Missing Lakeville Dad Returning to Minnesota

A Lakeville man accused of abandoning his 11-year-old son last month waived extradition to Minnesota today--the same day the child's absentee mother contacted authorities for the first time.

Steven Alexander Cross, 60, appeared in a California courtroom, two days after his arrest in Cambria. He will be returned to Minnesota within a week, according to Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom.

Backstrom also said Katik Kristina Porter, the mother of the boy who Lakeville Patch has declined to name, left him a voice mail this morning.

He would not elaborate on what she said in the message, but said it was her first contact with his office, and that she will be involved in upcoming Dakota County child protection hearings to determine thre boy's future.

“As the child’s mother, she is entitled to participate in the (child protection) proceeding,” Backstrom said. “Her parental rights as to this boy have never been terminated by the court.”

Porter could request that the boy be placed with her, and if she does make that request, it will be evaluated along with other placement options, Backstrom said.

“The ultimate permanent placement decision will be made by the court based upon what is in the best interests of the child,” according to Backstrom.

Now that Cross has waived extradition, a Dakota County sheriff’s deputy will be sent to California to pick him up and bring him back, probably next week, according to Backstrom.

, Cross was charged with child neglect in Dakota County after police say he left a note for the boy on July 18, telling him the sheriff was about to take their home and that he should collect his PlayStation and go to a neighbor’s home.

Cross also left behind a note for his neighbor, Joanne Pahl, asking her to assume guardianship for the boy.

The boy was initially placed in a temporary foster home and is currently living with a relative, according to Backstrom. He said he expects a permanent placement decision to be made within six months.

Backstrom’s office also is investigating Cross on some “financial dealings,” Backstrom said. He said his office began reviewing the allegations Wednesday and he expects to make a decision shortly on whether to file additional criminal fraud charges against him, unrelated to the child neglect charge.

Cross was arrested after received information from one of Cross’s ex-girlfriends that he was working at a California deli. San Luis Obispo County authorities found Cross’ car near the deli and determined that he apparently had been living in the car, Backstrom said.

“We are grateful for the assistance provided by his former girlfriend and pleased that Mr. Cross was found alive and well,” Backstrom said.

Authorities had feared that Cross might be suicidal, based on the notes he left behind.

Cross is facing a charge of child neglect, a gross misdemeanor which carries a maximum penalty of a year in jail and a $3,000 fine. Backstrom said Wednesday that he hasn’t decided what penalty to pursue if Cross is convicted, but said he will make that decision based on an investigation into Cross’s “motivations for leaving Minnesota” and a presentence investigation, including a psychological evaluation.

Porter, to whom Cross was never married, was initially awarded visitation privileges with the boy, but lost them when he was about 2 years old, according to court documents.

Lakeville police reports indicate that whenever they had contact with one another, particularly when Porter arrived to pick up the boy for scheduled visits.

Cross had told the boy that his mother was dead, but in the note he left before he disappeared, he admitted to his son that she was still alive.

and was sold at a sheriff’s sale last January. The home was scheduled to be seized Wednesday; personal items that Cross left behind were placed in storage at the beginning of August by a real estate firm hired to prepare the house for sale.

Hilary DeVary, a Lakeville private investigator who has been working independently on the Cross case, also works with an organization called the Financial Integrity Foundation, which she says has helped “hundreds” of people in foreclosure keep their homes.

She said she has made arrangements with a Minneapolis attorney who is willing to work with Cross if he wants to keep his Lakeville home, and who has also offered to represent him on a pro bono basis on the criminal charges against him.

The boy's aunt, with whom he is temporarily living, is a foster care provider and is licensed to have up to two children in her Minneapolis home, DeVary said. A number of Cross’ ex-neighbors in Lakeville have offered to help take care of the boy, including driving him to appointments and helping him keep in touch with friends in the neighborhood.

“I know (the neighbors) and the aunt and social services are working together to make it as comfortable for (the boy) as possible, and in his best interests, which is huge,” DeVary said.

She said she didn’t know whether the boy has been told that his father has been found, and she doesn’t know whether Cross is interested in having her foundation help him.

“If he doesn’t want our help, fine,” she said. “But hopefully he can get some help somewhere with the stuff he’s dealing with, including working on his relationship with his son.”