There's a lot of debate about Jon Venables.

For those who don't know the background, two year James Bulger was abducted by 2 ten year old boys, taken to a deserted spot and sexually abused before being killed. The boys were let out of prison after 8 years under a special order which gave them new identities and required them to comply with certain restrictions if they wished to retain their freedom. One of them - Venables - now 27, has been returned to prison for breaking the terms of his release.

There's obviously a furore over this, not least because in the view of many such a crime was so horrific that the perpetrators should never have been released. And the media does tend to enjoy a bit of 'angry mob whipping'.

However details of both the new identity and the crime committed have not been released. While many argue this is in the public interest, there are many reasons not to do this. Aside from the risk of him being murdered, it is important that justice is done in ALL cases - even his. A jury could never bring a just verdict in fresh proceedings if they were aware of the identity of the now adult Venables. Regardless of previous crimes, just as in dealing with suspected terrorists, we must not treat anyone according to the measure we suspect them to be guilty of, but in every case, they must be handled with true justice. Any alternative is to reduce justice to their level, and reduce legal ethics to a mockery.