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At Preston Crown Court Thompsons mother Ann and Venables parents Neil and Sue sat side by side. She was living in secrecy but always felt that she was walking around with a huge sign: mother of Bulger killer, above her head. Both of them struggled at school and had been lumped into the year below their age. Three years ago, after his mother walloped him, he went to social services and asked them to put him in care. They were in the Strand shopping centre in Bootle when the brother wandered off. The days James was abducted, February 12 1993, I was a young reporter in my home city of Liverpool. What doing well means is anybodys guess. She remained very frightened and felt that she and her son were the most hated people in the country. ', The closest either boy came to offering an explanation was when Jon was asked by police why he had taken James's shoe off by the railway tracks. I don't think so. Hope. While, on the face of it, there doesnt appear to be as much external devastation present in Jons family history as in Roberts, his outlandish behavior suggested that internally, Jon was in a state of extreme emotional upset. Mr Venables said it had never crossed their minds that the video pictures from the security cameras in the shopping centre from which James went missing showed their own son. Maybe it was that incident that put the idea into Jon or Robbie's head to 'get a little boy lost'. "Just TV programmes and little things remind me of the good times we had together . In contrast he has had no contact with his father despite an approach soon after sentencing. They were drawn to one another quickly. Friday 12th February 1993. "I don't think we went wrong as parents at all. Pictures; Inside the Guardian; Guardian Weekly . The police have uncovered no evidence of any abuse within either family. Express. But his progress took a nose dive in September 1991 when he was transferred into another class. Toddler James Bulger disappeared on February 12 1993. "My heart really goes out to them. However, given that the tension in the household was persistent throughout the most crucial of Jons formative years, the belief that he had moved through the ordeal entirely unaffected is questionable. She was paranoid about being discovered. The documentary last night featured interviews with those involved in the 1993 trial, including James dad Ralph Bulger, Jon Venables solicitor Laurence Lee and detective sergeant Phil Roberts, who interviewed Robert Thompson. Robert was number five of seven. At his first primary school the headmistress referred him to a psychologist, noting how he used to bang his head against the classroom wall to gain attention. 'I couldn't be arsed talking about them,' said one. There, he is terrorising a girl. It is not known whether the boy watched any of his father's adult movies. When she turned around moments later, her son was gone. At Radio City in Liverpool the calls were coming through from Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Recently, I dug out my old notebooks of the trial and my handwriting during the verdicts says it all. How can people defend their actions .#TheBulgerKillers.". In March 2010, Venables was recalled to prison for downloading and distributing more than 100 images of child abuse. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. They deal with drugs, they deal with everything. Murder of James Bulger. INSIDE the court sat the two boys, dwarfed by the weight and majesty of the place. Susan Venables, mother of Jon - referred to throughout the trial as Boy B - blamed her son's 'weakness' for the murder of James Bulger, . I have cried for JamesBulgermany times, so God only knows the tears his parents and family have shed. 'His mum was more strict. Financially, the couple appeared to be functioning, but meanwhile, Susan was at the end of her rope with her eldest son, who, having become increasingly frustrated at his inability to communicate, had grown terribly unhappy and was having temper tantrums regularly. The final scene takes place among the tracks of a fun-fair ghost train where the doll, which resembles an infant with spiky hair has his face slashed before he is cut to pieces by a ventilator fan. Seeing at first hand the pain of a family who have lost a toddler to an act of brutal violence is almost unbearably moving. He wore his dark hair short, almost a crew cut, which accentuated his ample forehead and blunt nose. The trial though didnt, and was never designed to, shed light on how two such young children could be guilty of such sustained barbarity. Denise Fergus remains convinced both will always be a danger to children. His mother was not so keen on the idea - they cost pounds 35 each. They fled the city, never to return. 'When you have got people in the area threatening to blow your kneecaps off every moment of the day - that's just the way they are. During that time, Susan felt as if she was trapped and overburdened, often taking her frustrations out on her husband, who believed it was her responsibility to take care of the children, and offered her little support in the way of childrearing. But just as he was entering the school gates he met Jon and they decided to sag off together for the fourth - and final - time. The pair were handed new identities after being released from prison. Born 10 days apart in August 1982 in Liverpool. Will you tell his Mum Im sorry?. has prompted a public outcry for an investigation into issues surrounding the case. Why would I want to kill him? he said, referring to the slain toddler. Another added: "An awful mistake??!! The primary concern among the faculty was Roberts growing amount of absences. On November 24, 1993, Robert Thompson and Jon Venables became the youngest persons to be convicted of murder in Britain in almost 250 years, when the pair, both eleven, was found guilty of the abduction and murder of two-year-old James Patrick Bulger. She was a woman as large in personality and physique as the burdens she carried. When social workers came round, they did so to see his sister and his brother, who had learning difficulties and was receiving special education. The details of Jamess death were sickening. Grey Heron. They deal with drugs, they deal with everything. I have lost my son as well. I wish we could turn the clocks back," Mrs Venablessaid. Whatever problems she had in her own life, she was always there. But. Wiping away tears, he went on: 'I feel for that family. View the profiles of people named Susan Venables. During the Bulger investigation, police checked the details of 50 videos Mr Venables had hired in recent months. He denied having had any films that were not mainstream, or that were pornographic, in the house. ', They sagged off in the afternoon and walked around the shops in County Road, near Walton. 'Provided you have no court orders for debts already,' the man on the phone would add helpfully. Following the arrest of their sons it was reported that the mothers of the boys had been attacked and vilified in. Their. He has been educated. Just four years earlier, we had all covered the Hillsborough disaster and come together in grief. When the fisticuffs ended, impressed by each other's performance, they made friends. "It was very dark and I shouted down, shouted his name. Both boys had been held back a year, and they were put in the same class. The sunrises through the sea mist over the sculpture The Couple by Sean Henry at Newbiggin-by-the-Sea on the Northumberland coast. His father, Neil, an unemployed panel-beater, was separated from his mother but they lived only a mile apart, saw each other every other day, and took equal care of the children. Take him home, the officer would say to her. Money, or his family's lack of it, preyed on his mind. IN their interviews with the two boys, psychiatrists could find no clues to why the boys acted so violently. The parents of James Bulgers killers have also come to learn that the consequences of that terrible day will stay with them for ever too. It has already been reported that Jon Venables real identity has been exposed in prison, where he is said to be receiving 24-hour protection. The family was already exhaustingly overextended, and Robert, being the fifth edition, was quick to pick up on the coping mechanisms needed to survive in a life of unremitting chaos and enmity. Then between 1990 and 1991, Jons teachers recognized a dramatic change in the boys behavior, which was alarming enough for one of his teachers to begin keeping a daily log. "On the other hand, you are looking at him and you are saying 'Well, I know why - because he is so weak'. 'It was very dark and I shouted down, shouted his name. .". He has had his holidays like everyone else. It is about a Good Guy doll invaded by the spirit of a mass murderer who kills people in gruesome ways. Everyone called him Chubby, because of his round, cherub's face. The two bumped into each other - literally - in the school playground in the middle of a fight. She acknowledged her son had committed a terrible crime but claimed that her innocent younger children were being denied a proper education because of having to abandon their homes to escape attacks. Venables received a 40-month prison sentence after appearing via video link at the Old Bailey. He is far from it. He was fearful, he was weak and he was provoked. He is one of those children that if you told him to put his hand in the fire, he would. He would call people names and get them to chase him. The base of the dock floor at Preston Crown Court had to be raised 18 inches so each boy could see over it. Trauma? Nine months later, I was one of 30 or so journalists inside Preston Crown Court when the trial began. Its beyond me," one viewer tweeted. His body was found two days later on a railway line. football, snooker, things like that. 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In the autumn term of 1992, Robert played truant for 49 half days and Jon for 40. Our feelings haven't changed towards him. release. qu fy. Click here to find personal data about Susan Venables including phone numbers, addresses, directorships, electoral roll information, related property prices and other useful information. wo. He started with Liverpool, but by the time of the murder he had switched to Blackburn Rovers. Venables and Thompson were seen on CCTV calmly leading the toddler out of the shopping centre by his hand. fn ye vw la. Their seats were just below the raised dock where their sons would sit for the next three weeks, listening to a prosecution which aimed to prove not only that they killed James Bulger, but that they planned to, and that when they did they knew it to be wrong. He took a jar of paracetamol. Drivers have been warned to leave extra time for their Monday morning commute due to icy roads during rush hour, following a weekend of wintry weather. Instead, she was involved in an ITV documentary with Sir Trevor McDonald that will air on Thursday. For weeks, she stayed in bed, not bothering to tend to the children, and when she finally did reemerge, she readily admitted she drank from morning to night, but had stopped taking the pills. Get out and get into Dyson Hall children's centre, the only residential care school in the country just outside Liverpool. Susan, aged 36, a sharp woman . THE first time the boys set eyes on each other after they were arrested was in Preston crown court 3 1/2 weeks ago. Resentful of her husbands lack of involvement with the children, Susan conceded that the couple fought constantly, especially throughout 1983, but maintained that Neil had never been aggressive towards her, nor had she hit him. At first, Robert seemed to respond well to this, taking the initiative to help feed and clothe the baby, and doing what he could to please his mother. Self pity? Robert passed this down the line bullying his eight-year-old brother into playing truant. Although he appeared to have the more stable upbringing of the two boys, there was a history of family problems. Fiction Writing. That was in September 1991, 17 months before they killed James Bulger. 'He always seemed perfectly well behaved and I think he looked on me as some kind of grandma. But now and again. Born on August 13th, 1982, Jon was the middle child of Neil and Susan Venables. I would get him something like a cartoon.". A day later, when James still hadnt been found, it was clear from CCTV footage that he had been taken by children. But his outbursts of anger grew worse and he was suspended for trying to throttle a boy with a ruler. 'I think about little James and what he must have gone through, how they must feel. The Royal Mint of a 50p coin featuring Professor Albus Dumbledore as part of a Harry Potter-themed collection. While Robert was described as a wily child, known to tell lies, most of the St. Marys school staff agreed that the boy posed little trouble, and, if and when he attended, was generally well-mannered during class. It is just heartbreaking.". Jon continued to attend Broad Square, where children of the neighborhood openly mocked and poked fun at his siblings, calling them backward. Jon was also an easy target due to a squint in his eye. Shed never been back but she clearly missed Liverpool and had tried to recreate the city in her new home, he recalls. Verdict day came. . He said that on the day James was killed, when he went to the school in the afternoon to collect Jon he was told his son was missing. The living versions on the floor of the court looked equally wrinkled and austere. "In terms of knowing what the full consequences of your actions are, you are into older childhood or adolescence. Jon's parents said they talked to their son about James after he was arrested, but had to stop. The Liverpool Echo boasted that their man had one of 'just 34 seats' allocated to the international press. It should certainly be moved up to 12; in some European countries it is 14," she said. Apart from Jon's incident with the ruler, there had been no record of previous violence. His mother cared about him. He had been quiet that weekend, they said, but they had thought that was because his mother had taken him to the police station on the Friday evening for playing truant. Lawyers for the pair argued that the adult court venue and publicity made it impossible for the schoolboys to be given a fair trial. On the days he was at school he had a knack for stirring things up. He believes these were evil boys. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. 2023 BBC. kl. Ann Thompson and Susan and Neil Venables didn't need to imagine. And in Lower Lane police station when he was being questioned about the murder she had to be told that her harsh words were inhibiting him from confessing. Mr Venables said that the two boys had played truant together four times before, adding that he caught them twice. Jon Venables arrived at Walton St. Marys Church of England School a disrupted and attention-seeking boy, whose behavior was so bizarre at times that one of his teachers considered him to be emotionally unstable. But talking in 1993, his mother tried to explain how her child turned into a murderer. his mother was told that it was important that she stayed in his life and stood by him. fun to be with" and always had plenty of friends. That seems the very least they could face for what they did. James Bulgers mother Denise claims that she managed to track down Thompson six years ago, planning to confront him but instead stared at him from the opposite side of the street, full of rage but unable to act.