Ex-prison guard had a ‘very successful career.’ Now he faces child neglect, drug charges

A Tri-Cities father charged with mistreating his 3-year-old daughter quit his job as a corrections officer after failing to show up for nearly three months.

Sethman Ouderkirk, 42, resigned his position March 19 as the Washington state Department of Corrections was in the process of investigating his absence and terminating his employment, said department spokesman Jeremy S. Barclay.

“So he was no longer with the agency at the time that he was arrested,” Barclay told the Tri-City Herald.

However, a defense attorney told a judge Tuesday that Ouderkirk recently retired from the state agency after “a very successful career” and now is waiting for his retirement benefits to kick in.

Ouderkirk and his wife, Tierra, both have been in custody since early March 21 on allegations they failed to get medical care for the toddler when they knew she had a broken collarbone.

The couple appeared separately Tuesday in Benton County Superior Court.

They face May 13 trials on charges of first-degree criminal mistreatment and possession of methamphetamine.

Bail was reduced to $35,000 each from $50,000.

Judge Alex Ekstrom also ordered the parents to have no contact with the toddler while their cases are pending.

Tierra Ouderkirk, 39, requested an April 3 hearing to argue against that protection order. The girl reportedly is living with relatives.

Prosecutors say the Ouderkirks were living out of motel rooms and their car when they dropped off their daughter at the home of an adult relative on March 6.

The parents mentioned that the toddler might have a broken clavicle and said they would take her to the hospital when they picked her up, according to court documents.

But when the relative was asked to watch the girl again March 11, the toddler was in obvious pain as the collarbone was sticking out from her skin, documents said.

The Ouderkirks didn’t come back. The relative took the girl to the hospital March 13.

Prosecutors also allege that police in Richland and Kennewick had at least two contacts with the parents when their car was found in public parking lots in the middle of the night. On one occasion, the toddler was seen sleeping in her car seat while the officer also allegedly noticed drug paraphernalia in the car.

Sethman Ouderkirk mentioned he worked as an officer at Coyote Ridge Corrections Center in Connell when talking to police.

On Tuesday, Ekstrom was told the Ouderkirks had been renting a Kennewick home until they got into a civil dispute with the landlord.

Sethman Ouderkirk’s mother let the family come and go from her Pasco home until her son could get his retirement money to buy a new house, said Eric Hsu, Benton County’s public defense manager.

Ouderkirk’s recent retirement followed a 16-year career in law enforcement, he said.

There may be questions about Ouderkirk’s suspension from the Department of Corrections, but he says he has an “honorable retirement letter,” said Hsu.

It will take 90 days for Ouderkirk’s retirement to start up, said Hsu. Ouderkirk wants to use the money for a home and to go back to school so he can become an attorney.

Ouderkirk is outraged because a caregiver dropped his daughter and didn’t say anything to the parents until later, Hsu said.

He also claims he wasn’t present during some police contacts because he was working at Coyote Ridge until March 11, Hsu said.

But DOC’s Barclay said Ouderkirk last showed up to work toward the end of December 2018.

Ouderkirk had been with the department since Oct. 4, 2012, when he started as an entry-level correctional officer.

After Ouderkirk didn’t show up at work, officials checked his home and made other attempts to reach him. He was classified as “leave without pay” since he stopped showing up, Barclay said.

Then, since he still was unresponsive after repeated contacts, the department “began due process proceedings for his termination,” Barclay told the Herald.

That was in the works when Ouderkirk resigned March 19, he said.