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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To think they will never reveal Jon Venables identity

93 replies

Soubriquet · 02/05/2018 09:25

In case people attack him

Nice idea in theory stripping away what protects him as he certainly doesn't deserve it, but no court will grant it in case of mob justice

OP posts:

Sugarpiehoneyeye · 02/05/2018 10:33

He should be banged up for the rest of his life, then we'd all know where he is. He was given a chance and blew it.

MrsJayy · 02/05/2018 10:35

He has re offended he has no interest or the proper tools to reform he imo is damaged and that makes him a danger.

Jaynesworld · 02/05/2018 10:37

There was a picture on a wanted list of a man who looked identical to my husband. It wasnt him as we were on holiday at the time of the crime. But what if something like that happened with a lookalike of venables and some vigilante took the law into their own hands and god fobid killed a poor innocent man?

KanyeWesticle · 02/05/2018 10:38

His identity was protected for a reason, and it'd set a dangerous precedent to lift it.

It does seem like his release was too early, but mob justice isn't the answer.

hungryhungryhippo8 · 02/05/2018 10:40

I wonder how his anonymity works with regards to things like Sarah's Law?

hungryhungryhippo8 · 02/05/2018 10:42

If you're that evil from the age of 10 there's no hope for you. I just don't believe someone who could be that sick at an age of supposed innocence could ever turn themselves around. He is a danger and should be imprisoned forever after reoffending but unfortunately the CJS doesn't work that way.

Aprilmightbemynewname · 02/05/2018 10:43

Imo prison would give him some security from abuse, in the real world I doubt he ever rests easy in his bed for fear of being 'outed'.
A neighbour of mine was beaten to death several years ago when a rumour started he was an ex con with a paedophile past.
He was in fact a loner who had been away visiting his sick sister.
Denise is right in her thinking.

Laiste · 02/05/2018 10:44

Sugarpiehoneyeye - He should be banged up for the rest of his life, then we'd all know where he is. He was given a chance and blew it.

Amen.

midnightmisssuki · 02/05/2018 10:47

to be honest - im pretty surprised someone didnt get him in prison, you hear all sorts of stories of people who abuse/kill children dont do well in prison and his crime was prolific. I second that in cases like this - where the guilt is proven beyond anything, that he needs to be locked up until he dies as he poses a threat to children should he be released.

GrandTheftWalrus · 02/05/2018 10:49

I keep seeing pictures that are allegedly him. Tina Malone was threatened with jail for sharing his picture. Doing that just confirmed it was him.

I don't agree with releasing his identity as like previous posters have said it'll lead to innocent people being hurt or killed.

Just keep him in the jail and the world will be a better place.

Viviennemary · 02/05/2018 10:52

Protecting the public from child torturers and murderers is a lot more important than giving them a chance to reform. IMHO.

BattleaxeGalactica · 02/05/2018 10:54

'They' won't but he might. Again. In which case I think he should be left to take his chances.

mirime · 02/05/2018 10:54

No his identity should not be released. There are too many idiots out there who would try to harm/kill him and I can't support that regardless of his crime and as others have said it would put other people at risk as well. This is why it would have been better if he'd never been identified in the media in the first place.

I tend to agree with the person who said he appears to want to be locked up again, it may be that would be, in an odd way, the kindest thing to do for everyone involved.

An attempt at rehabilitation and the opportunity to live an approximation of a normal life was the right thing to do, imo, as he was a child. He obviously can't do it though.

SmashedMug · 02/05/2018 10:59

Releasing his picture will just lead to more attacks on innocent people because lots of men look alike in passing. Like fat beardy men for example all kind of get the same look about them. They'd be easy to muddle in passing. It's the same with any other type of appearance. Lots of people look really similar.

I've seen the pictures of him and if he still looks the same way, he looks like any other bloke of the same age with the same body shape and facial hair. You'd have so many people being attacked by vigilantes.

Ceinwen2 · 02/05/2018 11:05

It's a tricky business. The chances are high that aspects of his childhood brain development make him unlikely to be able to " reform" , however much he might want to. Issues about self control, prediction of likely consequences, etc. Perhaps we should be glad that we live in a society which does not go in for vigilante action. Much, anyway. Innocent men could easily be targeted. Here's hoping that he is closely watched and supervised.

FleurDelacoeur · 02/05/2018 11:06

Why do you need to know who he is?

Melliegrantfirstlady · 02/05/2018 11:09

There’s no way they will quash his anonymity order.

Very hard to rehabilitate a child when they really need their parents for healthy emotional development to promote their potential as an adult.

For all those asking about relationships etc the authorities will ensure they are notified about his past. It will be part of his license conditions that he can’t keep partners secret etc.

jaseyraex · 02/05/2018 11:17

I don't think it will be revealed and nor do I think it should be either. The general public don't need to know, people just want it for their own vigilantism.

A good friend of mine recently had his picture published in a newspaper along with a story about a local pedophile with the same name as him. The paper had literally just took his profile picture from facebook. He's in the process of suing but the damage has already been done, they haven't even issued an apology. The poor man has had death threats and people throwing things at his windows. Someone sent fire to his front door. All because people have seen his picture. God help anyone who looks similar to Jon Venables if his identity is released...

hungryhungryhippo8 · 02/05/2018 11:40

For all those asking about relationships etc the authorities will ensure they are notified about his past. It will be part of his license conditions that he can’t keep partners secret etc.

But what about the people in a relationship or contact with him?
Say someone knew him and had suspicions about him, and wanted to use Sarah's Law to trace his history, but he has the anonymity so how would that work? That's what I'm curious about.

hungryhungryhippo8 · 02/05/2018 11:41

If he enters a relationship will the partner be told? Sooo many questions

RomeoBunny · 02/05/2018 11:43

Half of Liverpool knows his name and will do whenever he next gets moved or placed somewhere. It's really not hard to find out where either of them are.

Viviennemary · 02/05/2018 11:43

I wouldn't like to be in the same street or even neighbourhood as him. Would anybody?

Believeitornot · 02/05/2018 11:46

Exactly, why do people feel they need to know what he looks like?

We don’t have a right to this information and it will not make us any safer than before. It’s just people whipping up fear and passing judgement on what they do not understand.

SmashedMug · 02/05/2018 11:55

I'm sure that I've read when you use Sarah's law, they tell you what you need to know and nothing detailed. So they'd tell someone that he'd murdered a child and his other crimes. They wouldn't say who he is or identify the victims though.

With regard to relationships, I think once they reach a certain level of seriousness, they have to tell the partner. I think if the partner has children though it would be a little different!

emmyrose2000 · 02/05/2018 11:56

Why he wasn't jailed forever is beyond me

It's a mystery to me too. He's evil.

He should've been moved from child "prison" (whatever the correct term is) to adult prison at the relevant time, and stayed there for the term of his natural life.

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