Delaware County man denied Amber Alert for missing daughter/Drake said his daughter, Cherri Drake, was taken from his home Monday without his knowledge or permission. He said his estranged wife, Terri Gordineer, moved out in June and likely took the girl.

By CARY ASPINWALL World Staff Writer & ZIVA BRANSTETTER World Enterprise Editor
Published: 9/15/2012  1:55 AM
Last Modified: 9/15/2012  4:59 AM
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Phillip Drake thinks Delaware County sheriff's deputies aren't doing enough to make sure that his 4-year-old daughter is returned home safely.

Drake said his daughter, Cherri Drake, was taken from his home Monday without his knowledge or permission. He said his estranged wife, Terri Gordineer, moved out in June and likely took the girl.

Sheriff Rick Littlefield says Gordineer has a legal right to the child, and deputies say they believe that Cherri is safe with her mother. They have declined to issue an Amber Alert for the child, saying her case does not meet the criteria.

Records show that Gordineer is a convicted felon with multiple felony charges, including assault and battery and possession of a firearm after a felony conviction, pending in Delaware County. She is accused of beating her 17-year-old stepson in the face with a wrench in an earlier failed attempt to take the girl, court records state.

Gordineer was supposed to appear in court Monday for a hearing on a protective order filed against her by Phillip Drake. She did not appear for the hearing, and Cherri disappeared from Drake's home near Eucha later that day.

A voluntary family agreement signed in August by Department of Human Services investigators said Cherri was to remain in the home with her father "until arrangements can be made for other safe housing/custody." Gordineer was to complete a domestic violence course and a psychological evaluation, the DHS agreement states.

Despite the voluntary agreement, "there's not a court order saying she can't have custody of the child," Littlefield said.

Drake said Cherri was resting in the house while he was outside fixing his SUV's tires, which someone had slashed earlier in the day.

While outside, Drake noticed that the door to his elderly neighbors' mobile home had been kicked in, so he walked over to see what had happened, he said.

When he walked back to his house, Drake said, he found the front door wide open and his daughter gone. He said he immediately called the Sheriff's Office and reported his daughter missing, saying her mother probably had taken her.

Neighbors said they saw Gordineer's car parked down the road earlier in the day, Drake said.

Littlefield said his office reported Cherri as missing in the National Crime Information Center database, but he said the case doesn't meet the criteria for issuing an Amber Alert.

"We can request it (an Amber Alert) if it meets the criteria. This case did not meet the criteria," he said. "I think there has to be a kidnapping charge for an Amber Alert."

Amber Alerts are issued when juveniles are abducted and authorities believe that they are at risk for bodily harm or death. The Department of Justice guidelines for the voluntary program do not require that kidnapping charges be filed first, but officials must have "reasonable belief" that an abduction has occurred.

Littlefield said "it's obvious" that the girl is with her mother, who "has every right to the child."

The couple have not filed for divorce, and there is no order regarding child custody. The voluntary DHS agreement stating that Drake would have custody of the children until arrangements are made for "other safe housing" is dated Aug. 2.

Records show that at least two warrants for Gordineer's arrest have been issued in Delaware and Okmulgee counties. She was arrested in August on complaints of aggravated assault and battery in the presence of a child and child endangerment, records show.

Since June, Delaware County prosecutors have charged her in five criminal felony cases: larceny, possession of methamphetamine, bogus checks, concealing stolen property, and the assault and battery case, records show.

The most recent charges, alleging that Gordineer stole a .22-caliber rifle from a Jay residence and sold it at a flea market, were filed Sept. 7.

"We hope to find the child when we find" her, Littlefield said. "Hopefully we can get this thing resolved. It's caused a lot of alarm."

There's "no reason or indication" to think Gordineer might harm the child, he said. Excuse me????

Drake said he assumes that Gordineer has Cherri but that no one knows for sure and he's concerned about his daughter's safety. He said he believes that more could be done to make sure his daughter returns home safely and that Cherri's case does merit an Amber Alert.

His estranged wife had made numerous threats to take the child, and he said he is concerned about the allegations that she has recently committed crimes. Gordineer has felony convictions for forgery and attempting to obtain controlled drugs by fraud.

Amber Alert criteria

This is the official checklist used to determine whether an Amber Alert is merited:

1. Is the kidnapping one in which the child victim is 17 or younger?

If yes, answer question 5.

If no, answer question 2.

2. Is the kidnapping one in which the child victim has a proven mental or physical disability?

If yes, answer question 5.

If no, answer question 3.

3. Was the child kidnapping witnessed by anyone?

If yes, answer question 5.

If no, answer question 4.

4. Did the child kidnapping involve acts of violence?

If yes, activate the amber plan

If no, answer question 5.

5. Do you believe the child to be in danger of serious bodily harm or death?

If yes, activate the amber plan.

If no, do not activate the amber plan.

6. The alert must contain a description of the child and details of the abduction. The police should carefully consider not activating the plan if there is no information to send out.

Drake said his daughter, Cherri Drake, was taken from his home Monday without his knowledge or permission. He said his estranged wife, Terri Gordineer, moved out in June and likely took the girl.


Read more from this Tulsa World article at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

I don't know what MORE LE needs here. And they say she isn't a danger to her daughter?