Fiendish Killers

by Anne Williams

  Joshua was attending a geography class at school when the police called and took him down to the station for questioning. Joshua confessed to killing Maddie and told the police that he had been playing baseball in his back garden when he had accidentally hit her in the eye with a ball. When Maddie started screaming, Joshua told the detectives that he panicked and dragged her indoors to his bedroom, because he was frightened of being punished by his father. Maddie continued to scream and Joshua hit her over the head with a bat to try and stop her making a noise. Even after that, Maddie continued to moan and Joshua grabbed a knife and stabbed her in the neck until she became silent. Then he stuffed her under his waterbed and went to wash the blood off his hands. When he returned to his bedroom, he heard Maddie moaning from underneath the bed, so he dragged her out and repeatedly stabbed her until she stopped breathing.

  The autopsy on the body of Maddie did indeed show that she had been beaten over the head and stabbed at least nine times in the chest and twice in the neck. Maddie’s underpants and shorts had been removed, although there was no evidence that she had been sexually assaulted.

  Joshua made his first court appearance the following day, on November 11, and he was ordered to be held in a secure unit at the Duval Regional Juvenile Detention Centre.

  THE TRIAL

  On November 16, prosecutors announced that they were going to try Joshua as an adult on charges of first-degree murder. Due to the intense amount of media coverage that the case attracted, the trial was moved 200 miles away from Jacksonville to the town of Bartow.

  The trial was set to start on April 5, but was delayed when Joshua’s defence attorney asked for extra time to obtain a medical report on their client. After a couple more delays the trial eventually took place on July 6, 1999, and lasted for only two days. Maddie’s older sister told the court that they had been forbidden to play with Joshua by their mother, because he had previously talked to them about sex. Samples of blood and hair, and bloody ceiling fan blades, globe and cowling, which were taken from Joshua’s room, were shown as evidence during the trail, and to all intents and purposes it was an open and shut case.

  The jury deliberated for more than two hours before convicting the now fifteen-year-old Joshua Phillips of first-degree murder. Because Joshua was still under the age of sixteen he could not be given the death penalty, but was sentenced to spend the remainder of his life behind bars.

  Many people feel that perhaps the verdict was a little too harsh and that there are still too many unanswered questions surrounding the death of Maddie. It was obvious that it was not a premeditated murder and that had he been convicted of second-degree murder, or even manslaughter, he would be eligible for release while still young.

  As for Joshua, if he were to speak to Maddie’s parents he would like to say: ‘I’d beg for forgiveness. That’s all I could say; there’s nothing else I could say. I guess I’d say I’m sorry but that wouldn’t be enough.’

  The Murder of James Bulger

  When the media published the story of the murder of two-year-old James Bulger in 1993, it sent a wave of shock and disgust throughout the nation. That the crime had been committed by two ten-year-old boys was bad enough, but what was even more nauseating was that what they did to the toddler was so horrendous that James’s mother was forbidden from identifying the body.

  Jon Venables and Robert Thompson were playing truant from school on February 12, 1993, something which was quite a regular occurrence for the two boys. They went to the Bootle Strand Shopping Centre in Merseyside to try their hand at shoplifting, but soon tired of the activity when they found it too easy. They decided to change their tactics and tried to kidnap a two-year-old boy while his mother was distracted, but failed when the woman turned round and called her son to her side.

  James Bulger’s mother only turned her back on her son for a matter of seconds, but this gave Jon and Robert enough time to take her son’s hand and lead him out of the shopping precinct with the promise of giving him sweets. Denise Bulger had only been momentarily distracted and when she turned round her son had disappeared.

  walk of death

  Jon and Robert led James Bulger out of the shopping centre at 3.42 p.m. and were captured by the surveillance camera as they left. They started walking away from the centre and up Stanley Road, carrying James as he was now crying loudly for his mother. They embarked on a two and half mile journey, during which time they tortured the toddler – dropping, kicking and hitting him. Unbelievably, no fewer than thirty-eight witnesses saw the two boys with James Bulger, but no one thought to stop them even though the toddler was showing signs of distress and injury.

  The first time the boys inflicted any pain on James was when they walked underneath a bridge towards the canal. It was an isolated area and Jon and Robert joked with one another about pushing James into the water. It was here that they picked up the toddler and dropped him on his head, but for some unexplainable reason they were not prepared to kill James at this stage and left him alone crying by the canal. At this point a woman heard James’s loud crying, but assumed he was with some older children who were playing nearby.

  Instead of walking away at this point, Jon and Robert turned round and walked back to James, saying, ‘Come on, baby’. In his complete innocence, the little toddler took the boys’ hands and once again went with his tormentors on another journey. As a big bruise and cut were now visible on James’s forehead, the two boys decided to pull the hood of his anorak up so that the wound would be less visible. Several people saw them walking down the road, sometimes dragging the crying toddler behind them. One witness even reported seeing one of the boys kicking James in the ribs, but despite this no one thought to stop them.

  By now it was late afternoon and James was again crying for his mother. They reached a grassy spot by a reservoir and sat down with James in between them. While some people approached the boys to see what was going on, no one thought to intercede on James’s behalf, believing Jon and Robert’s stories about being his older brothers. This lack of action by so many people would later spark its own outrage, after the media published details of the missing toddler.

  James Bulger’s nightmare journey ended when the three boys arrived at an isolated spot on the railway tracks near Walton, Merseyside. Jon and Robert amused themselves by throwing blue modelling paint in James’s face and then beating him with bricks, stones and a 22-lb iron bar. After this he was sexually assaulted and a battery was stuffed in his mouth. When they had finished their evil forms of torture, Jon and Robert laid James’s body across the tracks and weighed him down with stones in the hope that a train would run him over and hide the evidence of what they had done.

  James’s body was not discovered for another two days and the search for his murderers began in earnest.

  the grim truth

  The video images from the security camera at the shopping centre were studied carefully to see if they could determine who had led James away to his death. Although the images were a little blurred, almost ghostlike, the police watched in disbelief as they realised they were not dealing with an adult paedophile, but two young boys who were nothing more than children themselves.

  Jon’s father became suspicious about his own son as he appeared to show a rather abnormal interest in the story of James’s disappearance. When the news reported that blue paint had been found on the body, he questioned his son about the blue paint on his coat sleeve, which Jon replied had been thrown at him by Robert. Added to this was the fact that Jon was wearing a mustard-coloured jacket on the day of the murder, the same as that worn by one of the boys in the video recording.

  The police received an anonymous phone call from a woman, saying that she had a friend called Susan Venables who had a son named Jon. She also added that Jon had been playing truant from school on the day of the murder and that he had blue paint all over his jacket sleeve. The caller went on to say that Jon had a friend called Robert Thompson, who had also skipped school that day, and the
police decided to bring the two boys in for questioning.

  When the police knocked at the Thompsons’ door at 7.30 a.m. on February 18, Robert immediately started to cry and clung to his mother. They searched the house and found a pair of shoes that had splashes of blood on them.

  Jon was just as distressed when the police called to pick him up and cried hysterically. However, despite their reactions when the police arrested the two boys, they did not immediately suspect them of being the killers as there were far more violent boys living in the area.

  From fingerprints and samples of blood and hair taken from both the boys, the police were more than convinced that they had their suspects and Jon and Robert’s case was held in Preston, close to where they were being held in secure units under assumed names.

  When the verdicts were read out, Denise Bulger attended the court for the first time, sitting beside her husband Robert. When the defendants were found guilty, Jon sobbed loudly while Robert sat motionless with a blank expression. The judge turned to the boys and said: ‘The killing of James Bulger was an act of unparalleled evil and barbarity . . . In my judgement your conduct was both cunning and very wicked . . . You will be securely detained for very, very many years, until the Home Secretary is satisfied that you have matured and are fully rehabilitated and until you are no longer a danger.’

  brief backgrounds

  Robert Thompson was one of seven children and it is alleged that he came from a dysfunctional family that suffered from abuse, alcohol, poverty and a father who was very rarely around. It appears that Robert was the ringleader and the one who lied to anyone who stopped to question them while they were with James Bulger. When the verdicts were read out in court, Robert showed no emotion and he has been described as having a ‘chilling glare’ in his eyes.

  During his time in the juvenile centre, Robert has been said to have made exceptional progress and accepts responsibility for the grave acts carried out on James. Since being sentenced, Robert has achieved five GCSEs and A levels and has shown an interest in textile and fashion design.

  Jon Venables was described as the weaker of the two boys and somewhat of a follower. He was one of three children, but his parents were separated and he was in the care of his mother who was severely depressed and suicidal. While in custody Jon achieved six GCSEs with good grades and some A levels and has reportedly made exceptional progress in his personal development.

  release and new identity

  When the announcement was made in June 2001 that Jon and Robert were shortly to be released from detention, the news was greeted by a hysterical campaign. Now eighteen years old, the two boys were to be released but, because of the threat to their lives, they would be granted lifetime immunity from any exposure by the media.

  Having been carefully assessed as to whether they still posed as a danger to the public, both young men were declared as ‘extremely mature and caring young men who are filled with deep regret and remorse’.

  Although many people see it as an outrage that these two young men should ever be released after the unspeakable evil they inflicted on James Bulger, in reality they will probably spend the rest of their lives having to look over their shoulders just in case someone discovers their true identity.

  James’s mother, Denise, who has since remarried, set up a website called ‘Justice for James’, and has constantly campaigned to try and block the release of Jon and Robert. She has pleaded with people to take every opportunity to try and ensure that their identities are revealed so that they might suffer the way her young son did in his last few hours.

  Menendez Brothers

  When the trial of brothers Joseph Lyle (Lyle) and Erik Galen (Erik) Menendez was broadcast on television in 1993, it became a national sensation. The defence portrayed the brothers as victims of abuse who were driven to ridiculous lengths by their tyrannical father. José Menendez, a Cuban immigrant, was a self-made millionaire with an obsession for success. Their mother, Kitty, was described as a troubled woman who abused her body with alcohol and drugs, possibly trying to hide from the sexual abuse dished out by José to his two sons. The two brothers were gradually drawn to one another for companionship and solace in the face of their father’s control and Erik grew up worshipping his older brother. They often talked about their life and discussed ways of killing their father to release themselves from the constant abuse and domination. Lyle was born in January 1968 and Erik in November 1971, and over the years they developed very different personalities. While Lyle was described as being aloof and witty with a strong character, Erik was quite the opposite, being very sensitive and quiet.

  The first sign that there were flaws in their characters came in 1982 when their cousin Diane came to stay at the Menendez house for the summer. One night when the three cousins were having a playful wrestle in Diane’s bedroom, Lyle and Erik suddenly decided to tie her up and take her clothes off. Without warning, the brothers climbed on top of their cousin and started to fondle her breasts and, had she not been able to free herself, she felt it would have gone much further.

  THE MURDERS

  It was a balmy evening in Beverly Hills on August 20, 1989. José and Kitty Menendez had fallen asleep while watching a James Bond movie and the rest of the house was quiet as the maid had the night off and their two sons had gone out for the evening. At about 10.00 p.m. a small car pulled up outside the Menendez mansion, which was usually heavily guarded by an elaborate security system. For some reason, on this particular evening the high iron gates had been left open and the security alarm had been switched off. Two young men stepped out of the car and, while one went to take something out of the boot of the car, the other walked up the secluded drive towards the house.

  The two men entered the house through the french doors which led into the study. From there they walked down the hall to the family room which was located at the rear of the house. The only light in the room was the flickering from the television set but they could make out the shapes of a man with his legs stretched across the coffee table and a woman lying under a blanket with her head in her husband’s lap.

  One of the men pointed a shotgun at the sleeping couple and squeezed the trigger. While the first shots immobilised José, one of the men walked round the back and placed his gun against the back of his head and fired at point-blank range. The first shots had woken Kitty, who tried to run away from her attackers, but she was hit in the leg and fell between the sofa and the coffee table. As she tried to stand, the assailants riddled her body with bullets, leaving her severely injured but still trying to crawl away to safety.

  By this time the two gunmen had run out of ammunition and were unsure of what to do. They knew they couldn’t leave her alive as there was the possibility she could survive and give details of her attackers. One of the men ran back to the car, reloaded their shotguns and came back to finish the job. The two men then carefully picked up all the shell casings from the floor and then left the way they had come in and drove away.

  The Beverly Hills Police Department received a distressed phone call at 11.47 p.m. on August 20. It was from a man crying ‘Somebody killed my parents!’

  Minutes after the emergency call, two policemen arrived at 722 Elm Drive and walked round the outside of the mansion for several minutes. Then they heard the sound of screams and two men ran out of the front door, past the policemen, and then sank to their knees on the grass. The two men were distraught and it was hard for the two policemen to get any sense out of them. When they searched the house they found the bodies of José and Kitty Menendez and understood why the two boys were in such a state.

  Detective Les Zoeller was appointed to head the investigation and, on arrival at the mansion, he immediately noticed that nothing appeared to have been stolen and that there was no apparent forced entry. Lyle and Erik were taken down to the police station for questioning but, at the time, neither of them were considered to be suspects. During the questioning Erik became inconsolable, while Lyle managed to stay under
control and answered their questions in a methodic manner.

  Because the Menendez brothers were not suspects, the police did not carry out any gunshot-residue tests, which determined whether a person has recently fired a gun.

  SPEND, SPEND, SPEND

  Lyle and Erik organised a splendid memorial service for their parents and then Lyle set about proving that he was worthy of inheriting his father’s business. Just a few days after the murder of their parents, Lyle and Erik started to spend, spend, spend. They went on lavish spending sprees all funded by their father’s personal life insurance policy of $650,000. They bought designer clothes, new cars, jewellery and Rolex watches.

  The two brothers had expected to inherit a vast sum from the death of their parents, somewhere in the region of $90 million. Consequently, it came as a bit of a shock when they learned that they were actually only going to inherit around £2 million each after all the loans and taxes had been subtracted. They felt cheated, as they were both aware that their father’s assets were far in excess of $4 million, and they started to arrange meetings to find out what had happened to the remainder of the money. They soon discovered that the life insurance policy on José was not valid as their father had refused to take the medical examination. The two brothers decided that they would not stay in the mansion at Beverly Hills because they were scared that the mobsters who had killed their parents would come after them. Instead, they lived out of luxury hotel rooms, amassing enormous bills, and then rented plush adjoining apartments in the infamous Marina del Rey. Lyle hired expensive bodyguards to travel with him and the spending just went on and on.