Missing: 18 Month Old Toddler Elaina Steinfurth

TOLEDO, Ohio -A toddler in East Toledo was still unaccounted for Monday night. 

 Police are trying to put the whole story together and find 18-month-old- Elaina Steinfurth. Steinfurth and her sister were supposed to be given to their father, Terry, on Sunday afternoon in the 700 block of Federal. The mother turned over one child but after going back to get the second, she says the baby disappeared. The mother, Angela Steinfurth, is now pointing to her boyfriend being responsible for the baby's disappearance. 

 His family is denying any involvement. 

Note the article does not say how the family denied involvement.  This is something that is necessary for analysis, and so often missing from journalists. 

 Now each side is pointing fingers, while the baby is still missing.

 "Where's my baby? I want her to come home to her mom and Dad. I miss her. Give us back our daughter," said Angela Steinfurth. 

Please note the overwhelming number of parents who 'share' a child (foster, step parenting, boyfriend, adoption) etc, use the pronouns "us" and "our", though in a missing child case, we expect to hear a mother taking strong ownership, with "my" as seen above. "I miss her" is strong.  She can both miss her and still know where she is, but we are too limited in statements to draw a conclusion. 

Here, who is "Dad"?  Is "Dad" the biological father?  The boyfriend?  A journalist trained in SCAN would likely pick up on this and ask appropriate questions. 

Note the need to say for her to come home to both "her mom and Dad"

When biological parents use the pronoun "we", or "us", "our", it can sometimes indicate potential for divorce.  Context is very important. 


"She's a loving baby she'd go to pretty much anybody and that's what scares me. You never know, you never think anything like this is going to happen. Doesn't even seem real. It's like a bad dream," said Terry Steinfurth. 

Note that at 18 months, there is often a healthy 'stranger anxiety' in children that are well cared for and children of neglect are overwhelmingly willing to go to anyone, as they are often handled stranger to stranger.  Sometimes, in a larger family, a child may have less appropriate levels of stranger anxiety, but children generally do.  

Note that the 18 month old is described as a "loving baby";  how else would someone describe such a young child?  

Note that "it doesn't seem real" which will cause people to ask, "Is this real?  Or, is this custodial or something else?"

 Elaina Steinfurth was last seen wearing orange shorts. The mother says, when she got back from the police department Monday morning, the shorts and the baby's medicine were both found in the home on Federal. Friends and family members went through East Toledo neighborhoods looking for the baby Monday. They also held a prayer circle to pray for her safe return. Both Angela and her boyfriend were at Toledo's Safety Building talking with police throughout Monday. No charges have bee filed. If you have any information, you're asked to contact Toledo Police.