Mother Smoked Meth, Ex-Friend Tells Court

A Perris woman on trial for allegedly allowing her infant son to ingest a lethal dose of methamphetamine was a frequent drug user who smoked the stimulant while her children were nearby, a former friend testified Monday.

Amy Leanne Prien, a 31-year-old mother of three, is charged with killing 3-month-old Jacob Wesley Smith by allowing him to ingest methamphetamine, possibly through breast-feeding, in January 2002.

During testimony, Ericka Schultz told jurors that from February to August 1999, she and Prien would smoke methamphetamine at each other’s house while Prien’s children were either playing outside or in their rooms. A toxicologist also told jurors that Prien tested positive for methamphetamine in January, a year after Jacob died.