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Your support makes all the difference.I WOULD not attempt to justify Mary Bell's crimes, but I do not believe that it is reasonable to put her fee on a par with a criminal who enjoys the proceeds of crime.
Mary was not paid for committing the crimes. She was paid for agreeing - long after she had completed her sentence - to discuss the circumstances in which the crimes were committed. That is quite different from allowing a drug dealer, a professional murderer, or a professional robber to enjoy the proceeds of his or her crime. I fail to see how Mary's fee could provide an incentive for other potential child murderers.
RITA HALE
London N1
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