Mother Charged In Son's Death To Return To NJ

EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A Florida woman arrested in the 1991 death of her 5-year-old son will soon return to New Jersey to face charges.

Michelle Lodzinski waived extradition Thursday when she appeared in court in Martin County, Florida. Lodzinski was arrested Aug. 7 and charged with murder in the death of her son, Timothy Wiltsey.

She had said the boy disappeared at a carnival, but investigators said her story kept changing. His skeletal remains were found in a marshy area of Edison, New Jersey, 11 months later.

Investigators have not said what led them to charge Lodzinski. Middlesex County, New Jersey police said a routine cold case review prompted a new investigation, leading a Middlesex County grand jury to hand up an indictment.

The grand jury charged that Lodzinski "did purposely or knowingly kill Timothy Wiltsey, or did purposely or knowingly inflict serious bodily injury upon Timothy Wiltsey, resulting in his death," prosecutors said.

Lodzinski has been jailed without bail since her arrest. She initially challenged her extradition, but her attorney Robert Watson said that was simply to give the single mother time to arrange care for her two teenage sons. They will now live with her sister.

Watson said he expects Lodzinski, a paralegal, will be flown to New Jersey in a week to 10 days and she is looking forward to being able to let the facts speak. She denies killing her son.

Lodzinski went into seclusion after her son's remains were discovered and neighbors said at the time that she didn't appear distraught.

After the discovery, Lodzinski said she couldn't make people believe her.

"What can I say to people? I don't know anymore,'' Lodzinski said at the time. "How am I supposed to act normally? I don't think anyone after losing a child should have to go outside and explain to the public how they feel.''

Lodzinski ran into other legal troubles after her son's death.

She surfaced in Michigan in January 1994 and said two men claiming to be FBI agents had abducted her at gunpoint outside her apartment building, forced her into a black SUV and drove her to Detroit, where they let her out.

She pleaded guilty in 1995 to making false statements to the FBI and fraudulently using the agency's seal. She was sentenced to probation.

In 1997, Lodzinski was charged with stealing a computer from her former employer. She pleaded guilty to a theft charge in 1998. A federal judge sentenced her to house arrest after she admitted she committed a crime while on probation.

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