Debbie Adlam, the mother of PC Andrew Harper, has described the discussion around the early release scheme that could see her son's killers freed as "gut-wrenching".
The police officer died in 2019 at the age of 28, after being dragged behind the getaway car of three teenagers fleeing the scene of a quad bike theft. Albert Bowers and Jessie Cole were each jailed for 13 years, and Henry Long was jailed for 16 years.
Early release scheme controversy
The case has returned to the headlines as it emerged that Bowers and Cole could become eligible for release sooner than thought due to the early release scheme, which aims to ease overcrowding in prisons. However, Prime Minister Andy Burnham has asked the justice secretary to find a way to keep them in prison.
Speaking on ITV's Good Morning Britain, Debbie said she was "very cautious with my hope". She told presenters Richard Madeley and Kate Garraway that the reports had been a "switchback of events".
'Turned me inside out'
Debbie admitted she was "kind of on autopilot with a lot of it" but thanked the public, saying the support had been "absolutely phenomenal".
"I can't thank people enough," she said. "But then it got to Friday and the reports seem to be that there might possibly be a turnaround. And then yesterday all the reports were the opposite again and it's just gut-wrenching. I just don't know how to think, how to feel and it's turned me inside out."
She added that she had heard from Downing Street, saying: "It was the Chief of Staff called me to say that Andy Burnham is trying to do everything that he can and he's feeling more confident basically that you know something can be done. But the fight goes on, nothing's been done, nothing's been found yet. So until it happens, you know, here we sit."
Good Morning Britain airs on ITV from 6am.
