In a raw, defiant declaration that has reignited national outrage and hope for closure, Denise Fergus, the mother of murdered toddler James Bulger, has vowed to ensure one of her son’s killers faces lifelong imprisonment. “I can put him back behind bars!” she proclaimed, her voice trembling with 32 years of unyielding grief and determination. After decades of battling a secretive justice system that has shielded Jon Venables—the child who, alongside accomplice Robert Thompson, abducted, tortured, and killed two-year-old James in 1993—Fergus declares she’s “in touching distance” of holding him accountable once more. Her vow: this time, he won’t walk free. As Venables, now 42, reapplies for parole amid his history of reoffending, Fergus’s fight symbolizes a mother’s unbreakable resolve against a system she accuses of failing victims. With new laws empowering victims’ families and ministerial oversight, the scales may finally tip toward justice, but the road is paved with fresh trauma for a family forever scarred.

The nightmare began on February 12, 1993, in the bustling New Strand Shopping Centre in Bootle, Merseyside. Denise Fergus, then 25, briefly let go of her son’s hand while paying for shopping at a butcher’s stall. In those fateful seconds, two 10-year-old boys, Jon Venables and Robert Thompson, lured the innocent, blue-eyed toddler away. CCTV footage captured the haunting image: James, dressed in a smart coat and shoes, walking hand-in-hand with Venables, his small frame dwarfed by the betrayal of trust. The boys led him on a two-and-a-half-mile death march through Liverpool’s streets, subjecting him to unimaginable horrors—batteries thrown at him, paint smeared on his face, and bricks hurled before laying his battered body on railway tracks to be discovered by a train.

The discovery of James’s body two days later shocked Britain and the world. The nation reeled from the savagery committed by children barely out of primary school, sparking debates on evil, innocence, and the age of criminal responsibility. Venables and Thompson were tried as adults in a landmark case at Preston Crown Court, becoming the youngest convicted murderers in modern English history. The trial, held in an adult court, was later ruled unfair by the European Court of Human Rights due to its intimidating atmosphere for minors. They were detained indefinitely, with an initial tariff of eight years, later extended.

For Denise, the trial was a blur of agony. Pregnant with her second son, Michael, she couldn’t attend, shielded from graphic details by family. “I was in the depths of despair,” she later recalled, her life unraveling as media frenzy portrayed her as the “hard-faced” mother who “let go.” The public scrutiny was relentless, with rumors and stalkers compounding her pain— one woman jailed in 2016 for posing as a killer on Twitter, another man for harassment. Denise divorced James’s father, Ralph Bulger, amid the strain, remarrying Stuart Fergus and raising three more sons: Michael, Thomas, and Leon, who grew up with James’s portrait on the wall, treating him as their big brother.

The killers’ release in 2001, at age 18, with new identities and lifelong anonymity under a worldwide injunction, felt like a second betrayal. Thompson vanished into obscurity, reportedly living quietly, but Venables’s path was a cycle of recidivism. Recalled to prison in 2010 and 2017 for possessing child abuse images—over 100 in one instance—he served further terms, his anonymity shielding him while victims’ families suffered in silence. Denise was furious at the lack of notification, demanding Venables’s identity be revealed upon reoffending. “He seems to have the upper hand,” she told the Mirror, decrying private hearings and protections that prioritize the offender.

Denise channeled her grief into activism, founding the James Bulger Memorial Trust in 2012 to support crime victims, providing holidays and a helpline launched in March 2025 for families “struggling in silence.” The charity, hit hard by the pandemic, relies on donations to aid bereaved children, echoing James’s legacy of joy. She’s campaigned for reforms: raising the age of criminal responsibility, public inquiries into the case, and victims’ rights in parole processes. In 2023, she urged a law change after AI-generated videos of James surfaced on TikTok, cloning his voice in horrific deepfakes—prompting meetings with Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood.

The latest chapter in this saga: Venables’s parole reapplication in May 2025, denied in December 2023 but eligible again soon. Officials notified Denise and Ralph, sparking “mental torture.” “How many chances does he need?” a family source asked, fearing his Category A status won’t hold. Denise vows to attend the hearing under new laws allowing victims’ presence, staring Venables down: “I will do whatever it takes to sit in that room.” Reforms by former Justice Secretary Alex Chalk introduce ministerial checks for dangerous offenders, potentially blocking Venables forever.

Public reaction mirrors Denise’s fury. Petitions with over 213,000 signatures demand inquiries, debated in Westminster Hall. On X, fans echo her: “Rest in peace James… those 2 little bastards are still alive is a travesty.” The case’s shadow lingers, influencing youth justice—England’s punitive system, criticized by the UN, stems from Bulger’s “watershed” impact. Denise’s book, I Let Him Go, and documentaries like Lost Boy humanize her pain, exposing systemic failures.

Yet, challenges persist. Venables refused evidence in 2023, citing family lawyers’ presence. Denise feels unheard: “They’ve failed… James who gets forgotten.” Ralph shares her despair, their divorce a casualty of trauma. As 32 years mark James’s absence—his 35th birthday approaching—Denise keeps his memory alive through charity and campaigns.

Fergus’s vow isn’t just personal; it’s a clarion for reform. “He will always be a risk,” she insists, demanding transparency. With parole looming, her fight could redefine justice for victims, ensuring monsters like Venables never roam free. In the face of hellish decades, Denise’s spirit endures, a beacon for the broken-hearted.