HOUSTON — The Livingston man accused of killing Audrii Cunningham and dumping her body in the Trinity River was no stranger to law enforcement.
Don Steven McDougal is charged with capital murder in the death of the 11-year-old Livingston girl who'd been missing for six days. McDougal was a family friend who lived in a camper behind Audrii's home and sometimes took her to school.
McDougal is an ex-con with a rap sheet that dates back to 2001. He's been arrested in Harris, Montgomery and Liberty counties numerous times over the last two decades and has spent time in TDCJ and state jail.
- In 2001, he was convicted of possession of marijuana in Liberty County.
- In 2003, he was convicted of possession of marijuana in Harris County.
- In 2003, he was convicted of possession of a dangerous drug in Liberty County.
- In 2005, he was convicted in Baytown for evading arrest or detention.
- In 2006, he was convicted of possession of a controlled substance in Harris County. (180 days state jail)
- In 2006, he was convicted of theft in Harris County. (Eight months state jail)
- In 2006, he was convicted of assault on a public servant. (Three years TDCJ)
- In 2008, he was convicted of enticing a child with intent out of Brazoria County. (Two years TDCJ)
- In 2009, he was convicted of unauthorized use of a vehicle in Harris County.
- (180 days state jail)
- In 2010, he was convicted of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. (Four years TDCJ)
- In 2014, he was convicted of theft and reckless driving by HCSO.
- In 2019, he pleaded guilty to aggravated assault in Liberty County. (270 days jail)
- In 2023, he was convicted of resisting arrest.
We spoke with the victim of the 2010 attack. Elic Bryan said McDougal was a former co-worker who came over one night with friends.
"They were drinking and he just got more belligerent as the night went on and I ended up throwing him out of the house, and he come back with a knife," Bryan told us. "I open the door up and told him he needed to leave and he come at me with a knife and I had my shotgun. I hit him in the face with it and shut the door on him."
According to court documents, McDougal also stabbed a man in the back last August in Polk County. That victim said McDougal and a woman he knew came to his home to ask for help and claimed his car battery was dead. The victim was jumping the car when McDougal stabbed him from behind, according to court records.
After Audrii went missing, the victim recognized McDougal as his alleged attacker and contacted the Polk County Sheriff's Office. They charged McDougal with assault and locked him up in jail while the search for Audrii continued.
We spoke with the attorney for that assault victim who wants to know why McDougal wasn't charged earlier.
"They could have gotten Steven McDougal off the streets and probably prevented what we're going through now," David Feldman said. "He [his client] is absolutely emotionally devastated, feels extremely, you know, really, really bad for the family and just doesn't really want to take the attention away from Audrey Cunningham."
Records show that McDougal served two years in prison in Huntsville between September 2020 and September 2022.
He's now being held without bond in the Polk County Jail.