Waukesha County mom accused, abandoning 12-year-old son on freeway

WAUKESHA, Wis. - A Waukesha County mother is facing charges after police say she left her 12-year-old son on the side of the interstate and drove off. 

"Multiple calls on a 10 or 12-year-old on the shoulder crying," scanner audio was heard. "He doesn't know his mom or dad's name. We're going to be setting up a post."

SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News

The boy was left walking on the side of I-94 at Calhoun Road on Thursday, Nov. 7. Waukesha County sheriff's deputies say it happened around 5:30 p.m. It was about 50-degrees outside – and traffic was whizzing by at 70 miles per hour. 

Officials say 43-year-old Flor Escalante was driving her 12-year-old to Sylvan Learning Center in Brookfield when the two got into an argument about the boy's grades. Deputies say the argument led Escalante to pull over. Her son got out of the car – and she drove off. 

Court records shows Escalante told police after she left her son on the side of this interstate, she did a U-turn to go back for him, but she couldn't find him. So she drove straight to Sylvan Learning.

After deputies found the boy, they drove to Sylvan and arrested Escalante. Court records say she told police she did it because she felt her son did not appreciate everything she did for him. Escalante said she works multiple jobs – and told the boy to finish walking the nearly two miles to Sylvan so he would understand "what labor is."

FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX6 News app for iOS or Android

FOX6 News spoke with a family member who did not want to go on camera. That person told FOX6 News they did not expect this from the mom, but the kids are safe and staying with family. 

Escalante is now charged with child abandonment and neglecting a child. She made her initial appearance in Waukesha County court on Friday, Nov. 8. Escalante bailed out of jail on a $500 bond.