SAN ANTONIO – A mother is facing charges after allegedly forcing her child to walk 19 miles to school alone, according to the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office.
On Wednesday, deputies responded to the 15100 block of Orpheus Way on the far West Side following a welfare check triggered by the incident.
The mother had been identified as 35-year-old Lucia Victoria Marie Cruz. She has been charged with abandoning/endangering a child. Bond was set at $15,000. She was released early Thursday morning.
The investigation began after a witness spotted the child, who is under the age of 12, walking along a roadway. The witness told authorities the child was attempting to stay off the road but was being forced closer to traffic due to heavy brush and cacti along the shoulder.
By the time the witness intervened, the child had already walked approximately one mile. The intended journey from home to school was roughly 19 miles. The child did not have a cellphone or any means of communication.
The witness contacted the school, and a school resource officer met with the witness and the child. According to the BCSO, the child reported that the mother and her boyfriend had been involved in an argument the previous night and alleged that the mother had been drinking until she passed out.
The child reportedly woke the mother up the following morning, at which point the mother told the child to walk to school. During the subsequent welfare check, deputies said the mother confirmed she was aware the child had left on foot.
The child’s father arrived at the school and stated he has legal custody per an existing agreement, though the child was under the mother’s care at the time of the incident.
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Child Protective Services has been notified by school district police.