Crimes of this sort are virtually unknown in Britain outside of fiction like “Lord of the Flies.” The country has one of the world’s lowest murder rates (1.3 per 100,000, compared with the U.S. rate of 10 per 100,000). But the Bulger case has led to charges that the courts are too soft on juveniles. Only weeks before, a 15-year-old boy found guilty of rape got off with a $730 fine to help pay for his victim’s vacation; an 11-year-old who crashed a stolen auto may escape punishment altogether. In their outrage, Britons fumbled for an explanation, blaming church leaders for not addressing the problems of youth, and video parlors and TV programs for institutionalizing violence. The murdered child’s neighbors were especially eager to see the killers punished. “To be honest, I would bloody hang them,” said a grandmother visiting the abduction site. At the weekend police charged two 10-year-old boys with the abduction and murder. Because police feared mob violence against the families, the suspects were not identified. To convict the boys, prosecutors must prove that the youngsters knew that what they did was wrong.
