James Bulger killer Jon Venables’ parole hearing could be held in public
22 September 2023, 11:16
James Bulger’s killer’s parole hearing could be in public, it has been revealed.
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Jon Venables's latest bid for release from prison was to be held in private and potentially could have seen him freed before Christmas.
However an anonymous applicant lodged a call for the two-day hearing to be seen by the public and this is "being considered" by the parole board, The Sun reported.
Read More: James Bulger's killer Jon Venables may never get out of prison under new law, victim's mum says
Venables and Robert Thompson were locked up for two-year-old James' murder in Bootle, Merseyside, in 1993, when they were 10.
Both of them were given a new identity.
Venables, now 40, has twice been jailed over child pornography. He was denied patrol in 2020.
A source said James’ parents Ralph Bulger, 55, and Denise Fergus, 54, want the November hearing to be “transparent”.
They added: “They fear a whitewash if it’s behind closed doors and feel the public has the right to know what is going on.”
