US missionary freed in Haiti after illegal travel conviction returns to Idaho

US missionary convicted in Haiti returns to Idaho

BOISE, Idaho — An Idaho woman accused of trying to take 33 children from Haiti after the deadly January earthquake has returned home.

Laura Silsby hugged friends and relatives as she cleared the airport security gate in Boise and told reporters she is looking forward to spending time with her children.

The 40-year-old Silsby was freed Monday when a judge convicted her but sentenced her to time already served.

Silsby was the organizer of an effort to take the children to an orphanage in the Dominican Republic.

She had been in custody since Jan. 29 and was originally charged with kidnapping and criminal association. Those charges were dropped for her and the nine other Americans who were previously released.

Silsby was convicted under a 1980 statute on a charge of arranging illegal travel.