Cheryl Gates (Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office).
A North Carolina school therapist has been charged with attempted murder and stalking for allegedly trying to poison an ex who she’d been obsessively “tracking” and harassing, cops say.
Cheryl Gates, 43, was taken into custody on Friday and charged in connection with the alleged targeting of her estranged husband, according to an arrest warrant prepared by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department and viewed by Law&Crime.
Gates has been accused of contaminating food and drink to render one mentally incapacitated or physically helpless — a felony — though it’s unclear what chemical she used exactly to try and kill her former spouse. Local ABC affiliate WSOC reports that the two are separated.
Gate’s arrest warrant outlines what led to her stalking charge.
“The defendant unlawfully and willfully did without legal purpose, on more than one occasion harass [Gates’ husband] by placing a tracking device on his vehicle,” the warrant alleges. “The defendant knew and should have known that the harassment, course of conduct would cause a reasonable person to fear for the person’s safety or the safety of the person’s immediate family.”
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Police officials announced the charges in a press release, which identified Gates as an employee of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) district. WSOC and other local outlets report that she’s a pediatric therapist.
“On Friday, Oct. 10, detectives with CMPD’s Domestic Violence Unit located and arrested Gates,” the release says. “This incident occurred off school property and did not involve any student, teacher or facility.”
In total, Gates is facing four charges: attempted murder, contaminating food and drink to render one mentally incapacitated or physically helpless, stalking, and property damage. Gates is accused of breaking a window that police describe as “the property” of her ex, according to court documents. It’s unclear if she’s still a school employee.
“It’s definitely surprising that somebody in that capacity that is there to help others would do something, that type of crime, especially,” parent Quemella Holland, whose child is in the CMS system, told WSOC.
Gates was initially booked on the stalking and property damage charges last Tuesday before being released and arrested again on Friday for attempted murder. She was still in jail Sunday and CMPD officials say the investigation is active and ongoing.
