DUBOIS – A Penfield man out on bail for the unlawful restraint of an infant is now facing kidnapping charges for allegedly holding the child’s mother against her will in her DuBois home.
DuBois City police were called to the residence on Feb. 21 by the victim’s mother who was worried about her daughter and grandson. She had been texting the victim who had asked for help because Donald John White, 45, was there.
Previously White had been violent with her, according to the affidavit. The texts included warnings not to come screaming or to bring cops or “it will end bad.”
The victim said she couldn’t get out before the messages stopped, causing the mother to contact authorities.
Police were aware of White and that he had a warrant and a protection from abuse order, which prohibits him from having contact with the victim.
In another incident with White on Sept. 6, he had allegedly threatened to shoot police, so they called for backup to assist them on the scene. They had been given a back door key by the mother but were advised the screen door would be locked.
A perimeter was set up and officers used the key to open the door but knocked on the screen door, identifying themselves.
As they began to breach the screen door, the victim appeared and let them inside. She confirmed that White was in the home. He was located in an upstairs bedroom and taken into custody.
On the bed, the officers could reportedly see a knife by the pillow.
When they spoke with the victim, she said he got to her residence on Thursday, Feb. 17 and had been there through the weekend.
She stated he became angry with her that morning and would not let her out of the home. He put the knife to her throat, declaring he would kill her if she attempted to leave, according to the complaint.
When police arrived, he allowed her to answer the door and he wanted her to try to get them to leave without looking for him.
He is charged with kidnap to inflict terror, a felony, but misdemeanor unlawful restraint, terroristic threats and simple assault. He was denied bail.
His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Friday during centralized court in DuBois.
White has another case pending in Jefferson County in relation to an incident on Aug. 7 near state Route 28 in Snyder Township when he allegedly held an infant by his feet while threatening both the child and mother.
According to that affidavit, the same victim said she left her infant son at a residence in that area for a female to watch him. Later, White arrived before she did at that home and got the baby, holding him and threatening to take him.
White threw rocks at the victim’s vehicle, and after she threatened to call police, he allegedly threatened to end both his and the baby’s lives.
He reportedly left with the child in his vehicle, without a car seat, while the victim followed in her vehicle and called 911. White was reportedly driving recklessly.
After White’s car overheated, he got out, carrying the baby upside down by its feet while running through a field, she told investigators.
She then stopped her vehicle and asked him for the baby. White responded that their lives were in her hands and refused to give the baby back saying he was “an insurance policy.”
He continued holding the baby upside down by his foot while threatening to harm him using a rock, the victim told police.
The baby appeared to be falling asleep from being shaken by White and White said to her “please help him.”
When she rolled down her window to get the child, he reached inside the car and unlocked the passenger side and got in. He then reportedly ordered her to drive or he would hurt the baby.
He said he was taking them to the woods and if he saw the police, they were “all three going to pay,” according to the complaint.
Because she was in fear for her life and her child’s, when she saw a woman in a yard, she stopped the vehicle and jumped out, asking the woman to call 911.
White then took that vehicle and fled with the child unrestrained.
He returned to the residence where the initial confrontation occurred and left both the baby and vehicle there, police said.
For this case he is charged with felony counts of endangering the welfare of children, unlawful restraint of minor/parent, false imprisonment of minor/parent and theft by unlawful taking, as well as misdemeanor recklessly endangering another person, terroristic threats, criminal mischief, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and simple assault.
The affidavit from the other Clearfield County case filed in September details how police were notified by a friend of the victim that White had a gun and was going to shoot her and her kids if the cops came to the door of her home.
The victim told the friend that she would leave the back door unlocked for them to enter without alerting White. Additional officers were called to assist.
When they got to the house, the back door was locked so they used a ram to make entry and then identified themselves as police.
On the second floor, they found the victim and her two children. She said White was not there. The victim and the children were told to go downstairs.
White was located under the bed in a third-floor bedroom. He reportedly would not show the officers his hands and yelled at them to shoot him.
One of the officers deployed his taser causing White to show his hands which were empty. They flipped the bed over and after he resisted a bit, were able to take him into custody.
The victim apologized to the cops for lying about White being there but explained that he told her he had a gun and if she told police he was there, he would “blow her head off.”
She stated that she was “scared to death” because he had previously abused her and she believed he would actually shoot her. She said that she does not invite him there, but if she doesn’t let him in, he kicks in the door and comes in anyway.
This time when he arrived, he threatened to kill her and her family, according to the report.
For this he is charged with terroristic threats, simple assault and harassment, all misdemeanors.