Sharon McMillan said she feels let down by the system

Mark Bonini was jailed for at least 13 years for the murder of Andrew Morton. He was given an escorted visit last month to his see his dying grandfather.

The 28-year-old was also given permission to attend his grandfather's burial on Thursday at a cemetery in the Dalbeth area of the city.

The Scottish Prison Service said it could not comment on individual cases.

Bonini, 28, fatally wounded the two-year-old with an air rifle pellet in Craigend in March 2005.

He shouldn't be allowed anywhere near here Sharon McMillan Are home visits for inmates right or wrong?

He was shot while being carried by his 13-year-old brother as they watched fire engines near their home.

Bonini was sent to prison in 2005 and failed in an attempt to challenge his sentence earlier this year.

Sharon McMillan, Andrew's mother, told the BBC Scotland news website that she was given no notification of Bonini's visit by the authorities.

"I was so angry when I found out about the home visit - I was never told that this could happen," she said.

"He shouldn't be allowed anywhere near here.

Mark Bonini was jailed for life last year

"My son and daughter keep asking me whether they'll see him on the way to school."

The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) said a protocol existed which allowed prisoners to attend funerals and go on escorted home visits.

A spokesman said: "Prisoners are normally allowed compassionate leave if the prison governor receives medical advice that a close relative is dying.

"They are also allowed to attend the funeral of close relatives, such as parents, grandparents, siblings, spouses and children.

"They are escorted to funerals and visits by two Reliance officers."

The spokesman said the prison service was under no obligation to notify victims or their families of escorted visits because the prisoner was still in custody.

Andrew Morton was shot near his home in Craigend

However, Ms McMillan said she felt let down by the system.

"If he'd done about 10 years of his sentence, I could understand him being allowed out if something tragic happens like a death in the family," she said.

"But not when he's only served about a year of it. He's still a danger to the public.

Pauline McNeill MSP, convenor of Holyrood's justice 1 committee, called for a change to prison service protocol.

"There's nothing in the protocol that would have compelled the SPS to notify the family of a compassionate visit and that's where the gap lies," she said.

"I think that should change.

"Families should be told about these types of situations and the Morton family should have been told in this case."