JON VENABLES FACES NEW PAROLE BATTLE AS JAMES BULGER’S MOTHER DEMANDS A PUBLIC HEARING

More than three decades after two-year-old James Bulger was abducted and killed, his mother Denise Fergus is fighting for the public to see what happens when his killer faces the Parole Board again.

LONDON — More than 33 years after the murder of toddler James Bulger shocked Britain, the case is once again at the center of a major parole battle.

James’s mother, Denise Fergus, and her husband, Stuart, have submitted an application asking for Jon Venables’ upcoming parole hearing to be held in public.

The Parole Board confirmed that it had received their application on August 7, 2026. A decision has not yet been made.

For Denise, this is about more than transparency.

She wants the man responsible for her son’s murder to publicly confront the consequences of what he did — rather than having another crucial stage of the process take place entirely behind closed doors.

THE CASE THAT SHOCKED BRITAIN

On February 12, 1993, two 10-year-old boys, Jon Venables and Robert Thompson, abducted two-year-old James Bulger from the Strand Shopping Centre in Bootle, Merseyside.

James was taken away from his mother and led toward a railway line.

What happened afterward became one of the most notorious crimes in modern British history.

Venables and Thompson were convicted of James’s murder in 1993.

Because they were children themselves, they were detained indefinitely under the juvenile equivalent of a life sentence.

Both were eventually released in 2001, when they were 18.

Thompson has not been publicly reported to have reoffended since his release.

Venables’ case, however, took a very different path.

VENABLES WAS RECALLED TO PRISON — TWICE

Venables was first released on licence in 2001.

In 2010, he was recalled to prison after child-abuse material was found on his computer.

He was released again but returned to custody in 2017 after another offense involving child-abuse material.

He has remained imprisoned since then.

The history of those later convictions is now one of the key reasons Denise and Stuart Fergus say the upcoming parole process deserves exceptional public scrutiny.

HIS LAST PAROLE BID WAS REJECTED

Venables has previously appeared before the Parole Board.

In December 2023, he was denied release after a panel concluded that releasing him at that time would not be safe for the protection of the public.

A new parole hearing is now expected, although the exact date has not been publicly confirmed.

That means the question of whether Venables could eventually return to the community is once again becoming a reality for James’s family.

DENISE WANTS THE HEARING OPENED TO THE PUBLIC

The application submitted by Denise and Stuart argues that there is significant public interest in the case.

They believe a public hearing could help people better understand how the parole system evaluates risk.

They also argue that public scrutiny could increase confidence in the process and help counter misinformation surrounding the case.

Most importantly, they say Venables should have to “face up” to his offending through a public hearing.

They have told the Parole Board that if their application is granted, they are prepared for the hearing to take place in public.

WHY THIS WOULD BE UNUSUAL

Parole hearings in England and Wales are generally conducted privately.

However, the Parole Board can allow a hearing to be held in public in exceptional circumstances where doing so is considered to be in the interests of justice.

That does not mean every high-profile case automatically qualifies.

The Board must weigh competing considerations, including fairness, privacy, security and the interests of victims.

The current application therefore still has to be considered before any public hearing can take place.

VENABLES IS ALSO FIGHTING TO KEEP THE PROCESS PRIVATE

According to reporting by The Sun, Venables has lawyers representing him and has been given an opportunity to object to the application for a public hearing.

If the hearing were ultimately opened to the public, extensive measures could be required to protect his lifelong anonymity.

Reports have suggested that he could appear behind a screen and that voice-distortion technology could be used.

His identity remains protected by a lifetime anonymity order, and publishing information that could identify him remains legally restricted.

JAMES’ FAMILY HAS LIVED WITH THIS CASE FOR DECADES

For Denise Fergus, the parole process represents another painful chapter in a story that began when her son was just two years old.

She has spent more than three decades campaigning for James’s memory and demanding accountability.

The possibility of Venables being released has repeatedly forced the family to revisit the trauma of 1993.

Now, Denise is asking for something she believes would allow victims’ families and the public to see more clearly how the decision is made.

Not necessarily to influence the outcome.

But to understand it.

THIS IS NOT YET A DECISION ON PAROLE

One important point has been made clear by the Parole Board:

The application for a public hearing is not the same thing as a decision to release Venables.

The Board must first decide whether the hearing itself should be opened to the public.

Only after the parole process is completed would a decision about release be made.

And even then, release would depend on the Board’s assessment of whether Venables could safely be managed in the community.

His previous parole applications have already demonstrated that public protection remains a central issue.

A FAMILY STILL WAITING TO BE HEARD

For much of Britain, the name James Bulger remains associated with one of the most shocking crimes committed against a child.

For Denise Fergus, however, James was never simply a famous case.

He was her little boy.

Now, more than three decades later, she is asking the justice system for something she believes her family deserves:

to see the process.

Whether the Parole Board agrees remains unknown.

But the request has already reopened a painful national conversation about justice, rehabilitation, public safety and the rights of victims’ families.

And as Jon Venables approaches another parole review, one question now sits alongside the question of whether he should ever be released:

Should the public be allowed to see how that decision is made?

For Denise Fergus, the answer is clear.

After everything her family has endured, she believes the time has come for the process to be seen — not hidden behind closed doors.