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FROM THE GUARDIAN THIS MORNING . . .
A VERY IMPORTANT ISSUE THAT I RAISED five DAYS AGO - well before the Grundiad.
Media warned on identities of Bulger killers
Warning on Bulger killers
MediaGuardian.co.uk
Special report: the Bulger case
Clare Dyer, legal correspondent
Thursday June 14, 2001
The Guardian
The new attorney general, Lord Goldsmith, issued a stern warning to the media yesterday not to breach a ban protecting the new identities of the killers of two-year-old James Bulger, as the parole board prepares for a hearing next week to decide their release.
The separate hearings for Robert Thompson and Jon Venables are scheduled to start on Monday and continue through most of next week.
Issuing his first official statement since he succeeded Lord Williams of Mostyn as attorney general last Monday, Lord Goldsmith said he was concerned at press reports that a recent photograph of Thompson might be posted on the internet.
A lifetime injunction, granted by Dame Elizabeth Butler-Sloss at the high court last January, bans publication of pictures of the pair not already in the public domain, and any details of their whereabouts or the new identities they will assume on their release.
A snapshot alleged to be a recent photograph of Thompson was brandished on Tuesday night by the presenter of a Channel 4 programme on the killers, but not shown on screen.
Police mugshots of the two taken at the age of 10, when they were questioned about the abduction of James from a Merseyside shopping centre and his murder on a nearby railway track, were shown on the programme.
John Dickinson, Venables' solicitor, said he had yesterday reported three newspapers, the Liverpool Post, Liverpool Echo and Daily Mirror, to the attorney general for publishing the photos in breach of an earlier injunction, which banned photographs taken since February 18 1993. Venables' picture was taken on February 20 and Thompson's two days before, on the 18th.
Lord Goldsmith said any publication of a recent photograph would constitute a clear breach of the injunction. 'The purpose of the in junction is to protect the lives and the physical safety of Thompson and Venables and to enable them in due course to be released safely into, and supervised in, the community. It is widely drawn and must be respected.
'I consider it particularly important that all media organisations act responsibly at this time, when public interest is likely to run high as the cases of both young men are considered by the parole board.'
The internet threatens to blow a hole in the carefully constructed identities the pair will take up on their release, which is likely to happen before their 18th birthdays in August. Although the UK media are barred from publishing details which could lead to iden tification of the pair or their whereabouts, there is nothing to stop a foreign website from carrying the information, or a foreign newspaper from publishing it.
Years of preparation by civil servants and care experts have gone into the construction of new life stories for the boys and their families, who have kept in close contact during their eight years in secure units in the north of England.
The parole board panel of a judge, a psychiatrist and an independent member will travel to the separate units for the hearings, which will decide whether the two young men still pose a risk to the public.
Two teams of medical and care experts have prepared reports, and the board will hear evidence from Thompson, Venables, their lawyers and medical experts. The pair will be able to make their views known and call members of their families to give evidence.
Home Office experts will also attend the hearings, which are informal and inquisitorial, in contrast with formal court hearings. The views of James Bulger's parents, Ralph Bulger and Denise Fergus, will be included in a written dossier.
Within seven days of the parole board's decision, Thompson and Venables will be notified of the result, along with James's parents.
Once released, the pair will be on licence for the rest of their lives and liable to be taken back into custody if they breach any terms of their licence.
A VERY IMPORTANT ISSUE THAT I RAISED five DAYS AGO - well before the Grundiad.
Media warned on identities of Bulger killers
Warning on Bulger killers
MediaGuardian.co.uk
Special report: the Bulger case
Clare Dyer, legal correspondent
Thursday June 14, 2001
The Guardian
The new attorney general, Lord Goldsmith, issued a stern warning to the media yesterday not to breach a ban protecting the new identities of the killers of two-year-old James Bulger, as the parole board prepares for a hearing next week to decide their release.
The separate hearings for Robert Thompson and Jon Venables are scheduled to start on Monday and continue through most of next week.
Issuing his first official statement since he succeeded Lord Williams of Mostyn as attorney general last Monday, Lord Goldsmith said he was concerned at press reports that a recent photograph of Thompson might be posted on the internet.
A lifetime injunction, granted by Dame Elizabeth Butler-Sloss at the high court last January, bans publication of pictures of the pair not already in the public domain, and any details of their whereabouts or the new identities they will assume on their release.
A snapshot alleged to be a recent photograph of Thompson was brandished on Tuesday night by the presenter of a Channel 4 programme on the killers, but not shown on screen.
Police mugshots of the two taken at the age of 10, when they were questioned about the abduction of James from a Merseyside shopping centre and his murder on a nearby railway track, were shown on the programme.
John Dickinson, Venables' solicitor, said he had yesterday reported three newspapers, the Liverpool Post, Liverpool Echo and Daily Mirror, to the attorney general for publishing the photos in breach of an earlier injunction, which banned photographs taken since February 18 1993. Venables' picture was taken on February 20 and Thompson's two days before, on the 18th.
Lord Goldsmith said any publication of a recent photograph would constitute a clear breach of the injunction. 'The purpose of the in junction is to protect the lives and the physical safety of Thompson and Venables and to enable them in due course to be released safely into, and supervised in, the community. It is widely drawn and must be respected.
'I consider it particularly important that all media organisations act responsibly at this time, when public interest is likely to run high as the cases of both young men are considered by the parole board.'
The internet threatens to blow a hole in the carefully constructed identities the pair will take up on their release, which is likely to happen before their 18th birthdays in August. Although the UK media are barred from publishing details which could lead to iden tification of the pair or their whereabouts, there is nothing to stop a foreign website from carrying the information, or a foreign newspaper from publishing it.
Years of preparation by civil servants and care experts have gone into the construction of new life stories for the boys and their families, who have kept in close contact during their eight years in secure units in the north of England.
The parole board panel of a judge, a psychiatrist and an independent member will travel to the separate units for the hearings, which will decide whether the two young men still pose a risk to the public.
Two teams of medical and care experts have prepared reports, and the board will hear evidence from Thompson, Venables, their lawyers and medical experts. The pair will be able to make their views known and call members of their families to give evidence.
Home Office experts will also attend the hearings, which are informal and inquisitorial, in contrast with formal court hearings. The views of James Bulger's parents, Ralph Bulger and Denise Fergus, will be included in a written dossier.
Within seven days of the parole board's decision, Thompson and Venables will be notified of the result, along with James's parents.
Once released, the pair will be on licence for the rest of their lives and liable to be taken back into custody if they breach any terms of their licence.