Deb Watson believes she is to blame for her son's criminal record.

James Watson, 31, was first arrested at age 17 for his role in the kidnapping and assault of a Billings pizza delivery driver. James has also been in trouble for drugs and was recently arrested for something his attorney told Deb not to talk about.

"I have horrific guilt," said Deb, a recovering alcoholic who drank while she was pregnant with her son. "I was a drunk and it's a disease, and now I live with my consequences."

"Any mother who loves her children wants them to have a good life," she said. "You want them to be happy and successful. When you see them miserable or hurt, it kills your soul."

Deb knew from the time that James was a toddler that something was wrong with him, but it wasn't until he was at Montana State Prison in Deer Lodge that someone suggested he could have brain damage caused by prenatal exposure to alcohol.

James was ultimately diagnosed with fetal alcohol effects, an older term for what is now called fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, or FASD.

Although he looks perfectly normal, his brain cannot perform executive functions. He can't apply knowledge learned in one situation to another, and he struggles to understand that his actions have consequences.

"Nothing ever goes in their brain right away," Deb said. "It's something they cannot help, but they're still a living, breathing human being who is loved by their family."

Deb has been sober for 13 years and devotes most of her time to advocating for her son and others in the criminal-justice system with disabilities.

"It's never easy, but it's worth it," she said. "If I don't fight for him, nobody will."