Jon Venables was ten years old when he and another boy tortured and killed two year old James Bulger. He’s now been refused parole on his imprisonment for a separate charge. So how did he end up here? Did he get a fair trial in the first place? And are we getting it right when it comes to our treatment of children who kill?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. 

Guest: David James Smith, Sunday Times contributor and author of The Sleep of Reason: The James Bulger Case.

Host: Luke Jones.

Producer: Olivia Case.

Clips: ITN / Getty, Channel 4, BBC, Merseyside Police, Eyes of the Detective / Teresa Hunt / BBC, TalkTV, Liverpool Lullaby / Martin Wallace / Channel 4, CBS.

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