The mother of murdered toddler James Bulger has spoken of her profound fear and anguish as one of her son's killers is granted a fresh bid for freedom.
A Mother's Anguish as Killer Seeks Parole
Denise Fergus, 57, has revealed her 'anger' and 'distress' after learning that Jon Venables has been granted a new parole hearing, which could see him released from prison by the end of the year. The hearing, expected next month, will be the first of Venables' parole proceedings that Denise has attended.
Venables and Robert Thompson, both aged just ten, abducted two-year-old James from the Strand shopping centre in Bootle, Merseyside, in February 1993. The pair subjected the toddler to a horrific and fatal assault, a crime that sent shockwaves across the United Kingdom.
The Long Shadow of a National Tragedy
Initially freed from a young offenders' institution in 2001 after serving less than eight years, Venables has been recalled to prison twice. He was returned to custody in 2010 and again in 2017 after being found in possession of indecent images of children.
His last parole application was denied in December 2023, a hearing he refused to attend at the last minute. The decision to grant him a new oral hearing has plunged Denise Fergus into what she describes as 'weeks of purgatory'.
'I have learned to prepare for the worst over the past 30 years or so but when the news came it was still upsetting,' Denise told The Mirror. 'It's galling they've given him another parole hearing after he decided not to turn up to the last one.'
Confronting the Voice of Her Son's Killer
While Venables' new identity will be protected, meaning Denise will not see his face, she will hear his voice for the first time in over three decades via a video link from a separate room.
Sharing her deepest fear about the encounter, she said: 'Until I’m in the room I don't know how I'll react, whether fury will rise in me at the sound of him... I expect I'll have to sit on my hands and keep my mouth shut or I'll get kicked out of the room.'
The Parole Board stated that a member assessed the case on paper and directed that an oral hearing should take place. They confirmed that the panel's 'sole focus' is on whether Venables poses a risk to the public and if that risk can be managed in the community.
Denise explained the relentless toll of the wait: 'I'll be thinking about it all the time. I'll be waking up thinking, 'is today the day of the parole hearing'. I don't want to live on my nerves anymore. I feel like I'm the one in prison, not him.'
In contrast to Venables, Robert Thompson, released under a new identity in 2001, is not believed to have reoffended. The parole hearing for Jon Venables is yet to be scheduled.
