Katherine Phillips--Amber Alert, 4 month infant, Michigan

[Lady Cop]

LUDINGTON, Mich. (WOOD) - What several investigators thought might be blood near the Scottville home of Sean Michael Phillips tested negative at the Michigan State Police Crime Lab, and police said Wednesday the substance was instead bird feces.

The substance was found Tuesday. Negative results were released about 24 hours later.

Phillips remains jailed on kidnapping charges, tied to the still-active Amber Alert issued one week ago for a baby who may be his daughter, 4-month-old Katherine Phillips.

A court-ordered paternity test was set for last Wednesday, the day Kate vanished. It was never taken. Phillips and Kate's mother, Ariel Courtland, already have a 3-year-old daughter together, Haley.

Concern for Kate is mounting with every hour. The Mason County Sheriff's Department doesn't know where the child could be.

But Courtland made a rare find Wednesday afternoon, as she discovered a photo taken just days before her baby disappeared. In the picture, Kate is shown in the same outfit she was last seen wearing.

"Yeah, she has big, big blue eyes," Courtland said, reflecting on Kate. "Yeah, she does."
The young mother has dealt with another tragedy in the past year. She lost two of her siblings over a several-month span to suicide. :O

Now, in the frantic search for her daughter, Courtland said it helps to know how much effort has gone into Kate's rescue.
"It gives me more hope," she said.
The search effort has centered around a wooded area near a church. A command post has been set up just down the street from Phillips' home.
Courtland visited him over the weekend and took from the trip a small glimmer of hope.
"He shook his head yes when I asked him if she was alive," Courtland said.
This is a different man than the one she used to know, she told 24 Hour News 8.
He's scared that he's gonna spend the rest of his life in prison," Courtland said. WELL NO SHIT!!
The search for Kate will resume Thursday.
"I will find Kate and I will bring her home," Courtland said. "Rather (whether?) she's with us or not, I will bring her home."