However. As much as he tried to "pitch" for the boys, i did not buy it. I had finished reading Denise's book prior to this one and no way in hell I would look at these boys as victims of their circumstances. Obviously, I don't call for any lynching but I do believe they were let off way too easily. And yes, while they may not have wanted to murder James the way they did, I am convinced they wanted to murder him "somehow" and the way it happened was possibly just a coincidence. They had several opportunities to stop what they were doing and they never did. But this book does have positive moments as well. Telling how Ralph and Denise have tried to move forward with their life but never ever forgetting their son, or daughter who they also lost. James Bulger is a child who will never be forgotten, by his parents and family or by anybody who was affected by the story at the time or anyone who has read about it since. Ralph speaks about James, and his other children with such love and it makes you wonder just want kind of life this happy and loving child could have had. It certainly makes me evaluate my own life as I haven't really achieved what I know I could achieve and at the same age as James would be now I hate to think of myself as not fulfilling my potential when he never had the chance.

a b Foster, Jonathan (17 December 1999). "Bulger ruling: If the defendants could not talk about their crime, how could they conduct a defence?". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 11 April 2010 . Retrieved 12 March 2010. Oscars 2019: James Bulger's mother 'disgusted' over nomination". BBC News. 22 January 2019. Archived from the original on 22 January 2019 . Retrieved 22 January 2019. James Bulger killer Jon Venables to be freed". BBC News. 4 July 2013. Archived from the original on 4 July 2013 . Retrieved 4 July 2013. Bunyan, Nigel (25 October 2016). "Man jailed for stalking mother of murdered toddler James Bulger". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 25 October 2016 . Retrieved 26 October 2016. Bulger killers 'released' ". BBC. 22 June 2001. Archived from the original on 17 February 2009 . Retrieved 16 March 2010.

Bulger killer Jon Venables faces child porn charges". BBC. 21 June 2010. Archived from the original on 19 May 2022 . Retrieved 21 June 2010. Jon Venables leads James Bulger, aged 2 and 11 months, away. His friend Bobby Thompson is just in front of the two.) Coles, Richard (30 May 2010). "On Evil by Terry Eagleton". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 8 January 2014 . Retrieved 8 January 2014. Howie, Michael (20 September 2023). "James Bulger Killer Jon Venables granted Parole Hearing on 14-15 November". Standard. Hough, Andrew (10 March 2010). "Jon Venables: man wrongly accused of being James Bulger killer 'living in fear of vigilantes' ". Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 12 March 2010 . Retrieved 11 March 2010.

To Protect Bulger Killers' New IDs-Injunction". news.sky.com. 8 April 2007. Archived from the original on 10 April 2007 . Retrieved 8 April 2007. Young men, full of remorse". The Guardian. 27 October 2000. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017 . Retrieved 15 April 2023.The Bulger case has prompted widespread debate about how to handle young offenders when they are sentenced or released from custody. [6] [7] Murder [ edit ] Victim James Bulger A powerful, heartfelt and moving account of his son's murder and his fight for justice by Ralph Bulger It is so hard to rate books based on facts, especially when those facts are based around an appalling death. In this case, the tragic little James Bulger who must have had a terrifying last few hours of his brief life. There are three types of true crime books – absolute classics like Homicide by David Simon or The Executioner’s Song by Norman Mailer; there is complete trash like Body Dump by Fred Rosen; and there are the decent thorough accounts like Defending Gary by Mark Prothero. This book is in the top half of division two. Peter Morris (8 August 2001). "In defence of my play". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 10 April 2021 . Retrieved 2 April 2021.

James Bulger's killer Jon Venables could get second new identity after pictures leaked on internet". Liverpool Echo. 4 May 2011. Archived from the original on 13 October 2012 . Retrieved 4 May 2011.Thompson and Venables took James to the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, where he was dropped on his head and suffered facial injuries. Thirty-eight people saw the three boys together, but most did nothing to intervene, or left after Thompson and Venables claimed they were all brothers. CCTV footage showed James being abducted from the shopping centre by the two boys (Photo: Getty) Uncropped Mothercare CCTV still of the abduction, showing the timestamp at 15:42:32". Archived from the original on 6 March 2012 . Retrieved 15 January 2012.

a b "Bulger killers released: what the home secretary said". BBC. 2 March 2010. Archived from the original on 6 January 2022 . Retrieved 6 March 2010. There was lots of physical evidence tying them to the scene of the crime, including paint on their clothing that matched that on James’ body. They were charged with his murder on 20 February 1993. Up to this point I believed everyone was born neutral and learnt by example but after reading this I have to say, maybe some people are just born plain evil. Thompson and Venables are evil, and they are protected for life. David James Smith. This could not be said as an easy read, mainly due to the content. It was fairly overwhelming given I did not follow the case at the time, so the whole account was brand new to me. On 14 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. [80] [81] 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. [9] In March 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 rejected the call, saying that children over the age of ten knew the difference "between bad behaviour and serious wrongdoing". [82]

Detainment' Makes Oscars Shortlist". Winchester Today. 21 December 2018. Archived from the original on 7 January 2019 . Retrieved 7 January 2019. its still ongoing for James dad like it was yesterday. he had to forgive himself. There was nothing else he could have done differently. James would have wanted him to move on. Billington, Michael (9 May 2009). "Monsters". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 9 August 2014 . Retrieved 11 March 2010. Schoolboy tells of James Bulger's tears: Children said murder case victim was a brother, court told". The Independent. London. 9 November 1993. Archived from the original on 7 November 2012 . Retrieved 25 March 2010. The case against them was based largely on 20 hours of video interviews conducted by police – the boys did not speak during the trial.