Tests To Show If Baby Is Missing Woman's

DNA Tests On Newborn Girl Done To See If She Belongs To Missing Pregnant Woman

(CBS/AP)  DNA tests to determine whether a newborn baby found on a porch is the daughter of a missing pregnant woman likely won't be done until next week, authorities said Wednesday.

"We're obviously speeding things up, but it's not something that can be rushed," said Robert Budgake, director of the Canton-Stark County Crime Lab.

Jessie Davis, 26, due to deliver a girl July 3, hasn't been heard from since a phone call with her mother on June 13. The sheriff in the neighboring county where the baby was found, Thomas Maurer, said he does not believe there is a connection between the baby and Davis.

A couple discovered the newborn, her umbilical cord tied off with a rubber band, Monday night on the porch of their rural home near Wooster, about 45 miles from Davis' home near North Canton. The baby, who was less than 24 hours old, was in a wicker basket and dressed in a sleeper.

"We're using every caution we can" to identify the baby or eliminate the possibility that she is related to Davis, Maurer said.

Davis' family says her baby is biracial, reports the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

But the paper also says Sue Redman described the girl found on her porch as white. She and her husband believe it more likely the infant came from someone familiar with the wife's work as a school nurse and board member at a local free clinic.

They found the child when they returned from dinner Monday evening to their home south of Wooster.

"We both were in shock. It was a newborn, well, an infant, laying just as peacefully as can be in a basket," Don Redman told CBS affiliate WOIO.

The discovery of the baby may be a coincidence.

"It's very hard actually to tell if the baby is actually 24 hours or 48 hours or 72 hours, so I'm not quite sure I believe the exact number on that. If the baby is only 1 day old, I'm doubting it's hers," criminal profiler Pat Brown said on CBS News' The Early Show.

DNA was collected from the infant using a mouth swab, but Budgake declined to describe the samples from Davis that will be compared to the baby's genetic material. Results are expected Monday or Tuesday, he said.

[wiccantexan]

So who said that a biracial baby can't look more like one of the races than the other? Why would the baby looking "white" rule out her having a black father? Exactly what was their criteria?

[jennmarie620]

It is a common misconception that babies born to black families are as dark complected as their parents upon birth. Many babies are born "white" or very light skinned, and their melanin levels out a few days after birth. If this child is bi-racial, that could be the case here - especially if this baby was only a day old when found. Only a DNA test can determine if this child is this woman's daughter or not.

I am ashamed with our news system anymore. There is information put out for everyone to see and hear and make conclusions to before any facts are present. Before, stories waited to be printed until facts came in. Perhaps that is why our judicial system is in such disarray, too? Because people think they "know" what the truth is when all they know is media speculation.

[wiccantexan]

jennmarie620, we're on the same page. There's no reason their child could not be light-skinned enough to pass for "white." Thanks for the melanin info; I didn't know that. Interesting.

[pwrslm]

Biracial babies can actually be all white, or all black too. Its not an absolute certain thing.

Just like Indian children born to white men look more like whites than indians, and then, other times, visa versa....

Its not a racist thing, is the draw of the genetic code, and every time it changes. No 2 are alike.

[wiccantexan]

Exactly. It seems the police (and/or the woman who found her on the doorstep) are using appearance as criteria. I wonder how long the DNA test will take to come back?

Again, I don't see why the father would be violent towards the mother when there's no history of it with her, and he has already acknowledged the first child. Yeah, he's not exactly squeaky-clean when it comes to domestic issues. But there's no evidence that this particular relationship had any issues.

[jennmarie620]

It's a shame so many people are looking towards the father in this. In my honest opinion, if he had been the one to harm the mother - why leave his son behind? If this was a case of "he didn't want the responsibility," then he would have killed his son, too.

[whatithink-2009]

jennmarie620,

Well said. This is my problem with the media today. They give all different types of information and then people think they know everything when in actuality, they know nothing. Everything is a big circus.


jennmarie620, WiccanTexan , pwrslm
Also, I agree with you about the biracial baby part. The guy from Prison Break (Wentworth Miller), for example, is biracial but I'm not sure that anyone would know it if they saw him as a baby. They'd probably think that he was all white.

[c1rodz]

I don't think that is a good assumption to say it isn't a black baby especially with this being a biracial child. Her other child is also very light skinned as well. You can't assume that her child is going to be "black". Gosh that is so doggone naive. The skin pigmentation will not take for a while and only DNA will be the only positive indication. Let's just pray for her and her baby!

[wendyhoo-2009]

There have been all white couples who have had a very dark black child and this is because we have to go back many years who "masters" had *** with slaves etc... The baby came out looking white so that child was kept and brought up in the family. That child had no clue he/she was half black. Then years down the line the woman pops out with a child that looks black and *** aint that man poed!!! I know I would of been... however it has been proven time and time again that this has happened. As well as two very black people have a white baby. The same scenerio as above where the child came out too dark and was not accepted yet that child has white blood in her/him so as years of generation go on it is possible that he/she has a white child.

The DNA test without a doubt is already back why they haven't released any information yet is beyond me. But it would have taken them less then half a day to get the results. So i am sure they are either keeping that info silent because that is maybe because the mother is an underage girl or they are keeping it silent because they have evidence of somethign that they don't want to give away too much information on before being able to follow up on that evidence.

[wiccantexan]

So i am sure they are either keeping that info silent because that is maybe because the mother is an underage girl....
Posted by wendyhoo at 12:31 PM : Jun 20, 2007

If the child isn't Jessie's, than you may be right. Something to consider. I can say for certain that I hope it IS Jessie's, because at least we would know the baby is OK.

[whatithink-2009]

Wendyhoo,

Scientists have said that a large portion of white Americans have black ancestry without knowing it. This goes back to the passing off of a biracial child as being white. It was quite common back when.

[whatithink-2009]

mormonman1,

So you are saying that if she were in a relationship with a white guy, he wouldn't have cheated on her? Funny.

After all, I thought you Mormons did these type of things at one time religiously...even some still do it today??? I'm confused.

[seaslew]

ITS doenst matter what race a person is, they can still be a Jack@$$ . what a stupid statement below

[whatithink-2009]

Again, the girl comment. How old does someone have to be before they stop being a girl.

[jennmarie620]

To any morally decent, young women:
Posted by mormonman1 at 12:47 PM : Jun 20, 2007


Mormonman -

There are many, many "morally decent" young women who get involved with men who promise them the world and then turn their backs when it gets too "real." I know that I, myself, am one. I have raised my 7 year old daughter on my own and have finished college with a Bachelor's degree and raised a brilliant little girl with a reading level of 3rd grade. Just because a woman gets involved with a man who can't own up to his own responsibility and actions doesn't mean she's not "morally decent."

This also is not a problem of the 21st century. This kind of situation has been going on for centuries - it's just not swept under the rug as it used to be any longer.

I also think that right now, with as little information and fact as the police and media have about this case, it's irresponsible to assume anyone did this - especially the father. Yes, he seems to have a problem owning up to his responsibilities as a father and husband/lover, and yes, he seems to have had some trouble in the past but he is a police officer with a decent job -- which means there has to be something in him that isn't all that "corrupt" or "bad."

What I find so abhorrent is that in the eyes of the general public, no one is innocent until PROVEN guilty by a court of law and jury of their peers - everyone is now guilty until proven innocent. We should all be ashamed of that.

[seaslew]

whatithink.. once a girl always a girl , no age to that is there ? what was the ?

[whatithink-2009]

Seaslew,

But I knew that is where it would go as soon as people found out that her boyfriend was black. I wonder if this guy was telling white women (his secret code for girl and morally decent young women) to not be in same-race relationships during the Scott Petersen case.

[yohnvilson]

What a crazy start for the baby's life ... it's bad enough being abandoned, but not even knowing for sure what your exact birthday is? Well I hope they find a good family to adopt her.

[candreu1]

mormonman1...wow, are you racist or what! the color of this guys skin has nothing to do with this! It is his moral character. Lots of white guys do the same ***...Scott Peterson, for example. He lied, cheated and murdered...and he was white bread-white..mr clean cut all american.

[whatithink-2009]

Seaslew,

That would be fine if that were the case. I just find that many people who are dealing with subliminal race issue tend to say girl only when referring to white women on these type of boards. I wonder if this guy would be calling her a poor girl if she were a 26 year old woman from some inner city neighborhood (all other things being equal).

[whatiknow]

mormonman1,
Who's to say you are any different than the husband/boyfriend in the story? You don't know him, and you most certainly don't have all the necessary facts of the story to accuse him. Sure, there are some bad people out there, but they aren't bad just because they are white, black, hispanic, ect. And he did not cheat on her/abuse her/whatever else may have happend just because they were in an interracial relationship.

[seaslew]

Whatithink,, i get it,

[seaslew]

My granddaughter is Biracial. and when ppl ask me if she is mixed, I tell them,. Why of couse she is,, She is half her Mommy and half her Daddy.

[ajaxrose1]

First of all, ignore mormonman. Everyone's standards are different in regards to those things, although I do find his statements to be self-righteous, sexist, and judgemental. Just an opinion.

Then ignore the father's race and remember past incidences involving missing pregnant wives or girlfriends. Lacey Peterson wasn't the only one, just the most infamous one, to hit the news. If the father in this case truly is a suspect, and you know that he is no matter what they say, it has nothing to do with his race. Give it a few more days or weeks and his face will be as familiar as Scott Peterson's, because I'm willing to bet money they find evidence he's responsible for her disappearance. That doesn't mean I think he planned to do anything to her. It's not hard to imagine two people having an argument or something and if one shoves the other they could fall and hit their head just right and that would be that.

It's easy to "if" and "maybe," so I'll leave it at that. I just hope that whatever her status, they find her (and her baby) so her family will at least know and, if necessary, have justice served.

[whatithink-2009]

Seaslew,

My son and daughter are biracial. One looks like me and the other looks like my husband. They both look very different, but I love them both the same.

[seaslew]

Whatithink,, i have two grandbabies, and they both have different fathers, but good fathers, but its so sweet to see them together, they dont think they are different from each other what so ever, but being the world we live in, that will change, due to rascist attitudes ,, but maybe by the time they are older , that will change

[wendyhoo-2009]

When I see bi-racial babies i see lots of love. i see that two people over came the crud this world dishes out and had a loving child from that. My son is bi-racial also but not of black and white. But he is the most beautiful little man ever and god he knows it.

It would be nice to hear an update on the DNA test

[whatithink-2009]

Seaslew,

That's beautiful.

Both my husband's family and my family are very open to our relationship...almost 15 years married. It's really wonderful when we have BBQs at our house and there is a rainbow of people there. This is what we want our children to understand and appreciate...judging a man by the character, not the color. Yes, there will be racist people out there. But, you don't live your life to make fool's happy. You live your life to make yourself happy.

[jennmarie620]

One thing to learn about hate (of any kind, not just racism):

"There's something about that person I just despise in myself."

[wiccantexan]

Yes, he seems to have a problem owning up to his responsibilities as a father and husband/lover, and yes, he seems to have had some trouble in the past but he is a police officer with a decent job -- which means there has to be something in him that isn't all that "corrupt" or "bad."Posted by jennmarie620 at 12:56 PM : Jun 20, 2007

Actually, according to reports he has supported the first child, Blake, financially and emotionally, and he and Jessie had an amicable relationship. Sounds responsible to me, at least when it comes to this woman.

[jennmarie620]

WiccanTexan --

I agree. From all accounts, he sounds like when he was younger he made some mistakes and then had a bad family member who stole his gun and instead of investigating properly, the police department jumped to conclusions and fired him. He wouldn't have been reinstated if the allegations were true.

I read the earlier stories where they said he supported the little boy and had shared parenting with this young woman. Because he made some decisions that most of us don't agree with (like fathering two children with a woman when married to another) does not mean he is a murderer or horrible person. That's why jumping to conclusions right now is so irresponsible

[currentnews]

It is a possibility that the father of Chloe is not the policeman...

Happens all the time. Women get pregnant by accident with a fling, having the man "withdraw", or maybe the condom broke.

I am not saying the policeman is guilty, only writing a possibility. So perhaps they had an arguement and she told him that he is not the father of Chloe after all. So he got really upset and lost his cool...

It would be interesting to know if the retired nurse, on who's doorstep the newborn was left, knew Jessie or the policeman, or had Jessie ever visited the nurses's workplace. How long has the nurse been retired?

[bunnybaum]

Okay...first of all, I am NOT a racist. I do, however, wonder if Jessie had white children would this have happened? I have many friends who are black and many who are white...and none of us believe in inter-racial marriages. I just think if people of the same color would stay together, things would be much, much better.

[seaslew]

Whatithink,

I love that you used the word RAINBOW, that is what I call our family. :) Let me tell you , my favorite movie is Guess Who's coming to Dinner. Well we have brought up both of our kids along the lines of that movie, but i honestly will say, I was more on the attitude of Spencer Tracy when she brought the Dr home,, ( i hope you know the movie) lol. if not rent it , anyways, it was different when it was at my doorstep, but then after meeting him and seeing what a great man he is , my fears for them became much more at ease, Like i said we raised them to love all people not just a few,,, and we have a Rainbow w a pot of gold .. our 2nd grandbaby.

[dmk3]

You are not a racist? What do you call it? If people of the same color would stay together things would be much better? And what color would that be? green? purple? what? You sound like a complete racist to me. All of the family members of that family that was found murdered in their suv were white, laci peterson and scott were white, unibomber....white, george bush....white. Yes it could have very well happened if her man was white. Are you nuts? No just a racist. Don't tell me some of your best friends are black, hispanic etc. If jessie's kid's were white it would not have happened. No because only black, hispanic, asian etc kids have these sort of horrible things happen to them. You are problably one of those people who hold your purse tight when approached by another race. what a dweeb.

[seaslew]

someone asked if the Cop was the bb of Chole , and from what Grandma said, he is ,

[wiccantexan]

"The sheriff's office released a surveillance camera photo of Davis pushing a shopping cart with 2-year-old son Blake at an Acme supermarket in North Canton. The time on the camera reads 6:24 p.m. Wednesday."

If Blake is with her at around 6:30 pm that Wednesday, and the last time Cutts spoke with her was around 8:00 pm that day on the phone (cell records can confirm that), then the little one was dropped off sometime earlier in the day. Any argument between them that might have escalated would have been later that evening, or even in the morning. That's the crucial timeframe for his alibi.

[wiccantexan]

...none of us believe in inter-racial marriages.
Posted by bunnybaum at 01:46 PM : Jun 20, 2007

Apparently, neither did Cutts and Jessie. They weren't married; he's STILL technically married to someone else (of the same race, for all we know). What was your point exactly?

[dmk3]

nicely said WICCAN TEXAN.

[currentnews]

The nurse was a school nurse. Did Jessie or Cutts attend that school?

A criminal profiler on CBSwebsite video said two reasons why Blake was not harmed:

1. that the attacker knew and cared for the boy and did not want harm to come to the boy.
2. that the attacker was only interested in harming Jessie/or obtaining her unborn child, and thought that a small 2yr old boy could not identify them.

I add again that it is possible that the father of Chloe is not Cutts. In the police investigation they should ask Jessie's family members if she was dating anyone about 9-10 months ago.

What do you other posters think of the possibility that the father is not Cutts? And maybe Cutts found this out through an argument with Jessie and he lost his cool. He could have got really angry, thinking that another man would be involved in his son's upbringing.

If the newborn turns out to be Jessie's, and newborn's baby bottle and can of formula provides fingerprints the case may be easier to solve.

[jennmarie620]

I just think if people of the same color would stay together, things would be much, much better.
Posted by bunnybaum at 01:46 PM : Jun 20, 2007

Do you realize, BunnyBaum, that the only difference between white people, black people, asians and hispanics is a difference in melanin in the skin and a few other hormone variations? That's it! We all have two lungs, two kidneys, one liver, one stomach, one heart, two arms, two legs, two ears, two eyes, one mouth, and one brain. Start using yours!

[seaslew]

Bunnybaum,, no one is asking you to belive in it, or marry outside of your race,

we are not pushing any thoughts your way, except prayers that you can except any marriage that 2 ppl choose to be in.

[wiccantexan]

A criminal profiler on CBSwebsite video said two reasons why Blake was not harmed:
Posted by currentnews at 02:08 PM : Jun 20, 2007

Or, young as he was, he might have gone with the instinct to hide and the attacker didn't see him.

[seaslew]

the nurse worked at a Clinic,
thats why they think it was a younglady she had contact with , the nurse looked like a sweet Gramaw type lol :)

[apdepetris]

Why oh why did they have to bring out the race card - did they just not have any other new info to report about so they figured they had to say something. So this woman's baby is biracial and the baby found looks white. Who cares. Who says an interacial couple can't have a white baby? It just seems really stupid to bring it up because it's certainly not a definate. When they get the DNA results back, that will be definate.

Also, does this video snapshot look strange to anyone? To me the woman doesn't even look pregnant, let alone almost term. Maybe it's just the quality or something, but the woman doesn't look pregnant to me.

[wiccantexan]

The nurse was a school nurse. Did Jessie or Cutts attend that school?
Posted by currentnews at 02:08 PM : Jun 20, 2007
__________________

Sue Redman was a school nurse for Wooster City Schools for 18 years. She is a past board member of the Viola Startzman Free Clinic, where she now is president of the free clinic network.

Apparently, she was not school nurse for just one school, but the school district.

[seaslew]

apdepetris---- the video i saw she is VERY much with child...

[a-ji]

This bothers me "Mommy is in the rug"... Does this mean Blake saw his Mom being tucked into a sack or something that looks to him like a rug. I do hope I'm wrong.

[wiccantexan]

Why oh why did they have to bring out the race card - did they just not have any other new info to report about so they figured they had to say something.
Posted by apdepetris at 02:15 PM : Jun 20, 2007

The nurse mentioned first, in my recollection, that the child looked white. It's part of the public information.
_________________________

Also, does this video snapshot look strange to anyone? To me the woman doesn't even look pregnant, let alone almost term. Maybe it's just the quality or something, but the woman doesn't look pregnant to me.
Posted by apdepetris at 02:15 PM : Jun 20, 2007

I didn't even show until my 6th month, and even then I always carried small. How the baby is laying also is a factor. It's a grainy shot, with her belly kind of blending into the background.

[currentnews]

To WicanTexan:

Cutts worked the midnight shift as patrol policeman.

---

Cutts was probably a very busy man with several demands, three children and another on the way, two woman who at least once upon a time loved him enough to be physically intimate with him. Working respectable job as policemen on midnight shift. Where did he live? Did he live alone, so when he came home after midnight shift he could get some sleep. If he still lived with "wife" maybe he did not get decent sleep with the two children around.

Clinical studies and clinicians say that regular lack of sleep has terribly negative effects on people's ability to concentrate, their judgement, their nerves and self-control. Read up on it, I was amazed on just how bad it can be.

Maybe Cutts visited Jessie after his midnight shift. They argued, he lost his cool... and something bad happened. Did Jessie's neighbors see a patrol car parked in her driveway that morning? or any other car? Jessie's car was not taken. Phone records should show from whom Jessie received phone calls to from after 8pm until her mother found the scene.