When Children Kill Children

Abstract

In recent years a number of cases involving the murder of children by children have been reported in different countries. Key issues posed by such cases, especially the Bulger case in England and the Redergard case in Norway, are examined critically in the light of current European developments in juvenile justice. In particular, key concerns about the pursuit of justice for children are addressed and the relevance of these for our understanding of childhood and the relationship between children, families and the state considered. The Bulger case and others are identified as atypical and do not present an appropriate basis for change in criminal justice systems. Such cases, though, crystallize the way in which changing notions of childhood, and the competencies and abilities of children, articulate with change in major institutions such as criminal justice systems and the structural relationships between children and adults.