Generally children aren’t thought to be as able to figure out the consequences of their actions in as rational a way as adults.

Jonesy,I’ve said over and over again I’m not trying to excuse them,apologise for them or in any way defend what they did.
Trying to find out why they did it isn’t looking to justify why they did it,more a case of finding out what went wrong to make them do it and learn lessons in the hope of preventing any such thing happening in another family.
This is such an emotional issue that it’s very easy to take posts personally.I don’t know what else I could say to convince you that I’m not on Thomson and Venables’ ” side “,as you seem to think. I can tell you once again that I’m not,but I doubt you’d believe it.
The sentence they got certainly doesn’t represent an adequate punishment for what they did.What would you have suggested ?

You seem to be under the impression that I’m playing down what they did,which I can assure you I’m not. Of course the murder and torture of a child is indefensible so you don’t need to take that tone with me.
The sentence given out was totally inadequate for what they did.
I still stand by what I said,they were children at the time.
If you think justice is best served by the public lynching of two children,that speaks for itself.

Contentment ? Explain that please ?
I am not ,emphatically NOT,presenting their crime as that of actions of normal children.
I am merely stating the fact,whether you like it or not,that at the time they did this,they were ten years old and therefore still INDISPUTABLY children.

Of course it wasn’t appropriate,fifteen years is pitifully inadequate and I’m surprised that it was ever considered sufficient.

They were sentenced to be detained at Her Majesty’s Pleasure,whatever that means.

The Home Secretary determined that this should mean for a period of fifteen years,according to this :

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld199798/ldjudgmt/jd970612/vandt01.htm

They were treated as children because in the eyes of the law,even if not in the eyes of most contributors to this thread,they were children.

You are a man of impeccable taste,young sir.
I was going to post Atmospherics as well,but that would have been too much of a good thing.

I absolutely agree that no normal ten year old would do these things,which prompts the question,what caused these two to do so ?
And that’s not a question of looking for excuses,as has been suggested.
Just heard on the news that it was an allegation of a serious sexual offence that led to Venables being re-imprisoned.God knows what he was doing out already in the first place.