Mom of missing kids waives extradition; bail $5M

Bail remained at 5 million US dollars for a mother arrested in Hawaii over the disappearance of her two Idaho children, a judge ruled on Wednesday.

Lori Vallow wore an orange jail jumpsuit in court on the Hawaiian island of Kauai for a hearing on her request to reduce bail.

After the judge denied the request, her defense attorney, Craig De Costa, said she is waiving an extradition hearing, which had been scheduled for March 2.

She wanted to expedite her return to Idaho, De Costa said.

Kauai Prosecutor Justin Kollar said he will work with Idaho authorities on logistics for her departure. The judge set a March 4 status hearing to make sure she has been picked up.

Kauai police arrested Vallow last week on an Idaho warrant. She has been charged with two felony counts of child abandonment.

Seven-year-old Joshua "JJ" Vallow and 17-year-old Tylee Ryan have not been seen since September.

Their disappearance captured worldwide attention after authorities pleaded for help in finding them.

The tangled case includes investigations into three deaths.

Vallow's estranged husband, Charles Vallow, was shot and killed in Phoenix last July by her brother, Alex Cox.

Then Cox, who claimed the shooting was in self-defense, died of unknown causes in December.

Vallow moved her family to Idaho in late August.

In October, Chad Daybell's wife, Tammy Daybell, died of what her obituary said was natural causes. When Daybell married Vallow roughly two weeks after Tammy's death, law enforcement became suspicious and had her remains exhumed.

Test results on Daybell's remains and toxicology results for Cox have not yet been released.

Rexburg police questioned Daybell and Vallow about the missing children in late November, and when detectives returned the next day for a follow-up interview the couple had left town.

In December, Idaho authorities asked police on Kauai for help finding the couple.

On Jan. 26, Kauai police served a search warrant on a vehicle and condo the couple were renting in the resort town of Princeville.