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She said the past eight days had taken a heavy toll on her family, describing it as "exhausting".
"You work hard to move forward in your life," she said. "You work hard to ensure the loved ones still here are okay and can move forward in their lives.
"But the trauma, it sits quietly within each and every one of us and it only takes one slight trigger, and you're right back to that night, you're right back to that graveside, you're right back to that courtroom - and that's a very difficult place to be."
She said the justice system had let a lot of people down, including Karol's five children and her wider family.
"It's not just us that has been let down," she said.
"It is also the jury who gave up those six weeks (at the trial). They listened to very thorough, onerous, and sometimes difficult evidence and came to the decision they came to.
"It has also let down those brave witnesses who took the stand to ensure that they could share what they'd seen and experienced that night.
"So yes, that is all the justice system has let all of us down, because their one job was to ensure that the sentence imposed by Judge Babington was adhered to, and it has not."
Asked if she had a message for Gary Anderson, she said: "As a family, we've decided that we're not going to give energy to either him or that.
"But for me personally, I just find there's a big difference between being free and having freedom.
"And I don't think a life where you're constantly looking over your shoulder, where you're living on your nerves, where you're not able to integrate in society or with those you love, I don't call that being free.
"And, you know, I put trust in the fact that I do believe in time, he will be returned to his cell. And I trust that once the consequences of this situation are laid bare, this may not have seemed like as good an idea."
The justice minister has apologised to the Kelly family and agreed to meet them to hear their concerns.
The circumstances surrounding Anderson's release have sparked a political row in Northern Ireland, with Long denying on Monday that she had misled the assembly over the matter.
