A mother who left her two-year-old son to die in a hot car for 14 hours while she partied and slept off a hangover has been jailed.
Ashley Howard, 21, left Caleb Hopkins in the car overnight and well into the following day just yards from where she partied with friends.
Caleb was left to overheat in the car outside Howard's friend's house in Glendive, Montana, after the mum refused a lift home from her boyfriend.
Investigations found Caleb had spent 14 hours in almost direct sunlight by the time he was checked on at around 1pm on the afternoon of June 26, 2018.
After Howard, 18, returned to the car, she found her son unresponsive and wrapped him in a blanket before rushing him to hospital.
Doctors found Caleb had a temperature of 41C and he died in hospital two days later, with his cause of death ruled hyperthermia caused by overheating.
According to the youngster's father, John Howard, he said he knew of at least three other times the mum had left him alone in the car.
Howard was found guilty of neglect and sentenced to 20 years, five of which are suspended and she will be eligible for parole in 10 years.
According to her solicitor, Victor Bunitsky, the then 19 year old was struggling with alcohol at the time and "her brain hadn't fully developed".
In a statement to the Judge, Howard said she loved Caleb and claimed she hadn’t had enough support at the time of his death.
In her own words, Howard said she 'struggles with saying she killed her son'.
She said: "Nobody wants to be the reason their son is no longer here. I miss him every day. I know that I will always love my son and I will always miss him."
Caleb's grandmother Marsha Hopkins said the mum will have to live with the fact she "alone killed Caleb".
She added: "You will have to live with the fact that you alone killed Caleb. Do I think that you meant to? No. Do I think that you could have prevented it? Absolutely. You knew what could have happened if you left him in the car, and you made that choice."
Sentencing Judge Elizabeth Best said that Howard needed “serious and sustained treatment” while in jail.
While her age had played a factor in Caleb’s death, Howard had also acted irresponsibly, Judge Best said.
Judge Best added: “All of these effects that you describe on yourself and your family are nothing compared to what happened to this boy"
