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Utah mom kept missing daughter, 5, hidden in cult 'compound' for months with help from adult sons: prosecutors

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Utah mom kept missing daughter, 5, hidden in cult 'compound' for months with help from adult sons: prosecutors

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A Utah woman is accused of kidnapping her then-4-year-old daughter in January 2023 and evading law enforcement for 18 months, with help from her adult sons, before she was finally caught.

At the time when Kimberly Dell Davidson-Drolet, 53, allegedly kidnapped her daughter, she and her now-estranged husband, Laurence Drolet, were in the process of getting a divorce.

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After 14 months of planning, on Jan. 10, 2023, Davidson-Drolet sold her vehicle in Utah for $13,000 and deposited the check into her bank account, according to a federal indictment.

Three days later, she withdrew $16,000 and transferred the remaining balance to her sister, Kristine Merrill, over the next month.

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Kimberly Dell Davidson-Drolet is charged with kidnapping and conspiracy to commit kidnapping. (Buchanan County Sheriff)

On Jan. 23, 2023, Davidson-Drolet allegedly packed their personal belongings in duffle bags, piled them into her 30-year-old son Jaxson Davidson’s truck and drove cross-country to Missouri.

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She left her personal cellphone at home in Utah and purchased a burner phone, federal court documents state.

Jaxon’s attorney, Craig Johnson, told Fox News Digital in a statement that the defendant is “presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, according to his constitutional rights,” and he will not be commenting further because it is an open criminal case.

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Merrill later told police that she destroyed Davidson-Drolet’s personal phone when she had allegedly given it to Davidson-Drolet’s 23-year-old son, Dallas Davidson.

Jaxson Davidson allegedly admitted to discussing taking the child out of state, and Merrill was present at the time and assisted with Davidson-Drolet’s departure, authorities wrote in court filings.

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More than a year after Kimberly Dell Davidson-Drolet allegedly kidnapped her daughter from Utah, authorities would discover the now-5-year-old girl at “a compound run by a religious cult leader Paul Dean who is the founder of an FLDS religious type cult.” (NCMEC)

More than a year later, authorities would discover the now-5-year-old girl at “a compound run by a religious cult leader Paul Dean who is the founder of an FLDS religious type cult,” according to a complaint filed against Davidson-Drolet reads, referring to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

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Dean is reportedly a White, self-described Christian man who founded two “Native American” churches in Missouri, according to local news outlet Springfield Daily Citizen. He calls himself “Man Found Standing.”

Dean, who is not charged in the kidnapping case, is involved in Native American traditions like sweat lodges and believes bitcoin is the solution of government instability.

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“I thought: Here’s a solution. Here’s a way you can go and store value … that isn’t controlled by governments,” Dean can be heard saying in a 2017 YouTube video.

READ THE INDICTMENT:

Davidson-Drolet allegedly concealed her whereabouts by using burner phones and mailing letters back home to her other children through her sister via the U.S. Postal Service.

In her letters, she apparently said she felt safe in Missouri because “they don’t participate in extradition” and she and Dean were planning to “flee to Thailand,” the indictment reads.

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“Kimberly Davidson-Drolet and other coconspirators went through great lengths to utilize pre-paid cellular phones that were rotated regularly to prevent law enforcement interception,” the complaint reads.

Davidson-Drolet, her sons, Jaxson and Dallas Davidson, and Merrill have all been charged with kidnapping and conspiracy to commit kidnapping.

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Milwaukee, WI

Milwaukee teacher in the running for ‘America’s Favorite Teacher’

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Milwaukee teacher in the running for ‘America’s Favorite Teacher’


This week marks Teacher Appreciation Week and, as many teachers are honored throughout the week, one local educator is in the running for one of the nation’s top honors. 

America’s Favorite Teacher

What we know:

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Tina Gleason, a teacher at Golda Meir School in Milwaukee, is in the running to become “America’s Favorite Teacher” and needs the support of the community to earn the title. 

Gleason is going up against thousands of teachers nationwide. But each week, that list narrows down. 

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This week wraps up the quarterfinals – where Gleason will rely on public vote to move on. 

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Gleason has been teaching for 31 years. Almost half those years have been catered to STEM and sustainability education. 

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“I think it’s just an honor to be recognized,” said Tina Gleason. “I’m just excited to be in the running at all, I had no idea I’d make it to the quarterfinals.”

How to vote

What you can do:

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Voting for the quarterfinals ends on May 7 at 9 a.m. A single vote is free – while a larger quantity requires a donation to The Planetary Society. 

Help Tina Gleason become America’s Favorite Teacher by casting your vote here. 

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The Source: The information in this post was provided by America’s Favorite Teacher.

Milwaukee Public SchoolsEducationMilwaukeeNews



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Minneapolis, MN

Tom Homan says Trump administration is using "smarter enforcement" in Minneapolis

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Tom Homan says Trump administration is using "smarter enforcement" in Minneapolis


ICE and Border Patrol have come under intense public scrutiny over their immigration enforcement tactics, particularly in Minneapolis. Following the shooting deaths of two U.S. citizens by immigration agents in January, the Trump administration sent Border Czar Tom Homan to work with local officials. CBS News immigration correspondent Camilo Montoya-Galvez sat down exclusively with Homan.



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Indianapolis, IN

New Prime Video doc: Kyle Larson’s maniacal mission to race Indy 500, Coca-Cola 600 in same day

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New Prime Video doc: Kyle Larson’s maniacal mission to race Indy 500, Coca-Cola 600 in same day


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  • A new Prime Video documentary chronicles Kyle Larson’s attempts to complete “The Double.”
  • “The Double” involves racing in the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600 on the same day.
  • Only four other drivers have attempted the 1,100-mile feat, with Tony Stewart being the only one to finish both races.
  • Larson’s attempts in 2024 and 2025 were hindered by weather, penalties, and crashes.

INDIANAPOLIS — Despite knowing the odds were against him, that it would take perfect weather, impeccable timing, the travel gods aligning and everything he had within his soul, Kyle Larson went for “The Double” twice, a feat in racing only four other drivers have attempted.

“The Double” is a maniacal mission to complete 1,100 miles in one day at two of the most iconic races in cities more than 400 miles apart — the Indianapolis 500 first, then NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600 in Concord, N.C.

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Larson’s two-time attempt at “The Double” in 2024 and 2025 is the subject of a new Prime Video documentary, “Kyle Larson vs The Double,” which premieres May 21.

The film delves into the incredible challenges Larson faces, on and off the track, as he goes for one of the most elusive triumphs in racing — from 500 miles in an Indy car at Indianapolis Motor Speedway to jumping on a plane to North Carolina to compete for 600 miles in a stock car at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

“The logistical challenge of ‘The Double’ is staggering,” Prime Video says in the film’s press release, “managing the extreme physical toll of heat, dehydration, G-forces and mental exhaustion.”

Before Larson, four other drivers took on “The Double” — John Andretti in 1994; Robby Gordon in 1997, 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2004; Tony Stewart in 1999 and 2001; and Kurt Busch in 2014.

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Stewart is the only driver to complete all 1,100 miles, finishing sixth in the Indy 500 and third in the Coca-Cola 600.

In Larson’s 2024 run at “The Double,” rain delayed the Indy 500, causing him to miss the start of the Coca-Cola 600. He finished 18th in Indy and was replaced by Justin Allgaier at Charlotte. Larson competed in both races in 2025, but crashes dashed his hopes of finishing 1,100 miles in one day.

The film goes beyond Larson’s mission on the track, taking a personal look at his life and career, his mindset, his sacrifices and the people around him who cheered him on.

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“Sometimes, the most compelling stories in sports aren’t about crossing the finish line,” Prime Video says, “they’re about the sheer will and determination it takes to compete at the highest level.”

Watch ‘Kyle Larson vs The Double’ trailer

Follow IndyStar sports reporter Dana Benbow on X: @DanaBenbow. Reach her via email: dbenbow@indystar.com.





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