14: Chilling Walmart Footage Exposes a Monster | The Cherish Perrywinkle Case

Eight-year-old Cherish Lily Perrywinkle went out one summer evening with her mother and younger sisters for a simple shopping trip. A chance encounter at a store with a stranger offering them money for clothes seemed harmless at first, but that encounter would set off a chain of events no one could have imagined. Cherish went missing after leaving the store with him, and hours later, her lifeless body was found in a nearby creek…. If you’re new here, don’t forget to follow the show for weekly deep dives into the darkest true crime cases! To watch the video version of this episode, head over to youtube.com/@annieelise. .🔎Join Our True Crime Club & Get Exclusive Content & Perks..🎧 Need More to Binge? Listen to both of my weekly true crime series 10 to Life & Serialously with Annie Elise wherever you get your podcasts on the Annie Elise Channel!🍎 Apple Podcasts | Where you can also unlock access to 100+ and growing extra exclusive deep dives.💚 Spotify🔴 YouTube🎙️ All Other Platforms.📸 Follow Annie on Socials Instagram: @_annieeliseTikTok: @_annieeliseSubstack: @annieeliseFacebook: @10toLife.👗 Shop Annie’s Must-Haves! ShopMY: bit.ly/AnnieElise_ShopMy Amazon: bit.ly/AnnieElise_Amazon.🫵🏻 Get Involved or Recommend a CaseAbout Annie: www.annieelise.comFor Business Inquiries: [email protected].📚 Episode Sources Action News JAX | Circuit Court of the Fourth Judicial Circuit of the State of Florida | First Coast News | News4JAX | Supreme Court of Florida | The District Court of Appeal First District, State of Florida••••••••••••••••••🚨Disclaimers1️⃣ Some links may be affiliate links, they do not cost you anything, but I make a small percentage from the sale. Thank you so much for watching and supporting me. 2️⃣ Sources used to collect this information include various public news sites, interviews, court documents, FB groups dedicated to the case, and various news channel segments. When quoting statements made by others, they are strictly alleged until confirmed otherwise. Please remember my videos are my independent opinion and to always do your own research. 3️⃣ The views and opinions expressed in this video are personal and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer, or company. Assumptions made in the analysis are not reflective of the position of any entity other than the creator(s). These views are subject to change, revision, and rethinking at any time and are not to be held in perpetuity. We make no representations as to the accuracy, completeness, correctness, suitability, or validity of any information on this video and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. All information is provided on an as-is basis. It is the reader’s responsibility to verify their own facts.

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• 1:30Annie Elise?

  On June 21st, 2013, Rain Periwinkle made a 911 call that would lead authorities to one of the most heartbreaking crime scenes that they had ever seen.

• 1:41Speaker 02

  Jackson, I'm Alvin Robinson. Hi, I'm at Walmart. A Linterner has been taken. What do you mean? Taken by a stranger. I can't find her. And you say you're at the Walmart on Linterner? Yes, I am. Okay, when was... Where did you last see her at? Walmart.

• 2:05Speaker 02

  I met a man today at Dollar General. He saw that I was struggling to buy them some clothes. He drove us here to buy us some clothes and the only reason I went with him because he said his wife was gonna be here. Because I told him I don't take rides with strangers. Okay ma'am, what's- He said he was going to McDonald's and he hasn't been there. Because the store is closed right now.

• 2:34Speaker 02

  I had a strange feeling about him when I first met him. He took her to the, he took her to the, to the dressing room twice. And I was hoping that she would be okay. And I was looking at the shoes. And I didn't want him to think that I was overly protective, freaking out. But now, they're not here. And I find it very odd because he knew that-

• 3:00Speaker 02

  Okay ma'am, what color vehicle does he drive? It's a white van.

• 3:06Speaker 02

  I had a bad feeling. I thought, well, I feel like pinching myself because this is too good to be true. So I got to the checkout, he's not here, isn't here. And I'm hoping he's not [BLEEP] her right now. Because I've had that done to me. It's not, it's not fun.

• 3:26Speaker 02

  She's supposed to go to California in the morning. Who the plane? And he knows, because I told him this. He knew when the store was closing. I had a bad feeling about him. Okay, how long have you been looking for her? When was the last time you saw her? How long ago? About half an hour ago. So you've been looking for her for a half an hour? Yes. There's nobody in the store. And he knew the store was closing. He said he was going to McDonald's. She went with him. I should have told her to stay with me.

• 4:04Speaker 02

  He wanted her to buy these really tall shoes that were women's shoes and I told him no. I said, "They're too high for her. I wouldn't even wear shoes that high." Maybe he was grooming her. I hope to God he doesn't kill her. I hope to God he doesn't [bleep] her.

• 4:22Speaker 02

  I don't want him to kill her. I don't want to be one of those parents that are going through this.

• 4:32Speaker 02

  Oh my God.

• 4:32Annie Elise?

  Rain made that phone call from a Walmart in Jacksonville, Florida. This was after not being able to find her eight-year-old daughter, Cherish. She couldn't find her anywhere in the store. But unlike a lot of other abduction cases that we hear about, Rain knew exactly who had her little girl. And the story of how that person ended up with Cherish and what happened to her next? It is absolutely gut-wrenching. I'm Annie Elise. This is 10 to Life. And today, we are reopening the case of Cherish Perrywinkle.

• 5:16Annie Elise?

  Rain Perrywinkle was born in 1968 in Brisbane, Australia, and originally was given the name Kimberly Hoy. She was only 18 years old when she gave birth to her first daughter, Lindsay. And Kimberly had a very difficult time adjusting to motherhood at such a young age. Kimberly was said to have a very short temper with Lindsay and was more interested in hanging out with friends and partying than taking care of her new daughter. Kimberly's mother and older sister would step in to raise Lindsay and eventually became her primary caretakers due to Kimberly hardly ever being around. In 1991, Kimberly took off to America, abandoning Lindsay completely and leaving her in the care of her family when she was only five years old.

• 5:59Annie Elise?

  Kimberly realized that she could have a life of freedom in America without the responsibility of being a mom. And she decided to settle in Jacksonville, Florida. She eventually decided to change her name to Rain Perrywinkle in an attempt To develop an entirely new persona and leave the person that she was, the old original Kimberly, back in Australia and behind for good. Rain would quickly realize how difficult starting a new life completely from scratch really was, especially when you have no help from family who live all the way across the world and who you have essentially left your child with. She needed to get money to support herself quickly, and she decided the best way to do that was to become an exotic dancer at a local club.

• 6:44Annie Elise?

  In 2004, while Rain was working at the club, she met a man named Billy Jarrow, who was in Jacksonville for a short time while serving in the Navy. One thing led to another, and Rain and Billy had a one-night-stand with really no plans of ever seeing each other again. However, a few months later, Rain would realize that she was pregnant, and the timing pointed directly to Billy being the father. She told the friends that she had made in Florida that this was her very first pregnancy, and they had no idea about her old life and her existing daughter Lindsay that she had left behind in Australia years before. So Rain gave birth to a little girl on Christmas Eve, December 24, 2004, and she named her Cherish Lily Perrywinkle.

• 7:29Annie Elise?

  Rain called Cherish her "Christmas miracle," and she waited nearly three years before she tracked Billy down to let him know that she had a daughter who was more than likely his. After Cherish was born, Rain started a long-term on-and-off-again relationship with a man named Aaron Pearson, and he helped raise Cherish for the majority of her life. However, due to their financial difficulties, Rain decided to bring Billy to court to get child support for Cherish. But Billy wanted to do a paternity test to make sure that this little girl was actually his. Rain denied a paternity test at first, but to get the child support for Cherish, the court ordered that she prove that Billy really be the father. When the paternity test came back as a match, Billy immediately wanted to become involved

• 8:14Annie Elise?

  in his little girl's life that he had already missed so much of. Over the next several years, the courts would slowly grant Billy more and more time with his daughter Cherish. And it took a while for them to bond together as father and daughter since he had missed those crucial first couple of years of her life. At one point, Billy even took Rain to court to try to gain full custody because he didn't agree with the living conditions that she was having Cherish in or the lifestyle that she was subjecting their daughter to. You see, Rain was diagnosed with bipolar disorder after seeking mental health treatment in the early 2000s, and she had a very hard time holding down a steady job due to her long periods of depression and other periods of erratic and impulsive behavior.

• 8:55Annie Elise?

  When she did have a place to live, it was usually unsuitable for anyone, let alone a small child to live in. Billy and Rain rarely saw eye to eye on how to raise their daughter, and he felt like it would be in the best interest for Cherish to live with him full-time. Cherish was a sweet, playful, and bright little girl. She loved swimming, riding her bike, coloring, and was pretty well-adjusted considering the life of chaos that she was thrown into at just such a young age. Even though she and Rain moved a lot and her mother's behavior was unpredictable at times, she was said to be happy and very trusting of people. In 2006, Rain and Cherish were living in a homeless shelter, and this would be the start of DCFS getting involved in their life.

• 9:38Annie Elise?

  Over the years, red flags weren't just popping up around little Cherish, they were practically screaming. There were five separate DCF investigations involving the adults who were supposed to protect her. The first one happened in January of 2006. Staff at the daycare that's attached to the homeless shelter where Rain was living noticed that something was off. See, Rain wasn't late to pick up Cherish by just five minutes or 10 minutes or even an hour, she was sometimes three hours late picking her up. Three hours, which, imagine being that young, that tiny, just sitting and waiting and not understanding why no one is coming.

• 10:21Annie Elise?

  A few months later, another report was filed. This time, daycare staff workers actually witnessed Rain shaking Cherish when she was crying. And let that just sink in for a moment. A toddler is crying and the response that she was met with was violence. Then in 2009, things spiraled once again. This time, Rain attempted to take her own life by overdosing on allergy medication. She was hospitalized and, yes, another DCF investigation, which it's just heartbreaking because at this point Cherish wasn't just living in chaos. She was being shaped by it. By 2012, the cycle just continued too. DCF got involved yet again,

• 11:04Annie Elise?

  this time after a huge blowout fight between Rain and her boyfriend Aaron. And here's where it gets even more frustrating. Despite all of this, and despite Billy, Cherish's dad, actually wanting custody, Cherish stayed with Rain. But you know, before we get ahead of ourselves and like crown Billy the hero, don't worry, DCF had a lot of questions about him too. Back in 2009, Billy allegedly spanked Cherish and spanked her so hard that his handprint remained on her body, like the impression of his hand, which it's so awful to think about and she was so terrified by this that she apparently wet herself. Which that image alone tells you everything that you need to know, right? So here's the truth in all of it.

• 11:48Annie Elise?

  Every single adult in Cherish's world failed her in some way. The people who were supposed to be her safe place, who were supposed to protect her, they weren't safe at all. Yet still Cherish and Rain, they eventually moved in with Rain's boyfriend Aaron and that decision would change everything. Aaron had one son from a previous relationship, a previous marriage, and he and Rain went on to have two daughters together, who they named Destiny and Navea. Billy, who was now living in San Diego, California, would get Cherish for extended visits. And in June of 2013, she was set to come and spend the whole summer with him. On June 21st, 2013, Rain was getting Cherish ready for her summer in California

• 12:33Annie Elise?

  to go and spend time with her dad. It wasn't unlike Rain to wait until the last minute and she still needed to get Cherish a few more clothes items and some shoes to take on her trip. Cherish needed to be up at 4 a.m. the next morning to make her flight, which she would be taking all alone, all the way from one side of the country to the other, at only eight years old. Erin gave Rain a $100 bill to buy Cherish some clothes, and told her to only spend 40 of that, so that they would have enough for the cab to the airport in the morning. So Cherish loaded up Destiny and Navea in their stroller, and with Cherish by her side, they made the one-mile walk to the local Family Dollar store. The four shopped around a little bit, and Rain bought some of the items they needed for the home, before walking across the street to a Dollar General.

• 13:16Annie Elise?

  Rain and the girls looked at the clothing and the shoes, and Cherish found a dress that she really liked, that was covered in little hearts. The dress didn't have a price tag, so when they walked up to the checkout, Rain asked the cashier how much the dress cost. When the cashier told her how much it cost, Rain realized she wouldn't have enough money to get the dress and the other things that she needed to get Cherish for her trip. So Cherish was really sad that she had to put that dress back, and Rain noticed a man standing near the front of the store, who seemed to be listening to their conversation with the cashier. She didn't think much of it, because the man walked out of the store while they paid for their items. When the family walked out of the store, though, the man from inside approached them, and said, "If you really want that dress, I'll buy it for you."

• 13:58Annie Elise?

  Rain didn't know what to think about his offer and his generosity, because in her experience, men hadn't offered to buy her things unless there was some other motive. He then told her that he actually had a $150 gift card for the Walmart, and that he was waiting for his wife to bring it to him. He said Rain could use it for her children, because he could tell that she had her hands full and was struggling buying the items. Rain still felt a little uneasy by this, but the more they talked, and the more she talked to the man, who introduced himself now as Dawn, the more comfortable she started to feel. He talked about his wife and their little ones, and how he worked with children and attended a local church. Rain decided to wait for Dawn's wife to come with the gift card,

• 14:42Annie Elise?

  because now she was feeling desperate, because at this point, she was now feeling a little more secure, and she was feeling desperate not being able to send Cherish on her trip with any new clothes or- Shoes that fit her. They waited for around 10 minutes and Rain told him that she had to get Cherish up really early to make her flight to California. And she wondered how long his wife would be. It had started to rain at this point in the parking lot and the girls were having fun jumping in the puddles and playing with their umbrellas while they waited. Finally, this man Dawn took a phone call and said that he could just drive them all to Walmart and his wife would meet them there with the gift card. Rain felt apprehensive and said that she'd rather wait for his wife there, but then Dawn kind of got an attitude and said, you don't have to do this.

• 15:24Annie Elise?

  Kind of like, I'm doing you a favor in that kind of way. Rain didn't want to seem paranoid or untrusting because she didn't want him to get annoyed with her and then decide to leave. She really wanted that gift card for her girls and she felt like coming across as rude or refusing to get in the van would ruin her opportunity to get the things that she really needed. Finally, Rain decided to load up her daughters into Dawn's white van and ride to Walmart, which was only a short drive away. Rain rode up front and on their way, they continued to make small talk. He asked how old all of the girls were, where Rain worked and talked about his life as well.

• 15:59Annie Elise?

  So Rain, by this, rather than seeing the red flags, started to feel even more comfortable and like Dawn was an older grandpa type guy who just wanted to help her and her family out. When they arrived at Walmart, they waited for Dawn's wife for about 10 more minutes. And even though Dawn's phone didn't ring, he picked it up and said, okay, see you soon. Rain figured that his phone was maybe on silent and he said his wife was on her way. He told the family to go ahead and start shopping and that he would meet them in the girls department with the gift card in a few minutes. Now I can see where you might be becoming more trusting in this moment because he's allowing you out of the car.

• 16:36Annie Elise?

  He's allowing you into Walmart, into a public place. If his goal in your mind, if you're at his goal or perhaps goal was going to be to kidnap you all or the girls. He wouldn't let you out of the van after he got you inside. So I could see where maybe you would become more trusting in this moment like, okay, I got myself worked up for nothing. See, we're in Walmart. This is real. This is legit. So Rain and the girls walked inside and she quickly started picking out items for the girls and then placing them inside the cart. She made a little piles for Cherish, Navea, and Destiny. And to them, $150 for clothing felt like a shopping spree. So a few minutes later, Dawn comes in and he joins the family in the girls' department. Rain said that Dawn kind of stood back and watched while the girls shopped.

• 17:18Annie Elise?

  And he only put one item in the cart of his own, which was a bundle of rope. So any security you're feeling in that moment, I would think goes out the window when you see that he is putting a huge thing of rope in his basket. And because of this, Rain has been criticized for her trusting of Dawn, but she still, for some reason, allowed him to take Cherish to the dressing room two different times to try on clothing. He and Cherish also looked at the shoes and he gave her a pair to go ask her mom if she could have. And the shoes were high heels, and Rain said that she wouldn't even wear those type of shoes, let alone let her eight-year-old daughter wear them. She told Cherish to put the shoes back and felt like it was kind of strange, but figured the older men just didn't know what kind of shoes little girls wear.

• 18:01Annie Elise?

  At around 10:00 PM, the girls were all getting really fussy because they hadn't eaten any dinner. From across the girl's section, Dawn mouthed and motioned to Rain with his hand, "What do you want to eat?" Cherish ran over to her mom and sisters and said, "We're going to McDonald's. What do you want to eat?" The McDonald's was inside the Walmart, just at the front of the store, and Rain told her to tell Dawn that they just wanted some cheeseburgers. Dawn started to walk away, and Cherish caught up behind to go with him to McDonald's. Rain wasn't worried at this point because there were a lot of people around and she knew that Cherish would never leave with a stranger without asking. When Dawn and Cherish approached the McDonald's, he felt around in his pocket as if to be looking for his wallet. It appeared that he had forgotten his wallet in the van, coincidentally.

• 18:45Annie Elise?

  So he and Cherish made their way to the parking lot. After around 20 minutes, Rain started to wonder where Dawn and Cherish were. And a few minutes later, the intercom made an announcement that the store would be closing soon. Rain and the girls pushed their cart to the checkout lanes and started looking for Dawn and Cherish. They went up and down all of the lanes to the McDonald's and the grocery section, but there was no sign of them. Rain started to get a little worried, but was sure that they were somewhere inside of the She told Destiny and Nevea to wait by the customer service area. And the more she looked, the faster she started walking through all of the aisles, until she was eventually running frantically through the entire store. In a panic, she yelled out, "Someone call 911, my daughter's been taken."

• 19:29Annie Elise?

  Rain had left her phone in Dawn's van, but it wasn't working properly anyway because one of the girls had spilled water on it a few days prior. Every horrible possibility started to run through Rain's mind, and a Walmart associate quickly allowed her to use their phone to call 911. At first, even though Rain explicitly said that her daughter had been taken, the dispatcher called in Cherish as a missing person rather than an abduction. When the police arrived, they initially didn't believe Rain's story about Cherish being abducted, but that wasn't until they viewed the surveillance footage and saw Dawn and Cherish walk to the parking lot and drive away in his van. When they were able to identify who the man was, the situation became even more critical.

• 20:11Annie Elise?

  And it turned out that Cherish was with one of the most dangerous types of predators. Donald James Smith was born on September 4th, 1956, to his 17-year-old mother Patricia Moore, and a father whom he really had no contact with after his birth. They lived with Patricia's parents and Dawn developed a very close relationship with his grandparents as a young child. When his mother got married to a man named Clifton Smith, Dawn reportedly begged not to have to leave his grandparents' house. And ultimately, the life that they began with his stepfather would turn out to be extremely traumatic. Over the years, Patricia's husband was said to be very inappropriate with her son Dawn, and there were even allegations that he had touched Dawn inappropriately. Clifton's job required the family to move frequently,

• 20:56Annie Elise?

  which caused Dawn to struggle with making friends and to endure ruthless bullying at all of his new schools. It was even said that he had even paid other children to play with their toys, and that he never quite fit in with any of his peers. When Dawn was eight years old, two teenage boys who lived in his neighborhood ended up touching him inappropriately on multiple occasions. They also forced him to watch them do the same thing, much more violently, to other little girls in their neighborhood as well. This had a profound effect on Don. And his mother said that only a few years later, at 10 years old, he started to expose himself to other children. It was said that during this time, he also endured a traumatic brain injury on the right

• 21:39Annie Elise?

  side of his head that permanently altered his personality going forward. As a teenager, he began heavily using substances and had his first run ins with the law. After committing burglaries to fuel his drug habit, he was sentenced to several years in prison, where he was attacked by two fellow inmates after dropping the soap, if you catch my drift. When he was released, his lewd behavior would only escalate, but he seemed to always slip through the cracks of any system designed to protect the public from people with this type of issue. As a young adult, Don was known around town as a creep who flashed himself to children at local playgrounds. It wasn't until 1977 that he was finally convicted of lewd behavior toward a minor.

• 22:23Annie Elise?

  And this was for exposing himself to a girl under the age of 10 and touching himself in the presence of a five year old. He served one year in jail and then was placed on probation after being categorized as a mentally disordered offender. In 1981, he was arrested for violating his probation, and he was sentenced to five years in prison. In 1991, he pleaded guilty to burglary and grand theft. And even though he could have been sentenced to 15 years, he only received four months. In 1993, Don approached a 13 year old girl named Carrie Anne. She was walking alone to a friend's house a few blocks away. He asked her if she wanted a ride. And when she said no, he became angry and told her to get the F in the van.

• 23:05Annie Elise?

  Carrie Anne started running, and then Don threw his car into drive and drove behind her, cutting her off at an intersection. The girl ran as fast as she could to her friend's house and started banging on the door to let her in. But nobody was home. Terrified, she ran through yards until she got to a playground behind a local elementary school. But Don saw her run behind the school, and she thought that he was going to catch her. Using her wits and smarts, she quickly climbed into a tube slide, while Don drove his Truck to the back parking lot of the school. She used her hands and her feet to press against the tube slide from inside to keep herself from slipping down. And she waited for what felt like hours as she could hear Dawn's van still running in the parking lot.

• 23:47Annie Elise?

  He shouted out the window at her, "I know you're in there, you little B I T C H." And Carrie Anne was terrified that he knew that she was in the slide. Finally, she heard the van pull away, but made sure to wait a few more minutes before climbing out of the slide and running home. When she got there, she told her parents what happened. A few days later, Carrie Anne and her mom could see Dawn's white van sitting outside of her house. This enraged her mother, and she went outside, causing him to drive away. She and Carrie Anne jumped in the car and sped behind him, writing down the license plate number to the van. They turned the number into the police, and Dawn was quickly arrested. For this, he could have faced life in prison. For the attempted kidnapping alone, due to him being a habitual offender, but once again,

• 24:30Annie Elise?

  he skated by and only received six years in prison. After his release in 2001, his stepfather died and Dawn inherited $100,000, which he blew in less than three months on substances. Even though his mother Patricia knew about this, she was in denial that her son had a drug problem. And it's been said that throughout Dawn's entire life, she always made excuses for him. It's even been said that his mother treated him more like a partner than a son, and that they had a very strange Norman and Norma Bates-like closeness, which I don't know if you've ever, if you're familiar with the Bates story and all of that, but it's a very odd, super close relationship between a mother and her son. He soon was placed in jail again for violating probation for drug charges.

• 25:13Annie Elise?

  Civil commitment proceedings were initiated, meaning that the state of Florida believed that he should be committed to a mental hospital for the safety of others, and so that he could undergo extensive counseling to determine if he would be likely to reoffend. People who are committed to these programs must stay until they are deemed to no longer pose a risk to themselves or others. And in 2002, he was released. As a condition of his release, he said that he would undergo outpatient treatment and receive injections of a drug that would suppress his sex drive. By 2002- 2003, he started refusing to take the shots and stopped participating in that treatment program. He was arrested several more times over the next few years. And in 2006, he was evaluated again for civil commitment due to concern of his repeat offenses

• 25:58Annie Elise?

  and impulse control. However, this time, he didn't meet the criteria, even though the doctor that did the evaluation stated that he was attracted to children and was a serious predator. The doctor also diagnosed him with antisocial personality disorder and believed his brain injury affected his impulse control and sexually deviant proclivities. Over the next couple of years, there was even a point when Don Baker acted himself, which is Florida's version of a 5150 or involuntary mental health treatment. He said he was experiencing hallucinations and had homicidal thoughts. After treatment, he was released without supervision. In 2012, Don was arrested again, this time for impersonating a DCFS worker and attempting

• 26:41Annie Elise?

  to conduct a RAPE kit on a nine-year-old child. He also called the child and said very disturbing things to them on the phone before it was discovered that he actually was not an employee with DCFS, and it was quickly reported to the police. He pled guilty to the charges, but he only spent around a year in prison. Nineteen days after his release, an anonymous caller reported a tip to Crime Stoppers about Don lurking around a Walmart in Jacksonville, Florida and acting strangely toward women with children. Two days later, Don met Rain Perrywinkle and her daughters at that very same Walmart. The charges we just went over are only some of Don's charges, as he has over four decades

• 27:24Annie Elise?

  of offenses like this, as well as multiple psychologist reports stating that he was in fact a danger to society. He kept being released like a monster being let out of a cage, and this time, this absolute monster and freak was in possession of eight-year-old Cherish Perrywinkle, who he had taken from Walmart.

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• 28:51Annie Elise?

  After the detectives viewed Dawn driving off with Cherish around 11:30 PM, they placed a BOLO out for his white van. And a BOLO is a be on the lookout. This would later be criticized as a mistake because they knew the vehicle and the description of both Dawn and Cherish and should have immediately sent out an Amber Alert for community members to be on the lookout as well. It wasn't until four hours after she was taken that an Amber Alert was finally issued. It took six hours for the media to be notified of the abduction. At 5:30 AM, the local Jacksonville news station put out photos of Cherish, Dawn and his van. Three hours later, a citizen called the tip line to report seeing the van from the newscast and seeing the van suspiciously parked behind a church and pulled far into the bushes.

• 29:35Speaker 02

  Hi, we're calling about a suspicious van over here, a white van. It was parked behind some bushes, really deep. And then we heard that it was, it's not there anymore, but we don't know if he dumped anything because we heard a girl just got abducted from Walmart.

• 29:50Annie Elise?

  Right.

• 29:50Speaker 02

  So we're not sure if that's the van, but a white van was pushed all the way to the back of the bushes this morning.

• 29:58Annie Elise?

  Near some bushes.

• 30:00Speaker 02

  Yes, right behind the church.

• 30:03Annie Elise?

  While some officers made their way to check out the church, a female officer on interstate patrol saw the white van driving down Florida Interstate I-95. She began following the van and requested that another officer join her in the pursuit before pulling the van over. Less than 10 minutes later, the officers turned their lights on to initiate a felony arrest. This is different from a normal traffic stop because instead of the officer approaching the vehicle, they command the driver to exit the vehicle with their hands up. On the officer's dash cam, Dawn was seen exiting his vehicle. When the officer approached Dawn to pat him down, he realized that the lower half of his body was completely soaked. The officer immediately yelled out to the officer, "Oh my God, she's in the water."

• 30:47Annie Elise?

  When the initial female officer in the pursuit took Dawn to the police station, the other officer raced to the church where the citizen had said that they saw his van earlier that morning. When he got there, he yelled, "Where's the water? Where's the water?" He was pointed in the direction behind the church and started making his way with his canine through a marshy area with very tall grass. He noticed that the grass appeared to be pushed down, forming a trail that someone had clearly walked through. He saw the trail of tall grass ending at a fallen tree in about seven inches of water. As he approached the tree, he could see long, flowy brunette hair floating in the water, and a child in an orange dress pushed up against the tree. And she was weighed down with chunks of asphalt.

• 31:30Annie Elise?

  The officer was overcome with emotion when he realized that his own little girl owned the exact same dress as the child in the water. They found Cherish Perrywinkle, but it was too late. The officer waited there with her, knowing that there were probably alligators nearby, and he wanted to protect her from anything else that could harm her any further. He waited with Cherish until crime scene investigators arrived and took over the scene. In California, Billy, who was Cherish's biological dad, got a call that completely knocked him off his feet. He always had a feeling that Cherish wouldn't be safe unless she was with him, and now his worst nightmare had become a reality. She was supposed to arrive in California for her vacation with her dad that day, and instead, he was getting the call that his daughter was dead.

• 32:15Annie Elise?

  Rain was obviously beside herself as well and blamed herself. For trusting that someone would want to help her and her family. Don waited in the interrogation room for over an hour before detectives came in to question him. When they asked him what he had done that morning, he said that he had been doing drugs with some female adult workers. When they asked why he was wet from the waist down, he said it's because he sweats a lot when he's on drugs. The officers then told him that they had him on surveillance at Walmart, leaving with Cherish Perrywinkle. And at that point, he asked for a lawyer.

• 32:48Speaker 04

  Have a seat. We'll be with you in a little bit. Donald Smith is led into an interview room on the morning of his arrest as JSO detectives try to get answers. What's your name? Donald Smith. Donald Smith? Yes. Investigators leave Smith in the room. He sits back and closes his eyes. More than an hour later, homicide detectives come back and read Smith his rights. If you do answer questions, you have the right to stop answering questions at any time. Consult a lawyer, you understand that? The murder suspect had no intention of talking. It's an investigation of the abduction and murder of a Cherish Perrywinkle. Yeah, eight-year-old female.

• 33:29Speaker 04

  We'd like to ask you questions about it, if you want to talk to us.

• 33:33Speaker 04

  So they take pictures for evidence.

• 33:36Annie Elise?

  Other investigators came in and photographed Don's clothes, his muddy shoes, and various scratches and bruises that were present on his body. With so much evidence against him, Don was charged with first-degree kidnapping, murder, and, heartbreakingly, R A P E. Four years later, the trial of Don Smith began in Jacksonville, Florida. In opening statements, the defense made the choice to paint Rain Perrywinkle as an incompetent and neglectful parent, which didn't go over well in the courtroom. After that, they decided to take a different approach and barely cross-examined any of the state's witnesses. The first witness on the stand was Rain Perrywinkle herself, who gave a very emotional testimony about what took place that day.

• 34:17Speaker 04

  When you walked outside the Dollar General, did a man talk to you? Yes. What did this man look like? Describe him for me. He's got white hair. The man who started talking to you, do you see him here in the courtroom today? Yes.

• 34:32Speaker 04

  Could you point to him and describe where he's seated and what he's wearing today? He's wearing a long-sleeved blue shirt.

• 34:40Speaker 04

  With the glasses on top of his head? Yes. Your Honor, may the record reflect that the witnesses identified the defendant. What did he say to you when you walked out the front door of the Dollar General? If you really want that dress, I'll get it for you. Did he make any other comments to you about your children? Yes. What did he say? He said, "You look like you have your hands full. I have a couple of little ones." Where was this in relation to the front door? Where was he standing when he struck up this conversation with you? He was near the front of the store. Ma'am, looking at the monitor in front of you, is that the location when he first spoke to you as you were walking out the front door of the Dollar General? Yes. During the course of that conversation, did he make any mention of a gift card

• 35:24Speaker 04

  that he may have at Walmart? Yes. What did he tell you about this gift card? He said, "I have a hundred and fifty dollar gift card I'm waiting on my wife." After some period of time, did he offer to drive you and your children to the Walmart? Yes. What did he say about his wife and the gift card prior to you all going to Walmart? He said she's going to meet us there. Did you believe him? Yes. You had seen him in the store before, and he talks to you as soon as you come out. Were you originally concerned about him? Yes. Why? I thought he was going to steal my money because he was watching me with the cashier. He was standing on my right shoulder.

• 36:09Speaker 04

  Then, so when you go outside and this person you had a concern started talking to you, were you still concerned at that point? Not as much. I thought I was just being paranoid. Based upon the way he looked, his age, his appearance, did you believe he posed a threat to you? No. But when the wife didn't show up in the gold car, did he offer to drive you and your children to the Walmart in Land Turner? Yes. What was your response to that offer? I waited because I wanted to see her show up. I didn't jump at it right away. You were still hoping? That the wife would come to Dollar General.

• 36:50Speaker 05

  Yes.

• 36:51Speaker 04

  But she never came.

• 36:52Speaker 05

  No.

• 36:57Speaker 04

  At some point, did he again ask, do you want to go?

• 37:02Speaker 05

  He got snappy with me because I wouldn't get in the van.

• 37:06Speaker 04

  What do you mean he got snappy with you? Describe that for me.

• 37:10Speaker 05

  He had an attitude. He said, you don't have to do this.

• 37:15Speaker 05

  He asked if I wanted to see his driver's license.

• 37:20Speaker 04

  He asked whether or not you would like to see his driver's license?

• 37:23Speaker 05

  Yes.

• 37:26Speaker 04

  Did this sort of make you feel more comfortable?

• 37:30Speaker 05

  Yes, I felt foolish after that. I thought I was just being paranoid.

• 37:34Speaker 04

  Why were you hoping that this gift card was real?

• 37:38Speaker 05

  Because Cherish needed some clothes for a trip.

• 37:41Speaker 04

  Did you tell the defendant that Cherish was going to California the next morning?

• 37:46Speaker 05

  Yes, I did.

• 37:48Speaker 04

  Did you have any concerns while you were driving the van with them?

• 37:50Speaker 05

  Not so much because he told me I was safe.

• 37:53Speaker 04

  He told you that you were safe?

• 37:56Speaker 05

  Yes, he looked into my face and told me I was safe.

• 38:00Speaker 04

  Did you want to believe him?

• 38:02Speaker 05

  Yes, very much so.

• 38:04Speaker 04

  Was that gift card something that you really wanted to be able to get stuff for your children?

• 38:08Speaker 05

  Yes.

• 38:09Annie Elise?

  Then came a moment in court that left everybody just scratching their heads. Dawn's defense team didn't ask Rain a single question on cross-examination. Nothing. There was literally no cross. They didn't press her on why she allowed her daughter, her little girl, her baby, to leave this store alone with a man she barely knew, a stranger. They didn't ask her anything. They just let her step down. And this was a choice that completely stunned the courtroom. And then things got even heavier. The prosecution rolled the footage from the Walmart, the last known images of Cherish alive. And in that moment, the room went still. Now, on the screen, you will see arrows marking each person in this footage.

• 38:54Annie Elise?

  Those weren't part of the original video. Prosecutors added them later on. So that the jury and all of us viewers could keep track of who was who. Because what you're watching in this footage, if you're watching the video version of this episode, it isn't just surveillance footage, it's the beginning of the end of Cherish's life. They saw the family arrive at the Dollar General, Dawn approached them, and the family leaving with Dawn in his van. Then they saw them shopping around Walmart, and then Cherish following behind Dawn to his van and being driven away to her death. The officers who apprehended Dawn and discovered Cherish in the water took the stand, but the next witness would be the most harrowing and emotional testimony of the entire trial.

• 39:36Annie Elise?

  Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Valerie Rowe has conducted thousands of autopsies in Jacksonville, Florida, but she said that the autopsy of little Cherish was the worst that she had ever done. The court had to view extremely disturbing images of Cherish's hundreds of injuries, and members of the jury could be seen crying during the medical examiner's testimony. With the exception of multiple ant bites, she determined that all of the injuries Cherish sustained happened prior. She went through images that showed injuries to Cherish's neck and indications that she had been strangled using a thick ligature, such as a piece of clothing. She had cuts and bruises all over her body, and injuries to her eyes, nose, lips, chin,

• 40:21Annie Elise?

  and gums that indicated that she had forcibly been kept quiet. These all were signs that pointed to a level of torture. I'm not going to play the entire testimony here because it is so graphic, but it is online if you want to watch it. I can't even imagine having to be in the courtroom to see what those jurors saw. After this portion of her testimony, Dr. Rowe had to take a break because she became so overcome with emotion. The medical examiner's testimony about the injuries that Cherish sustained to her private area were so graphic that multiple jurors started crying. It was hard.

• 41:05Annie Elise?

  Um, because.

• 41:11Speaker 05

  As me being a mother and a grandmother and having grandkids at that age when that happened. You know, I couldn't imagine if anything like that happened to one of mine. So it was hard.

• 41:25Annie Elise?

  And some even say that they are still haunted by those images to this very day.

• 41:30Speaker 04

  The pictures themselves are graphic enough, but when you have a medical examiner telling you exactly the torture and the pain inflicted on her for who knows how long, nobody should have to go through that. Hinson says he's trying to move ahead, but admits he experiences almost daily flashbacks. You know, a white van, or you see somebody walking down the road that's, you know, with a kid, you know, you're gonna live twice. Could that be the next Donald Smith?

• 41:58Annie Elise?

  In another heartbreaking visual, the little dress that Cherish was wearing was brought into the courtroom, which just reminded everyone how small, sweet, and innocent she really was. In an unexpected decision, the defense decided to not even provide a closing statement. In the words of Dawn's attorney, what could they say? In fact, they only called one witness to take the stand, which was to show Dawn's history of past behavior. Usually, a defense doesn't call a witness who can make their client look worse, but it was a tactic that they were going to utilize later in the sentencing phase of the trial.

• 42:30Speaker 03

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• 42:59Annie Elise?

  The witness they called was the 13-year-old girl who Dawn had attempted to abduct in 1992, Carrie Ann Buck.

• 43:06Speaker 04

  I'd like to direct your attention to September 27th of 1992. How old were you at that time? 13. And on that Sunday afternoon, were you in your native land, leaving your house? Yes. Was that after church that morning? It was. Where were you going? I was going to my friend Tamara's house. Did she live within walking distance of your house?

• 43:33Speaker 06

  A few city blocks, yes.

• 43:36Speaker 04

  As you were walking toward Tamara's house, did you encounter a man in a van?

• 43:42Speaker 06

  Yes.

• 43:44Speaker 04

  Did you get a good look at him?

• 43:45Speaker 06

  I did.

• 43:47Speaker 04

  Did you see his face?

• 43:48Speaker 06

  Uh huh.

• 43:50Speaker 04

  Do you see the man who was driving that van in the courtroom here today?

• 43:53Speaker 06

  Yes.

• 43:54Speaker 04

  Would you please point him out and describe where he was seated and what he was wearing?

• 43:59Speaker 06

  There at that table in the orange.

• 44:04Speaker 04

  Your Honor, may the record reflect what the witnesses identified the defendant as to them. The record will show what they think.

• 44:10Speaker 06

  He was coming toward me and um it stopped. Um, he pulled more toward my side of the road and asked if I knew a girl named Suzie.

• 44:25Speaker 04

  What was your response to that?

• 44:26Speaker 06

  I told him no.

• 44:28Speaker 04

  Did he ask you if you wanted to?

• 44:31Speaker 06

  He did.

• 44:32Speaker 04

  And what was your response to that?

• 44:33Speaker 06

  I told him no.

• 44:36Speaker 04

  What happened after you told him no to the road?

• 44:39Speaker 06

  He he told me to get

• 44:45Speaker 04

  How would you describe his voice?

• 44:48Speaker 06

  Mean.

• 44:50Speaker 06

  Scary.

• 44:53Speaker 04

  When he said this to you, what did you do?

• 44:55Speaker 06

  I ran.

• 44:57Speaker 04

  Where did you run?

• 45:00Speaker 06

  I headed toward toward my friend Tamara's house. At the time, I was still thinking to do.

• 45:08Speaker 04

  Did the defendant chase after you and let you in?

• 45:11Speaker 06

  He did. I um

• 45:16Speaker 06

  I'm sorry.

• 45:19Speaker 06

  I um I tried to run to Tamara's house. At one point, he Had cut me off at a crossroad.

• 45:29Speaker 06

  And I just kept running.

• 45:32Speaker 06

  And it didn't make it to Cameron's house and no one was home and I plopped on the door and nobody answered.

• 45:40Speaker 06

  Behind the school, there was a small playground. And there had been a big, like a tube slide in the playground.

• 45:53Speaker 06

  I got inside. I was holding pushing out with my hands and my feet inside this. I was slipping and I was so afraid I was gonna fall down and he was gonna find me.

• 46:10Speaker 06

  He said, I know you're a little.

• 46:14Speaker 06

  I'm gonna find you.

• 46:19Speaker 04

  Did you try to remain hidden?

• 46:24Speaker 06

  I'm sorry.

• 46:26Speaker 04

  Did you try to remain hidden in the slide?

• 46:28Speaker 06

  I did.

• 46:30Speaker 04

  How long do you think you were inside that slide hiding from this defendant?

• 46:34Speaker 06

  It seemed like forever.

• 46:35Annie Elise?

  It only took 15 minutes for the jury to come back with a guilty verdict and they recommended that Dawn be sentenced to death.

• 46:43Speaker 05

  We, the jury unanimously find that the defendant, Dawn James Smith, should be sentenced to death. Yes. Um, and so say we all, this 20th, 22nd day of February, 2018, and signed and dated by the foreperson.

• 47:00Annie Elise?

  And the trial then moved into the sentencing phase where the defense would call many more witnesses in hopes to show why Dawn should be spared from the death penalty. The defense called several doctors that worked with Dawn over the years. The doctors did their best to implicate themselves as little as possible for their responsibility and Dawn being released to the public. Some felt like when they spoke to Dawn, he seemed very lucid and coherent and felt like he could have been lingering his symptoms to other doctors. Other doctors said he was one of the worst and most dangerous predators they had ever come across and him being in the general public was a. Failure of the systems that were put in place to keep people safe. Some said that his brain injury, along with a lifetime of essay against himself,

• 47:43Annie Elise?

  made him unable to control his impulses. And that the system not only failed the public, but Don as well. A forensic neurologist said that Don's bizarre behavior was due to profound atrophy of his brain and that he could have had a neurodegenerative disease such as dementia, which would explain his hypersexuality and disgusting impulses. The state then brought out a shocking new piece of evidence that nobody was expecting. And that was secretly recorded conversations between Don and another inmate in solitary. And they had these conversations through the air vents of their cells. These conversations are seriously grotesque and prove that Don has no remorse and is in fact almost proud of his attractions to others.

• 48:28Annie Elise?

  I mean, how absolutely disgusting can you get? And in a different jailhouse recording, Don basically admits to his crimes. He lays the whole thing out, from the dress that Cherish wanted to buy, to how he convinced her to get in the car with him. Yet he still says it wasn't premeditated. And not only does this absolute scum of the earth-like reptile disgusting human being admit to what he did, but he even seems proud of it.

• 48:56Speaker 04

  You know, this is bigger. This is bigger than that. This is bigger than all of that. This is that every major component of him that I'm in is just that makes me the most one, the most explosive, the most explosive cadence that ever come out of Jacksonville. Because I mean, they have upgraded. They have upgraded. You know, now I try to scare you. They have upgraded my case to premeditated capital felony murder. I'd have been better off trying to kill the president. I wouldn't have got this kind of press. The worst charge that you could ever get. It's the worst charge you can have in the history of anything. It's the worst. And, and, and coupled with, that makes it emotional.

• 49:46Speaker 04

  It's a power of God. It's a power of God. I mean, I could easily say it turned into a riot downtown, I'm telling you.

• 49:56Speaker 04

  It's that big. I mean, I don't know if you realize it.

• 50:00Speaker 04

  Yeah. This is way bigger than anything.

• 50:06Speaker 04

  It's way bigger than Anthony. Capital.

• 50:10Speaker 04

  First, premeditated. Capital murder. Haley, I think you didn't have all that. She was missing.

• 50:20Speaker 04

  Look at that. They have bodyguards all around her. This is huge. Be aware. It is huge. It's as big as anything that's ever hit. It's as big as Jimmy Wright or anything like that.

• 50:36Speaker 04

  This death is epic.

• 50:38Annie Elise?

  I just can't even imagine the kind of vile person that you have to be to not only kidnap this innocent little girl and do these horrific things to her, but then have your only concern be how big the case is. Which, to me, that just shows that he has absolutely no remorse and, honestly, probably no chance at rehabilitation, if we're being honest. And thank God, the court agreed. In May of 2018, the judge followed the jury's recommendations and sentenced Dawn to death for what he did to cherish Perrywinkle.

• 51:09Speaker 05

  The jury's recommendation, without reservation. Accordingly, this court finds that death is the only appropriate penalty for the defendant, given the highly egregious nature of this crime.

• 51:23Annie Elise?

  When Dawn was finally sentenced for what he did to cherish, her mother, Rain, could hardly contain her emotions.

• 51:30Speaker 05

  It's overwhelming.

• 51:34Speaker 05

  It's like I never thought this day would come. And now it's here. And now I'm just stumped for words.

• 51:41Speaker 05

  I just wish Cherish was here to see. I can say burning.

• 51:44Annie Elise?

  That's what I want to say. I want him to burn in hell. I hope he's watching this right now, actually. Over the years, up until 2022, he has filed several appeals citing that he should have been given a change of venue, that the attorneys failed to properly defend their client, and that the expert witnesses influenced the jury, such as when Dr. Rowe became emotional and when one doctor stated that he was the most dangerous predator she'd ever met. All of his appeals have been denied, with his conviction and his sentence upheld all the way up to the Supreme Court. Now, hold on really quick, past Danny, because here is the wild part in all of this. This story doesn't end with Don sitting on death row. Not even close. Even after the Florida

• 52:26Annie Elise?

  Supreme Court unanimously upheld his conviction and the US Supreme Court basically shrugged and refused to hear his case, Don still wasn't done. He had more moves, more delays, more ways to keep Cherish's family trapped in this nightmare. In 2023, Don's attorneys filed yet another appeal, but this time, they switched their tactics up a bit. They didn't go after the conviction. No, they went after his sentence.

• 52:55Speaker 03

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• 53:24Annie Elise?

  Now, if they won, Don wouldn't walk free, but he would get a brand-new sentencing trial. Another jury, another chance for them to decide if he deserves the death penalty or not. And imagine living through that all over again. And here's where it gets even more infuriating. A judge actually agreed that there was enough evidence to hold a hearing, enough to question whether Don's original lawyers did their jobs well enough, and whether Don should be resentenced. So, once again, Cherish's family was dragged right back into court. Rain and everyone who loved Cherish was just gutted by this. The idea that this man could get a second shot at life, at everything, after everything that he did,

• 54:09Annie Elise?

  it felt like a betrayal. And Rain said, and I quote, "It's unbelievable to imagine that once someone has been convicted of a crime so heinous and DNA proven beyond all reasonable doubt, that there is a possibility of another trial. Donald Smith is ranked as one of the most dangerous offenders, a predator who should never have seen the light of day again. Donald Smith knew Florida to be a death penalty state and still carried out his darkest fantasies, slipping through the cracks too many times, laughing in the eyes of the law. Let the punishment fit the crime." Obviously incredibly powerful. And then came Dawn's newest legal argument.

• 54:52Annie Elise?

  His lawyer claimed that one of the original jurors should have been tossed because she first checked the box "yes" to having a prior opinion about Dawn. Then she crossed it out and she marked "no." So they're saying, "Oh, she wavered." Which, I mean, that's it. That was their big smoking gun in all of this, that she possibly wavered or possibly just marked the wrong box and then corrected herself. But when Dawn's original attorneys took the stand, they shut it down, saying it was exactly what it looked like. A simple mistake, not a reason to reopen the door for a monster.

• 55:25Speaker 04

  It just looked like a simple mistake. And she came across as a decent juror and we went with it. So you never asked? I don't believe we did ask.

• 55:33Annie Elise?

  The fact that Dawn's first lawyers never even cross-examined Rain was also a huge point of contention in this. But the lawyers basically said like, "Hold up, wait a minute, let's run this back." It was actually Dawn's idea not to question her. Which, I don't know a good defense attorney who prioritizes what their client wants necessarily more than what they think is going to work in the legal system. I feel like they would have told him that they should have cross-examined her, but, I mean, what do I know? This was definitely a case, if we were going to be successful, we were going to have to get, hopefully, one or more jurors. To believe in Mr. Smith, me fighting with Ms. Perrywinkle was not going to move that in our direction at all.

• 56:16Annie Elise?

  They also brought up testimony from Dr. Heather Holmes, who was called by the defense in the original sentencing trial, and she had said that Dawn was, quote, "the most dangerous pedo that she had ever met." And when you really think about it, it is pretty unusual for the defense to call a witness to say that their client is the worst of the worst. It doesn't feel like good strategy, but according to the lawyers, this was all part of their strategy.

• 56:40Speaker 05

  This was, as the court remembers, an incredibly brutal crime. There was a lot of evidence. The only mitigation that had a chance was to show that Donald Smith was a horrible human being, and it's the state's fault that he was free. He should have been incarcerated.

• 56:58Annie Elise?

  And then there is that surveillance footage that I pointed out earlier. Dawn's new lawyers said that those arrows that the prosecution added meant that it was, quote, "altered" and that it should have never been allowed into evidence. So with all of these different arguments, the hearings took days, and the judge's final decision took months. But finally, in May of 2024, the judge ruled that even if there were errors in Dawn's original trial, it wasn't anything that really changed the outcome. That meant that his conviction and his sentence of death, it would stand. And as of this recording, Dawn is on death row in Florida, which, thank God. Some people say, though, that Dawn is not the only one who should face consequences

• 57:43Annie Elise?

  for what happened to Cherish. During and after the trial, many people were critical of Rain's choices and also said that it seemed like she enjoyed the attention she was receiving from the media. She went on several different shows to try to clear her name with people accusing her of giving away her daughter for a gift card. After Cherish's death, DCFS got involved with the family again and ended up placing her two younger daughters in foster care due to the conditions in the home. They were in the foster care system for more than a year, and there were several criteria that Rain needed to meet to get her children back. She needed to get a stable home and a steady job. But she failed to do either of those things. Some people believe one year after the death of your child isn't enough for someone to get their life together

• 58:25Annie Elise?

  and that Rain shouldn't have had her children taken during the hardest and lowest period of her life. Other people's opinions changed when they learned that she actually had another daughter that she abandoned in Australia and felt like her bad parenting was a pattern of behavior. Her oldest daughter Lindsay did a few interviews along with Rain's sister who helped raise Lindsay and said that she blames her mother for what happened to Cherish.

• 58:49Speaker 05

  I'm related to that person, you know, that's my mother and it's just makes me feel sick.

• 58:53Speaker 04

  Her own daughter doesn't want a thing to do with her.

• 58:57Speaker 05

  I've never wanted to have anything to do with her because of who she is, that she's a bad mother.

• 59:02Speaker 04

  Her sister refuses to talk to her. Quite simply, is she the world's worst mum?

• 59:06Speaker 05

  It's worst I've ever heard of, worst case of child neglect that I've ever heard of. I wouldn't wish this on anyone.

• 59:13Speaker 04

  Clearly, Rain Perrywinkle doesn't think she's a bad mum.

• 59:17Speaker 05

  And the nausea I feel and the pain, the agony and I don't want any mom to have to go through what I'm going through. She's my sister and I love her, but I'll never forgive her for what she's done.

• 59:30Speaker 04

  Rain's sister Carrie and Rain's oldest daughter Lindsay say Rain is the reason one of her children is dead. It's terrible, but I think about it every day, I can't sleep.

• 59:42Speaker 04

  You know, so it's, it's been a year and it feels like it was just yesterday. As soon as I start thinking about it, it kills me, so. And Lindsay, can I ask you who you blame for what happened to Cherish? My mother, hundred percent. Oh, you know, that pedophile was gonna get any child, was gonna get somebody, he was going to do it to someone. And he saw my mom as an easy mark. He was a known pedophile.

• 1:00:06Speaker 05

  Forty years history, four decades of sex offenses and, and crime against.

• 1:00:12Annie Elise?

  Children.

• 1:00:13Speaker 04

  I thought I taught them everything about stranger danger thing, but he was smarter than I was. Even more distressing, before she was murdered, little Cherish begged her grandmother Lesley to let her come and live with her in Australia.

• 1:00:27Annie Elise?

  I don't really think they were being looked after and it really worried me. I think I, I really think there was, something was going on.

• 1:00:37Speaker 04

  Do you feel that the community and individuals are really blaming you? Yes, a lot of them. In the States, Rain Perrywinkle has become big news. If I could say one more thing to Cherish, what would it be?

• 1:00:53Speaker 04

  Wait for me at the gate.

• 1:00:57Annie Elise?

  She's enjoying being a public figure and um really doesn't understand that what she's done is so wrong. Rain's sister and her husband ended up adopting Destiny and Navea after Rain could not meet the criteria in that timeframe given by the court. This was a very controversial decision because Aaron and his family wanted to take full custody of the girls, but he lost his parental rights as well due to his home conditions. So they now live in Australia and are said to be thriving with their new parents. Regardless, Cherish touched so many people's lives after her death, but she shouldn't have had to die to be the reason that Dawn was finally taken off the streets for good.

• 1:01:34Speaker 04

  But um, no, it's not justice. You know, um, the legal system works the way it works, but uh, he's been living for five years after the death of my daughter and he's gonna be living until the, the death penalty is either done or whatever the case may be, and that's not justice. Uh, she didn't get that option to live those many years. She was, um, wow, it's hard to explain. You'd never see her unhappy. She was never miserable. She never had any signs of anything. She was the smile, just the biggest smile on her face every time you seen her. And I know, if you've talked to people in Jacksonville, they'll tell you the same thing. To have an eight-year-old, you take them out like this, it's just, it's just unreal. Um, I just hope they remember her smile on her face and the fact that.

• 1:02:17Speaker 04

  She had a good life ahead of her and would have probably been very successful at something. But we'll never know now.

• 1:02:22Annie Elise?

  There were so many systematic failures of the systems meant to keep children like Cherish safe, and Dawn should have been locked away for good a long time ago. So I hope that if this story and this case teaches anybody anything, it's to always trust your instincts. And don't worry about coming off as rude to someone who makes you feel uncomfortable. I know Rain didn't want to seem ungrateful for the help that Dawn was offering, but someone who wants to help you should never ask you to go to a second location or pressure you to get in their car. It's a common tactic for predators to try to make their prey feel guilty or paranoid about being uncomfortable and then going with them against their better judgment. Just please never accept a ride from a stranger, especially with your children.

• 1:03:07Annie Elise?

  And don't be afraid to say no if something feels wrong. Trust your gut. Hopefully, learning about what happened to Cherish will cause more people to notice more red flags and keep themselves and their children safe from people like Donald Smith. I'm curious to know what you think. Do you think that Dawn does deserve death? I personally do. But do you think that there should be more accountability with the other adults in Cherish's life? What really is going on here? Has everybody truly been held accountable for their role, whether minor or major, that it played in what happened ultimately to Cherish? Let me know in the comment section or on the Apple review section or on the Spotify Q and A section. Thank you so much for joining me on another reopened

• 1:03:52Annie Elise?

  episode of 10 to Life. As a reminder, we have all new episodes every single Tuesday. The uncensored versions are wherever you get your podcasts and the video versions are on YouTube under my channel, Annie Elise. Make sure you're following the podcast, that you are subscribed to the YouTube channel so that you do not miss an episode. Thank you again for hearing Cherish's story today, and until the next one, stay safe. Bye.

• 1:04:20Speaker 04

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