737/http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/young/bulger/1.html |archive-date=2009-01-21 |df=dmy-all}} * {{cite news |title=How Edlington case follows course paved by Bulger trial |date=22 January 2010 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8300034.stm |url-status=live <!-- presumed --> |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111216130509/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8300034.stm |archive-date=2011-12-16 |df=dmy-all}} * {{cite news |title=Recollections from key people involved in the Bulger trial, ten years on |date=6 February 2003 |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/feb/06/bulger.ukcrime1 }} * {{cite news |title='James would be 18 now – the pain of losing him will never go away' |date=2 March 2008 |newspaper=[[The Observer]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2008/mar/02/ukcrime.prisonsandprobation1 }} * {{cite news |title=Michael Jackson's 'Heal the World' released to support new Liverpool James Bulger centre for bullied children |date=8 October 2009 |newspaper=[[Liverpool Daily Post]] |url=http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/liverpool-news/regional-news/2009/10/08/michael-jackson-s-heal-the-world-released-to-support-new-liverpool-james-bulger-centre-for-bullied-children-92534-24879959/ |url-status=dead <!-- presumed --> |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091016040814/http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/liverpool-news/regional-news/2009/10/08/michael-jackson-s-heal-the-world-released-to-support-new-liverpool-james-bulger-centre-for-bullied-children-92534-24879959/ |archive-date=2009-10-16 |df=dmy-all}} * {{cite news |title=James Bulger's father on surviving 20&nbsp;years of grief |date=12 February 2013 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21337506 }} * {{cite news |last=Williams |first=Zoe |date=5 July 2013 |title=Jon Venables: 'How attitudes towards criminality have changed and hardened' |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/jul/05/jon-venables-criminality-attitudes-james-bulger }} * {{cite news |last=Freeman-Powell |first=Shamaan |date=18 April 2019 |title=Legal dilemma of granting child killers anonymity |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-47721177}} {{refend}}

{{Portal bar|1990s|Liverpool|United Kingdom}} {{Murders in the United Kingdom in the 1990s}} {{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bulger, James}} [[Category:1990s in Liverpool]] [[Category:1990s in Merseyside]] [[Category:1990s missing person cases]] [[Category:1993 in England]] [[Category:1993 murders in the United Kingdom]] [[Category:Bootle]] [[Category:Child murder in England]] [[Category:Crimes adapted into films]] [[Category:Deaths by person in England]] [[Category:February 1993 crimes]] [[Category:February 1993 in the United Kingdom]] [[Category:Incidents of violence against boys]] [[Category:Kidnapping in the 1990s]] [[Category:Kidnappings in England]] [[Category:Formerly missing British people]] [[Category:Kidnapped English children]] [[Category:Missing person cases in England]] [[Category:Murder committed by minors]] [[Category:Murdered English children]] [[Category:Murder in Liverpool]] [[Category:Torture in England]] [[Category:Violence against children in England]]