Milwaukee crash on I-43; man left child, sentenced to 6 years in prison

MILWAUKEE - A Milwaukee man has been sentenced to six years in prison in connection to an I-43 crash that happened in April 2022.

Ladarius Davis-Hughes, 22, pleaded guilty on July 19 to second-degree recklessly endangering safety, child neglect, possession of a firearm by an adjudicated delinquent, and two counts of felony bail jumping. In addition to prison time, Davis-Hughes was sentenced to seven years of extended supervision and 12 months in the House of Corrections.

According to a criminal complaint, a Milwaukee County sheriff's deputy was responding to a separate call when they spotted a car driving recklessly on I-43 near Holt Avenue. The complaint states the vehicle was speeding, crossing lanes and cutting off "multiple" other motorists.

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Ladarius Davis-Hughes

While in the deputy's view, the car lost control, hit the median, bounced away, hit the median again and flipped – sliding on its roof before coming to a stop.

The complaint states the deputy pulled up behind the wreck and saw a child, since identified as a 4-year-old, and a man, since identified as Davis-Hughes, crawl out through the shattered back windshield. Davis-Hughes told the deputy, according to the complaint, that he was taking the child to school and that the car was "acting up," so he tried to stop it.

The child complained of pain and had cuts to their arms, hands and face, as well as facial swelling. The complaint states the deputy placed the child in the squad car and went to get something for Davis-Hughes, who was bleeding, when Davis-Hughes "ran from the scene, abandoning" the child. The child was later turned over to the mother.

Davis-Hughes runs after crash on NB I-94/43 near Holt Avenue, Milwaukee

Traffic cameras showed Davis-Hughes jumped over the median and ran across traffic toward 6th Street. He was later seen running down Oklahoma Avenue and was taken into custody near 3rd and Oklahoma, which runs underneath the interstate.