(Donald James Smith. Picture credits: Top left: clickorlando, firstcoastnews, Bottom left: staugustine & nzherald)

Before I begin I just want to mention something to my regular readers (and if you are new here, hello! and thank you for stopping by), you may have noticed that I now have a warning link as soon as you click on a post, this is no cause for alarm or anything dodgy. Because of the nature of what I write, it's only sensible to have that warning, plus some of the terrible details that I often share in these posts can be graphic and although I always mention beforehand what I will be talking about, it's still wise to have a little notice. 

So this case was difficult and it's one that I will never forget as I'm sure you will probably feel the same if you know about it or even after you've read this post. It's a case that will stir up a number of emotions, from utter devastation to sheer anger and utter disbelief. 

I will be sharing my thoughts in this too and I hope you will feel comfortable enough to share yours. You can either comment below or come and have a coffee and a natter with me on my Socials. By the way, I don't want that to come across as 'light hearted' on such a serious post, I just like my readers to know where to find me because a lot of people don't feel comfortable to leave a public comment if you know what I mean. 

There might be moments in this post where I share some personal pieces about my own life in relation to some of the details shared. So with all that being said and now that you are somewhat prepared, let's delve into this horrifying case. 

[This post will contain details about child abduction, sexual abuse and murder so please be aware. I will try my best to be as sensitive in sharing the facts] 

I don't have any children....yet, but I do feel very over-protective of them, not only because of the cases involving children, that I have written over the years but because of my own experiences as a child and just that natural part of my personality that wants to be able to take care of a child and nurture that child. It sounds crazy but I treat my cats like they are my kids, so I'm very much a 'Mother Goose' type of person. I think a lot of us are like that and that's heartwarming, but unfortunately there are people in this world who don't see children as the precious, innocent little balls of fun that they are, they have other ideas....sick ideas!

Cherish was born into some difficult circumstances on the Christmas Eve of 2004, Rayne had previously worked as a stripper and her pregnancy with Cherish was the result of a one night of passion with a sailor. Despite the situation and neither parent interested in a romantic relationship with each other, Rayne decided she wanted to be a mother. So beautiful little Cherish was born and what a pretty name too (I keep thinking of the Madonna and Kool & The Gang songs, I wonder if that had been a factor in naming the little princess or if Rayne was just drawn to calling her that because of how she felt about her) but there was drama as her biological father wanted custody so there was a bit of back and forth and a number of court appointments. It was finally decided that they would share custody but that Cherish would spend the majority of the time with her mother and see her father for holidays, this was an arrangement that both parties were happy with.

In June of 2013, Cherish was preparing to spend the summer with her father and she was very excited. Rayne helped her pack up a few things but realised that she was missing a few essentials. There was only one thing for it, they had to go shopping and Rayne was hoping that she would be able to make some of the last $100 that she had, stretch to be able to cover everything and still be able to pay for some of Cherish's transportation the next day, which was when she was due to visit her father. 

Rayne didn't have a car and she didn't want to spend money on cabs or buses (trying to save as much money as possible) so together with the three girls, she took a stroller and they all walked to the Dollar General which is a famous discount store in the USA. When they arrived at the store it became apparent that the little bit of money that Rayne did have, was not going to cover the costs of what they needed. There was a little dress that Rayne had her heart set on but they had to put it back because it would have cut really deeply into the budget. Rayne was sad that she could't get the dress for Cherish and did talk to the sales assistant, maybe as an attempt to get a discount or something? I wish they'd just let her have the dress especially seeing as she was clearly a young mother on her own with three children. I'm naughty like that, I used to work in retail and if it was me there that day, I would have 'turned a blind eye' and put the dress and some other bits in the bag without ringing it through or at least done a discount, pretend the dress was damaged or something. But anyway, Rayne put the dress back.

Whilst all of this was going on and Rayne was trying to figure out how she was going to have Cherish's things all sorted out for the next day, an older looking man with white hair was loitering about in the background. He'd been listening to Rayne, the kids and the conversation with the sales assistant about not being able to afford the dress. The man appeared to look like he was in his 70s but he was actually in his late 50s. A bit of an odd looking character with what looked like a heavy metal t-shirt, like he was an old man trying to dress younger. 

One of the scary things about this guy was that he looked (I'm saying this as an adult woman) like some fragile old man and I know we can't judge on appearances in these types of situations but his mannerisms at that point were quite jovial. He looked like someone's Granddad, He approached Rayne and explained that he had overheard the conversation about money being tight and not being able to afford the dress. Donald James Smith, as he was called, didn't offer to pay for Rayne's shopping right there at the Dollar General but he did offer to give her a $100 gift card for Walmart (another famous store in the USA that sells everything from clothing to milk). It was around 7pm at this point which is a bit late to be shopping but obviously Rayne was just trying to get everything organised for Cherish's trip. 

Donald Smith told Rayne that his wife had the gift card so she would be coming soon. Rayne accepted the 'kind' offer, thinking that this was just some nice, old married man just trying to help out a young mother on her own. With time getting on and no sign of Donald's 'wife', he offered to take Rayne and the girls over to Walmart in his van to meet his wife there. 

This should've been the point where Rayne told him, thank you for your offer of kindness but I have to politely decline and she and the girls should have left the store on their own. For some reason, Rayne took him up on the offer even though she later admitted that she felt uncomfortable around him. He seemed to intimidate her and she seemed to care what he thought. He told her not to worry and that she and the kids would be safe, so they all got in the van. 

He did as he said, at this particular moment because he did take them to Walmart and Rayne felt comfortable enough to leave the stroller and the items that she did buy at the Dollar General, in his van. All of them went into Walmart to browse whilst they waited for Donald's 'wife' to show up. I sat through hours of courtroom testimony, read piles of court documents and viewed the CCTV footage and I was almost tearing my hair out when I saw what had been going on in the Walmart store. Time continued to drone on and on and Donald was hovering about around the girls, supposedly waiting for his 'wife' to show up and I'm going to be honest here, Rayne was putting things into the shopping cart and wasn't paying attention to what the girls were doing. The kids had the run of the store basically and were here, there and everywhere whilst creepy Donald was hanging around like a bad smell. Not once did Rayne look up to see where her children were and it made me angry to watch it. 

I was on the edge of my seat, anxious, watching this creep hanging around Cherish whilst Rayne was at another section of the store not looking after her children. The other two girls were at another section so Rayne wasn't near any of them. Not only were the girls being left to their own devices BUT Rayne allowed Donald to take Cherish to the changing rooms twice!! Allowing a strange man to take your 8 year old child to the changing rooms? and twice! I couldn't believe it. The situation got even more ridiculous and disturbing when Donald picked out a pair of shoes for Cherish. A pair of high heeled woman's shoes!! Cherish took them to show Rayne and was told by her mother to put them back.

For some reason, instead of shouting ''Mum, there's this creepy bloke here that keeps staring at me and trying to get close to me.'' I made a run for it and that was worse! he chased me. This scary man chased me all over the shopping mall, right there in public view. The whole experience was terrifying and I didn't know what I was doing, I was just on auto-pilot, I didn't want him to catch me. 

I ran outside of the shopping mall and there was a phone box with a crowd of people standing near to it. For some reason, I ran into the phone box and pretended to call the police. Nothing I did was rational, I wasn't thinking straight, I was just a kid. He stopped and continued to stare but with a disappointed look on his face, he shook his head and got into his car. My heart was thumping out of my chest. I was so scared thinking he was going to come back. 

I ran back into the shopping mall and finally found my mum and told her, she didn't take it seriously and that was basically the end of the matter. On the drive back home, we drove past the entrance to the shopping mall and I could have sworn that I had seen him again, I tried to tell my mum but she dismissed the whole thing. It is a memory that has stayed with me all of this time and during the research of this case, I have to admit that it did pop up when I was thinking about Cherish and other victims of the sick and depraved, Donald James Smith. I was one of the lucky ones, that's why it's so important not to let your children out of your sight because these monsters pop up everywhere, even in a crowded shopping mall or grocery store. 

Back to the case, it was approaching 10pm and there was still no sign of Donald's 'wife', the kids were getting hungry. Donald James Smith had only made one purchase the whole time that he was with Rayne and the girls.....some rope! There was a McDonald's situated inside the store and Donald mentioned that he had a gift card to spend, he offered to buy Rayne and the girls some food. The kids were excited as you'd expect, that was the other thing, Rayne didn't take into consideration that hours had gone by and the girls would be hungry, you would have thought that she'd be able to see this guy was full of BS by now and just take the girls back home but no. 

The last word that little 8 year old Cherish said to her mother was ''cheeseburgers''. Cherish was allowed to walk off with this strange man yet again because, Rayne said that because he'd taken Cherish to the changing rooms twice before and brought her back, she thought this was ok. 

(Cherish & Donald James Smith. Walmart CCTV camera footage. Picture credit: nzherald)

Cherish and Donald walked towards the McDonald's which was now closed and they were captured on the CCTV camera, standing for a few seconds before walking out of the front entrance. Those images are haunting, you're left with feelings of anger and heartbreak because you know what is coming next for Cherish and it should have never gotten to that in the first place. 

God knows what Donald told Cherish in order to get the young, hungry and innocent little girl to follow him into that van but witnesses overheard him say ''We are going to get cheeseburgers'' (or hamburgers, words to that effect). So he conned Cherish into thinking that they were going to get food. Children often watch their parents to see how to respond to people and situations. The fact that Rayne just let Donald hang around, they got in the van with him before, she'd left the stroller and Dollar General items in his van so Cherish knew that they were there and the fact that Rayne let Donald take her to to the changing rooms twice, it must be safe to go with him cause Mommy hasn't told him to leave. 

The footage that was captured of the parking lot as the tall, older Donald James Smith walked towards his van with the tiny little doll-like figure of Cherish following behind, words can't describe it. As the van pulls away and leaves the parking lot you can only feel powerless as you watch this little girl go to a horrific end at the hands of this evil predator. It's not easy to watch, you just feel like crying. 

Back in the store, it took Rayne 20 minutes to discover that Cherish had not returned and realised that it was taking them some time to come back with the food from McDonald's. So finally she becomes concerned about her daughter's whereabouts and starts looking for Cherish, realising the McDonald's is closed, the panic set in. Rayne tried to get some help from the staff and borrowed a mobile phone to call the police and it's quite harrowing as you would expect. Rayne is in a panic and says things about rape and being raped, she said that she'd been raped in the past herself. The police didn't know what to make of it all and some of them thought it was a practical joke. You and I know it wasn't a laughing matter and it was a really horrible situation but the way Rayne was conducting herself and was saying things like ''I'm a psychic'' and telling the cops that they'll be bringing her daughter home in a coffin. It was all really disturbing and despite her faults and clear neglect (let's be honest here) of the girls, she didn't deserve what happened, none of them did, especially Cherish. 

The police finally took the matter seriously and checked out the CCTV footage. It didn't take them long to know who they were looking for. Donald James Smith, a convicted and highly dangerous paedophile in his late 50s who had a history of inappropriate behaviour towards young girls from as far back as 1977. The first time he was diagnosed as being a Mentally Disordered Sex Offender was 1977 but that was after an incident of flashing that he was caught, he could have been at his disgusting behaviour years before and just managed to avoid detection. 

He wasn't married, he was in his late 50s, unemployed (did the odd painting and decorating job when he wasn't in prison), just out of prison and lived with his mother. He did have one son that he was estranged from because he'd spent the majority of the boy's childhood behind bars (his son was a drug addict who later credited finding Jesus with his recovery and he has since re-connected with his father, he visits this beast once a week). There were previous incidences of exposing himself to young girls, impersonating a person of authority in order to speak to a child on the phone where he proceeded to say inappropriate, sexual things to to her. He tried to persuade the girl's relatives to bring the child to a McDonald's so that he could examine her, Luckily this horrible plan did not work and he was caught. There was another occasion where he tried to force a terrified, young girl into his van and chased her down the street. The poor girl had to hide inside a children's slide by wedging her legs at either side in order to try and keep herself safe from him. He was put away for some time for this horrible incident too. Despite the fact that this THING was highly dangerous to children and a ticking timebomb, he kept falling through the cracks. 

I think a lot of that had to do with his mommy, she made me feel sick too. He came from quite a comfortable lifestyle, never wanted for anything. Money was no object and his mother believed the sun shone out of his backside. She was a person who was quite the snob and was all about appearances. She knew he was a disgusting pervert but she swept it all under the carpet. He was always taking drugs and she'd be in denial about that too and pay off any debts that he had. 

Another thing that blew my mind was that his neighbourhood knew that he was a creepy pervert but nobody really bothered about it. It's funny what some people are prepared to put up with or turn a blind eye to, if they think that someone has some money. 

At the time of Cherish being driven away in his filthy white van, Donald James Smith had only just been out of prison for 3 weeks. As the hours ticked on and it becoming abundantly clear that Cherish wasn't coming back and this wasn't just a silly plan that was hatched up by Rayne as a custody thing with Cherish's father (the cops considered that to be a possible factor early on). Word was out that Cherish was missing and the search was on. The investigators did do a remarkable job as they did find her the next morning but the heartbreaking truth was soon realised, Cherish was found deceased behind a church, she'd been placed in a creek. Donald James Smith had dumped her little body there hoping that all of the evidence would be washed away and that she would never be found. 

The investigators who found Cherish tried to treat her with as much respect as they could and refused to leave the site where she had been placed until forensics had gotten there because they feared the possibility of animals being able to get to her remains which by now had ants crawling on certain areas. It was truly devastating. 

The nightmare of Cherish being taken away in that van with that absolute monster was a horrible and frightening thought to begin. But when more horror was revealed at the trial, it was just too much. People were sickened, angry and plenty of tears were shed. I'm going to try and be as sensitive as I can here but basically, that THING worked very fast as soon as he led that little girl into that van under the promise of getting some food for her and her family. He took Cherish somewhere, parked up and put her at the back of the van where he subjected her to the most brutal sexual assault imaginable. There was bruises on his penis and her throat was badly bruised. Her gums had bled from where he forced her to fellate him, he completely destroyed her private areas at the front and back. He had left a bruise on her nipple where he had sucked on her chest. He had choked and strangled her so brutally that she had blood in her eyes. Then after he had finished this sick rape and torture, he dumped her body in the creek. 

As a woman, a lot of us have experienced sexual relationships and at times there are situations where things can be a bit painful for whatever reason and that is when you are a fully grown adult. Cherish was only 8 years old, a baby, her body was still growing and he basically tore her apart, which makes me sick to say but that is what that monster did. 

So the cops had him and he had the nerve to plead not guilty. He had his trial in early 2018 and I watched this piece of filth sitting there like he was sat at some meeting. Not a tear or sign of remorse from him. There were moments where he was smirking and I just wanted to jump through my laptop and grab him, put these nails to good use! I have to take my hat off to everyone in that courtroom because I would not have been able to just sit there and breathe the same air as that thing. I'd happily do time in prison serving him some 'Justice' and I don't think anyone would blame me.

The whole trial seemed like a bit of entertainment for him, a chance to relive his disgusting crimes and take joy in all of the lives he's managed to ruin. He makes me utterly sick! He blamed everyone but himself, he blamed Rayne for trusting him and he blamed Cherish for following him into the van. All he could think about was himself and he and his lawyers tried to paint him as some poor guy who was a victim of his own paedophilia and that it really wasn't his fault, he was helpless apparently. It was a load of crap and seemed to drone on and on because they were trying to save him from the death penalty. 

I was really angry the majority of the time watching this trial but even more so when Cherish's autopsy details were discussed. I was furious that he was sat there the whole time as the full extent of Cherish's injuries were revealed, including the utter devastation to her private areas. Pictures were shown and things were described in detail and that monster (who gets off on hurting children) was sat there the whole time, reliving what he had done. 

Rayne was obviously in the courtroom and she was utterly beside herself in grief and you could really see how losing Cherish in such a horrible and sickening manner, had affected her and the massive amount of guilt she felt. Although I wasn't happy with how she didn't look after the girls properly and had helped put them in a vulnerable position, I knew that it wasn't intentional. In my opinion, Rayne was like a teenager underneath it all who was way in over her head with 3 kids, she couldn't cope but she did love those girls. 

Rayne had been through a lot in the past and was clearly a vulnerable woman who'd made mistakes. I just feel so bad for her in many ways, especially with what happened to her beautiful little girl but there is a part of me that is annoyed that basic common sense did not come into play as soon as this creep approached her at the Dollar General, she admitted later on that she felt uncomfortable with him but she was more concerned about him thinking she was being too overprotective. 

During the trial a tape was presented to the courtroom and it was recorded some time after Cherish's death, Donald was having a conversation in prison with a fellow prisoner. He said to this person that he liked 12 year old girls and that was his usual target. he also said that Cherish had a lot of butt on her for a white girl. It just made you feel even more sick, hearing him say those things without a care in the world. He has never shown remorse. 

There was a huge outpouring of grief and anger at what had happened to Cherish, Rayne did receive a lot of support and understanding from a lot of the public, there were some who did feel that her actions that day had helped put Cherish in that situation. It's very difficult because here you have a mother who's completely broken over the decisions she made that day, she's lost her child in the most horrific way imaginable and nothing will ever change that, but a lesson has to be learned here. Don't have your kids around strangers, if some random dude walks up to you and your children at the store offering to give you money, just walk away. 

There are good people in this world, kind people but unfortunately there are a lot of evil people out there too, predators just waiting to pounce when they see any opportunity. Paedophiles can sniff out inexperienced or neglectful parents a mile away, it makes their plans for abduction a lot easier. Some of them get into relationships with vulnerable women just to get access to their children, it's terrifying but you have to be careful who you let into your children's lives. I lived next door to a paedophile and never knew. I would go next door to play at my friend's house and their mother's boyfriend would babysit them. As a child, I didn't like him, he gave me the creeps so I tried to avoid him. Their mother had a baby with this guy and one day all hell broke loose because it had been discovered that he had been abusing my friends and their little baby sister. I don't know exactly what happened afterwards, whether the case went to court or whatever but I do know that some years later, this same guy (don't want to give away too many details here) had been working as a taxi driver and had assaulted a woman. The woman's husband and a few members of the local community basically drove him out of town and nobody ever saw him again. Whatever the case with that situation, it's none of my business but I do hope that karma came to that guy. 

I just want to point out too that some women can also be a potential danger to children so you really have to have eyes on the back of your head trying to keep kids safe. I admire any parent who tried their best for their kids because being a parent is not an easy role. 

I know this post was very hard to get through and I thank you for getting through it with me. Cherish was a beautiful little light in this world and she deserved to go on to have a chance at life. She should have been on her way to see her father for the summer holidays, she should be with us now but sadly she isn't and it's all down to the evil actions of one sick pervert. Rayne made mistakes but she was too naive too see the dangers, the usual common sense and for that she is continuing to pay the price which must be a living nightmare for her. 

RIP beautiful Cherish, you will always be remembered for your beautiful eyes, your smile that could light up a room, your kind and innocent heart that believed that all people were good and that all adults were to be trusted. You're an angel that gained your wings far too early but we'll never forget you and we hope that others will take lessons from your story. 

"In memory we see her the same, as long as we live we'll Cherish her name"

I think about Rayne and her girls and I know they have to live with this every day, I pray and wish the best for them. 

Further Reading & Sources:

- Donald Smith Trial | YouTube

- Court Documents | Supreme Court of Florida

- Donald Smith: Article | Jacksonville.com

- Cherish Perrywinkle: Article | Yahoo News

- Murder of Cherish Perrywinkle

- Cherish Perrywinkle: Article | The Sun

- Cherish Perrywinkle: Article | Daily Mail

- Cherish Perrywinkle | Tribute Instagram

- Rayne Perrywinkle: News Report | WOKV News

- Cherish Perrywinkle: Article | CBS News

- Donald Smith Trial | 911 Calls & CCTV Footage

- Cherish Perrywinkle: News Report | News4Jax

- Cherish Perrywinkle Memorial

- Cherish Perrywinkle | Dignity Memorial

I hope you will join me in my next post and until next time, I hope you'll join me on my socials

Take care x