WISN: Mother Defends Herself against Allegations She Mistreated Autistic Son

A Racine mother is speaking out against accusations she locked her autistic son in a basement and mistreated him, WISN reports. 

The son, 23-year-old James Allen, who has Asperger syndrome, now lives with his grandmother, Lauren Allen, Patch media partners WISN12 reports. Allen called police to report what she said were abusive living conditions at he grandson's home.

But, the mother Teri Allen told WISN she would lock the son in the basement overnight because his disabilities often made him violent and, "He would sleep down there, but he wasn't a prisoner. He'd come upstairs for his meals and go to the bathroom."

The call to police lead to felony charges being filed Wednesday against the mother and her boyfriend of intentionally causing an individual at risk to abuse – likely to cause bodily harm.