The man accused of the 2013 kidnapping, rape, and murder of 8-year-old Cherish Perrywinkle is set to see trial.
Jury selection starts Monday morning for the case against Donald Smith. 300 prospective jurors have been summoned- which is more than an average murder case- amid defense concerns about the ability to sit an impartial panel, given the amount of attention this case has received.
Smith is accused of befriending Cherish’s mother at a store and offering to take the family to a Northside Walmart to buy clothes for the kids. While there, he allegedly said he was going to get food at the front of the store, and Cherish went with him. Instead of stopping at the front of the store, police say Smith left with Cherish- her body was later found in a marshy area near a church.
The case has taken some time to get to trial for varying reasons, including the change in Florida's death penalty sentencing law. Prosecutors have said they intend to seek the death penalty if Smith is convicted, so there was some legal maneuvering when the US Supreme Court- and later the Florida Supreme Court- ordered changes to the state's sentencing law, which have since been addressed.
The case resonated in the area not only because of the tragic circumstances, but the changes that came as a result.
Several people within the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office were reprimanded because of the initial response. The Communications Center initially questioned whether this was a legitimate abduction for several reasons, including how they characterized Cherish's mother's behavior. Even after it was classified as a child abduction, procedures weren't followed to properly notify the media. There were also issues raised on whether a more senior investigator should have responded to the scene after communicating over the phone with a supervisor on the scene, and whether that supervisor was overwhelmed with the work because of the more limited manpower and oversight.
Despite the questions around the initial response, JSO quickly identified and apprehended Smith through investigative work, including searching through the sex offender registry. A community tip helped lead them to the location of Cherish’s body as well.
Even prior to this case, Smith had a criminal history that included trying to lure children, and ultimately led to his registering as a sex offender. Most recently, Smith posed as a Florida Department of Children and Families worker in an effort to lure a young girl, and posed as a public employee in another case as well. He was released from jail less than a month before Cherish's abduction. Even beyond that, Smith has a conviction from the 90s for attempted kidnapping of a child, and from the 70s for lewd and lascivious behavior on a child.
Smith's history put up red flags for Florida lawmakers. Following this tragedy, the Northeast Florida delegation sought- and achieved- changes in sex offender laws, with their stated goal to make the state have the "toughest laws" in the country. Among the changes, Florida expanded the type of people eligible to be evaluated for civil commitment and community control.
Documentation publicly available ahead of trial shows some of the state's evidence includes Smith's DNA on Cherish, vegetation from where her body was found also present with Smith, surveillance footage, witness statements, and more. Case records further show that, during an early interview, Smith admitted to having Cherish in his van, but claimed he let her out.
WOKV and our partner Action News Jax will be following the major take-aways from jury selection and the trial. Check back frequently for updates, and get instant information on Twitter.
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