/crime
ERIE, Pennsylvania (AP) -- A woman charged in the drunken-driving death of her son went to a bar after his funeral instead of reporting back to jail, state police said.
A judge had given Erin Howard, 26, of Corry, permission to leave the Erie County Prison for 24 hours to attend her son's funeral in Ohio, with orders to return to the lockup by 3 p.m. Saturday.
Instead, Howard went to a bar in Hamilton, Ohio, about a mile from the church where the funeral for 6-year-old Samuel Carpenter was held, police said.
Calls to Howard's public defender went unanswered after business hours Monday.
Howard had been in prison in lieu of $75,000 bail on charges that she was driving drunk when she crashed into a creek bank near Corry, killing Samuel on June 14 -- her 26th birthday.
Pennsylvania police found out Sunday morning that Howard had been arrested in Ohio after her son's father allegedly tipped off authorities to her whereabouts. She was being held in Ohio awaiting extradition to Erie.
Howard has now been charged with escape in addition to involuntary manslaughter, drunken driving, child endangerment and other charges related to the crash.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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