There was a Facebook post the other day that asked what the first item of news is that you remember.  My family never had the news on very much.  Mum doesn’t like that kind of negativity in the house.  But I do remember the case of James Bulger.  I doubt anyone in the UK could ever forget that one.

For people who aren’t British, James was a 2yr old who was abducted from a shopping mall in Liverpool while his mother’s back was turned for seconds.  He was then walked to a railway line, tortured, murdered and then mutilated post-mortem.  The worst part?  Yes, it sadly can be worse.  This gruesome, barbaric and inhumane act was carried out by two 10yr old boys.

Even now my blood runs cold when I think about it.

24 years later and this crime is again front page news.  It turns out that one of the boys, Jon Venables, has been arrested and charged with downloading and distributing child pornography.  Again.  For the SECOND time.

This is in breach of not only the law but his lifelong parole type licence that he has been released on.

Each time this monster re-offends or a member of the public rightly works out who he really is, he is given a new identity.  Yes, he is kept a watchful eye over but this just doesn’t see enough in light of everything.  On top of this, the media is facing a lifelong ban on reporting his identity and his whereabouts.

How is any of this actually just?  He has been given so many opportunities.  He has been given more counselling and guidance than any other young offender.  He is allowed to live a life that his victim will never do.  Despite all this he continues to offend.

I do believe that there is still some good in the British justice system.  I do believe that people can offend and a prison sentence will scare them straight.  Or, they made a mistake, have paid heavily for that mistake by being incarcerated, and will never put themselves in the position to be re-arrested.

BUT…

When someone has been given as many opportunities as this miscreant and continues to break the law, there has to be a point at which we say enough is enough.

I firmly believe that Jon Venables should never be allowed to see the light of day again.  The British government should not have to waste another 250k giving him a new identity and relocating him into protective services.  He should be kept in prison for life.

That said, with the wishy washy apologetic liberal nanny state that the UK has become, this is unlikely to happen.  I know that.  So maybe instead he should serve his sentence as a normal inmate and released on parole as a normal inmate.  He should be made to sign the sex offenders register and report to the police station once a week, as any pedophile should be.

We have to stop making excuses and enabling his atrocious choices.  He knows right from wrong.  He knows he is protected by this anonymity order so will continue to offend over and over, knowing that he will get a fresh start time and time again.

I truly believe that there is literally no hope of Jon Venables ever being a functioning and useful member of society.

#enoughisenough