> 1). Re: kill, kill, kill. They will have to live with what they've done for the rest of their lives.

They dragged a kid two miles, beat him with bricks, poured paint all over him, and let a train split him in two. They did it on purpose, because they wanted to do it. They enjoyed the experience. What makes you think they're going to get this sudden attack of moral character? If they do, hey, great. But a guilty conscience is not a just punishment for their actions.

> 2). What will happen when they get out: they will have new identities and be rehoused. They will NOT be sitting in prison buying crack and sponging off the taxpayer: due to restrictions they will probably only ever be allowed to spend their lives signing on, doing a job for the benefit of society, and adding to the Exchequer's funds instead of depleting them. Their 'police surveillance' will probably be limited to, at first, a camera car hovering near them, to be slowly scaled back. They probably will have some sort of alert button, but when you consider that football referee Dermot Gallagher has a state-of-the-art system which allows him to push a button and have every copper within five miles converge on his home...

None of that costs taxpayers anything, of course. (??) In any case, government should not be bought out of administering justice because an alternative is cheaper.

> 3). To continue: they will never be allowed to leave the country. They will have a banning order imposed on them, keeping them well away from Liverpool. There are quite probably restrictions on any possible employment they might choose to get.

So?

> 4). What would happen if they were transferred to an adult prison: unless this prison was EXCEPTIIONALLY model, it'd screw them up badly unless they really, really, really (copy + paste 400 times) have an ability to block out an awful lot.

So? It is a PUNISHMENT, after all.