CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A suspected drunk driver who is accused of killing a woman in southwest Charlotte has been released from jail.
Kelly Conkin, 23 has already been convicted twice of DUI.
Conkin was released from jail on bond Wednesday and allowed to go back to her home in York County. She must wear an ankle monitor and she cannot get back behind the wheel.
"We went to high school together," Mothers Against Drunk Driving member Brittany Keane said of Conkin.
Keane said she knew Conkin years before she racked up two DUI convictions in 2014. Keane also knows the pain that follows drunken drivers because it's her job as a local coroner to notify families.
"It is heartbreaking to knock on someone's door at 2 o'clock in the morning and let them know their loved one has been killed by a drunk driver," she said.
Officers think Conkin was under the influence last month when she swerved across a median in southwest Charlotte and slammed into a car, killing 79-year-old Cecelia Buitrago de Gonzales.
Buitrago de Gonzales' family told Channel 9 that she was visiting them from her home in Bogota, Colombia, where she spent her life helping poor children.
Her daughter and her daughter's husband were seriously hurt in the crash and are recovering in the hospital. He got out of his fifth surgery on Wednesday.
"There is no way to ever say it was OK," said Keane.
Channel 9 tried to ask Conkin for comment, but no one came to the door of her house in Clover on Thursday morning.
Judges can deny bond if they think a suspect could return to court for the same crime.
Channel 9 called the district attorney's office and court officials to find out why Conkin was able to post bond after two previous DUI convictions. So far, Channel 9 is still waiting for an answer.
Keane said Conkin would not have been allowed to drive if a judge had, at the very least, forced her to use an ignition interlock.
"As soon as you enter your vehicle, you have to blow (into) a Breathalyzer before your car will even start," Keane said. "You've got to have a stronger punishment for them, or they're going to do it again. I think this shows that."
She said MADD is pushing for stiffer DUI punishments in the Carolinas.
Conkin isn't scheduled to be back in court until October.