BOSTON, Massachusetts: A U.S. judge has ruled that a Turkish author and her son can be sent back to Turkey to face charges.

The son is accused of causing a reckless car crash in Istanbul that killed one person and then fleeing the country with his mother's help.

Judge Donald Cabell in Boston rejected arguments that the two had not been charged with crimes that allow extradition. This decision means the U.S. State Department can now decide whether to send them to Turkey.

However, more legal challenges are expected, which could delay their extradition. Turkey has been trying to bring them back since their arrest in June while they were visiting a private school in Boston.

Eylem Tok's lawyer, David Russcol, said they are reviewing their legal options. Her son's lawyer, Martin Weinberg, questioned whether a juvenile could be extradited without a formal criminal charge. The U.S. Department of Justice and the Turkish Embassy have not commented.

Prosecutors say that on March 1, Tok's 17-year-old son, Timur Cihantimur, was driving a Porsche at high speed when he crashed into people on all-terrain vehicles. One person, Oguz Murat Aci, died, and four others were injured.

After the crash, the teenager fled the scene, reportedly saying, "My life is over." The family's driver picked him up, and within hours, Tok bought one-way tickets for them to fly to Egypt. From there, they traveled to the U.S.

Their lawyers argued that the U.S.-Turkey extradition treaty only allows extradition for people with formal criminal charges, but the teenager only has an arrest warrant. They also said Tok's actions—hiding a phone and helping her son flee—were not extraditable offenses.

Judge Cabell disagreed, saying the term "charged" in the treaty does not necessarily mean a formal charge but can also mean "accused."