Mother Accused Of Leaving Child With Transients So She Could Party On New Year's
SAN BERNARDINO (CBSLA.com) — San Bernardino County Sheriff's on Wednesday arrested a woman and accused her of leaving her child with two transients so she could party on New Year's Eve.
The child left with transients has been reported to be a 10-year-old male.
It was unclear how long the woman knew the transients but they were described in various reports as "friends."
Summer Lorene Collras, 36, reportedly called 911 about 2 a.m. after returning from a party saying she couldn't locate her son or the people she left him with.
At least that was the police version. She said the transients are actually friends of the family and she denied to KCAL's Crystal Cruz that she left her son to go party.
She told authorities she simply left the child with friends inside her home located in the 24000 block of 5th Street.
On Thursday evening, in a story Only On 9, Crystal Cruz spoke to Collras to get her side of the story. She asked that Cruz blur her image because she was embarrassed.
"I am not a bad mom, I do everything for my kids," Collras said. "And I have raised my sister's kids."
She also denied leaving her child and said she doesn't drink.
"New Year's I sat right here, big deal," she said, "It was New Year's. My kids are my main priority."
Cruz said authorities searched for the boy by air and by ground.
Following a search that took more than 14 hours, officials found the boy walking home from a friend's house. It was unclear when he got separated from the transients or if they took him to stay with the friend. Or why Collras didn't know his whereabouts.
"I didn't know where he was, so I called 911," Collras said matter-of-fact. "That's what you're supposed to do, right?"
Collras was taken into custody suspected of child abandonment and endangerment.
The boy was placed with Child Protective Services in San Bernardino.
Collras' other son, a 19-year-old, defended his mother's parenting skills.
"She's a good mom," he told Cruz. "She always takes care of me, I always have a place over my head. Food. She buys us clothes, she does everything a mother is supposed to do."
Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the Sheriff's Department at (909) 387-3545.
