It was 25 years ago that toddler James Bulger was murdered by Jon Venables and Robert Thompson. The pair - who were both ten years old - kidnapped, tortured and killed the two-year-old in Liverpool.
Although they were both jailed for life for the horrific crime, they were released on licence and with new identities in 2001 after serving less than eight years.
Now, Denise Fergis, James' mother, has revealed how she is still tortured by the events that unfolded that day. Writing in the Mail on Sunday, she said that the final hours she spent with her son will "be etched on my mind until my dying day."
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"People often ask me if I blame myself for what happened that day - for taking my eyes off him for that split second, for letting go of his hand as I looked for my purse, for not seeing what the CCTV footage later showed: Jon Venables and Robert Thompson beckoning James away from my side and out of the shop at 3.39pm.
"If I'd turned right instead of left, I'd have saved his life.
"The answer is: of course I do. There aren't the words to describe how I still feel now, every day. I was the one who let go of his hand, I was the one there meant to protect him."
She revealed that the fact she walked the wrong way is her biggest regret,
because if she's turned right out of the butcher's shop we was in instead of
left she would have seen the pair leading her son away.
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"If I had taken the right turn and gone around the corner," she wrote, " I would have seen James being led away, just four short minutes after he had left my side, trustingly holding hands with the boys who were about to murder him.
"February 12, 1993 was the day I stopped sleeping and I haven't had a full night's rest since."
Earlier this week, Venables - whose new identity is still secret - was charged for a second time with possession of indecent images of children. The Crown Prosecution Service announced his trial would be subject to reporting restrictions to maintain his anonymity.
A statement issued by the CPS said: "The man formerly known as Jon Venables has been charged with offences relating to indecent images of children and will appear in the Crown Court.
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"In order that justice can be done, no further details are being released at this stage and the proceedings are subject to reporting restrictions."
In 2013, two men posted images they claimed were of Venables and Thompson and were given nine-month sentences, suspended for 15 months, for breaking the injunction. Doing so carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison.
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: james bulger, UK News, jon venables