Eminem’s song for daughter Hailie – Now it don’t feel like the world’s on my shoulders, Everyone’s leaning on me, ‘Cause my baby knows that her daddy’s a soldier, Nothing can take her from me
Little Haleigh Cummings was reported missing from her family’s Satsuma, Florida, home on February 10, 2009. She was 5 years old at the time with blond hair and brown eyes. The police in this small north Florida community had nothing else to go on, but this physical description.
Haleigh disappeared from the mobile home of her father Ronald Cummings, after being put to bed for the night. By the next morning, an Amber Alert and 14 months of search efforts and investigation into thousands of tips covering several states had begun.
Misty Croslin, 17, who was Ronald Cummings’ girlfriend at the time, was the last person to have seen Haleigh. Her story about the events of that night kept shifting and it became very difficult for the investigators to determine the exact time or circumstances of this vanishing act.
Croslin was the live-in girlfriend of Ronald at the time and while he was working that night, she was babysitting Haleigh and her little 4-year-old brother, Ronald Jr. At first, she claimed that Haleigh was sleeping with her in the big bed but eventually said that she was sleeping on a small mattress on the floor in the master bedroom, barely four feet from the bed.
Croslin said she went to sleep around 10:00 p.m. after doing laundry. Ronald Cummings was working the night shift as a crane operator. He says the back door was locked and secured by him before he left and that the deadbolt was hard to open even for an adult. No way that his daughter Haleigh could have opened it.
Croslin supposedly woke up during the night to use the bathroom and saw a light in the kitchen and the back door held ajar by a cinder block. Someone had opened that door and it was not Haleigh who was gone baby gone.
So far, the story made sense and was going to be properly investigated. But what came next could only be described with words spoken by Slim Shady: Let’s get down to business, I don’t got not time to play around, what is this, must be a circus in town, shut the shit down on these clowns, can I get a witness?
The morning Haleigh was reported missing in Florida, a Memorial service was held in Orlando for Caylee Anthony.
The media, especially HLN, had filled the air with this story and it had become the cash cow of the century for them. They kept the public enthralled with the ‘search’ for Caylee when we all knew from day one that she was dead, dead, dead. But it was profitable to keep her alive and missing.
The girl’s grandparents played their part with brio in this charade at keeping their granddaughter missing from here to eternity. It kept suspicions from floating directly to the culprit, their daughter, known as ‘tot mom’.
It is not surprising that pretty little Haleigh would become the logical replacement for Caylee who was never missing but had been found nevertheless.
So the networks jumped at the chance of interviewing the protagonists in this sad case of ‘real’ kidnapping. But boy would they be in for a big surprise. If they thought that Caylee Anthony’s case was gloomy, this investigation was going to blow the lid wide open from this Satsuma portable toilet.
As it turned out, Ronald Cummings and his underage girlfriend, were living in a world surrounded by drugs, violence and shadiness. They were definitely in a state of 911.
Ronald had obtained custody of his two children because their mother, Crystal Sheffield, allegedly had a history of drug problems and basically did not show up for a custody hearing because she had not received the notice. Being unemployed had also been a huge strike against her. This distraught and vulnerable mother who had met Cummings when she was also underage, described him as a volatile man with a drug-related past. She accused him of violence against her and the children. It so happened that Ronald was also another woman’s baby-daddy.
The fact that he would leave his two children in the care of a defiant, troubled, uneducated teenager constantly high as a kite demonstrated very well his lack of parental skills or care.
The circus really came to town when several TV stations started ‘trying’ to interview Ronald and Misty on their shows.
It was like asking a donkey if God exists. Ronald was somewhat in control but his teenage girlfriend would stare ahead with this glazed look. She was not just high, she was in a stuporous narcotized state.
Ronald soon enrolled his mother Teresa for the media rounds because unlike Misty, she could cry a river in front of the camera and act distressed. Ronald would go down on his knees in front of the cameras, and cry an oxy/meth river of tears.
When NBC host Meredith Vieira asked Misty why she changed her story so often, she woodenly replied, “I don’t know.’’ When Ronald was asked by Vieira why he had married Croslin recently, knowing full well she might have been involved in his daughter’s disappearance, he became rude and defensive and basically told her to mind her own business.
It was not going well for the media.
Most of the stations pulled out but HLN kept on trucking with a string of guests like toothless grandma Flo and her crocodile stories and cousin Jo Overstreet with his ‘It was not me’ mantra.
Jo was in town visiting family when Haleigh disappeared and he supposedly had a fight with Ron over a gun. Nancy Grace was not going to let go of this bone easily.
She was never going to be hungry again and would maintain her ratings no matter what. In the meantime, most people were starting to say “frankly my dear Nancy, we don’t give a damn about these people.’’
Mark Fuhrman said it very well in his book The Murder Business:
“It had turned into too much of a white-trash nightmare, too much of a freak show. Viewers can take the bizarre, frightening underbelly of White America only in small doses in a careful context, as guests in Jerry Springer or Maury Povich’s circus acts or when they’re anonymous.’’
A colleague of Fuhrman called him from Satsuma to urge him not to make the trip there to investigate. “Everybody here is high on something.’’ “And everyone is a nightmare to interview and put on TV.’’
Strangely enough, Nancy Grace, who is the queen of outrage when it comes to cases of missing children, took Ronald Cummings’ side in this saga.
She invited him on her show and would soothe him and cheer him on during his ‘cry me a river’ displays for his lost daughter.
She brought up every possible suspect, including illustrious cousin Jo, Misty, her brother Tommy, drug dealers, the pedophile brother-in-law, but in her eyes, Ronald remained white as snow, pun intended. He became her favorite pet rat. I even wondered if she carved Nancy loves Ro on a tree in the enchanted forest in her head.
We know that Nancy Grace went shamelessly after Richard Ricci in the Elizabeth Smart case and never apologized publicly when he was later found innocent. The poor man died in prison, no doubt aggravated by her actions.
Poor Melinda Duckette committed suicide after being badgered by Grace. She also went after the Duke Lacrosse players with a vengeance. They were eventually cleared and declared innocent of the charges.
What is it about Ronald Cummings that touched her heart? Maybe he was her perfect soul mate, considering the darkness they both share. They would have been perfect partners on Dancing with the Stars. What a hot tango they would have pulled off.
It never bothered her that Cummings had married Croslin shortly after Haleigh’s disappearance, probably to keep her from testifying against him.
Who would marry the woman minding the fort when his own child is abducted under her watch? He obviously had to keep her close to minimize the possibilities of her singing the blues to the police.
We can only speculate as to what happened to this precious child. Many scenarios are possible but if they do not involve or incriminate Misty or Ronald, you would think someone would have spilled the beans by now.
Misty claimed to have passed a lie detector test but according to Texas Equusearch who had administered the polygraph tests and a voice stress test, she had failed miserably. Ronald Cummings was asked by Nancy Grace about taking a polygraph test. He declared he had passed but there is no evidence and such information was never released by the authorities.
Grandma Flo said on TV that it was cousin Jo with Misty’s brother, Tommy Croslin, who threw Haleigh’s body in the river attached to cinder blocks because of a gun and some unknown dispute.
I think this poor woman, in her own way, was trying to get to the bottom of this murky story. Rumors of trafficking circulated and of Misty not even being at the trailer that night.
Did she leave the children alone while out on a drug binge as she had done recently with another cat? Ronald had tried to call her incessantly that night and she never answered.
Some speculated they had a fight. The story of a drug debt floated around. Maybe some dealers took his daughter as collateral because he owed them money. A jail letter circulated stating that Haleigh died after ingesting Oxycontin at the trailer. Either way, Haleigh’s demise was surely not one for the faint of heart.
For a while, a detective working for Haleigh’s mother claimed to have cracked the case. It was another dead end. They tried to revive the story in the media but it always fell flat because of lack of evidence. Two years ago, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office finally released a statement saying: “The ongoing investigation has minimized the likelihood that Haleigh’s disappearance is the work of a stranger.’’ Thank you, Captain Obvious!
It turns out that Ronald and Misty’s magical union did not last longer than their usual high. Meanwhile, the Putnam County police, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Task Force and the Office of the State Attorney decided to investigate them during a month-long undercover operation.
They were arrested with Tommy Croslin for trafficking controlled prescription medications on January 20, 2010.
Their bond were set excessively high so they would have to be remanded at the jail to await trial and sentencing. They were looking at up to 25 years. One cannot help but think that the set- up was to entrap them into confessing about little Haleigh’s disappearance. The ball was in their court now.
It was a complete bust, literally. HLN played the tapes of their jail conversations and wheeled back grandma Flo to the forefront but to no avail. We heard of a sentence reduction for Ronald Cummings for cooperating with the authorities. Misty’s time in custody did not agree with her. She aged 15 years while incarcerated but never gave an iota of helpful information, in spite of the huge sentence she was facing.
It was very telling. If the truth about Haleigh was not despicable or dangerous, why wouldn’t one of them cut a deal? They obviously had a lot more to lose if they came clean.
The prison sentences they received were excessive. Ronald Cummings’ sentence was reduced to 15 years for agreeing to testify for the state in future cases involving the drug counts or his missing daughter, Haleigh. Misty received 25 years for a single count of trafficking Oxycodone.
Tommy Croslin was sentenced to 15 years. It is utterly ridiculous to send drug addicts to prison for that long on those type of charges but that seems to be how they roll in Florida. In my opinion, they should have undergone mandatory drug rehab or received much lighter sentences.
This pitiful band of ill-equipped human beings were probably targeted and thrown in the slammer to pressure them into talking about the case. These tactics should never be allowed. Abuse of power is not acceptable even in cases of suspicion of a more severe crime.
During Misty’s trial, we heard of earlier abuse in her life. She came from a broken home and both her parents did time on crack cocaine charges.
It is only normal to infer that the next logical step for that poor girl was to land in the trailer of a sick bird like Ronald Cummings. Unless of course, she could have received support or directions from a teacher, friend or family member; I hear crickets on that one.
Ronald was also from the school of Hard Knocks with no sugar on top. He grew up with his grandmother and was arrested multiple times for possession of drugs including heroin and GHB, the rape drug, but the charges were dropped.
His mama Teresa was a police dispatcher at the time so some speculate that she scratched someone’s back. He was awarded custody of the kids after he lied to Crystal about the hearing. He is dishonest and has a long history of Child Protective Service being involved with raising his kids. He likes young girls and also has a special needs child with one of them. What you would call a triple threat on the dating scene.
They are undoubtedly the product of their upbringing and surroundings. Like so many in small town America, they got caught in the vicious circle of drug addictions and trafficking and did not have the tools or the intellect to get out of Dodge. They are what famous attorney Vincent Bugliosi described as prime candidates for the mental poverty program. But in my opinion, there is more nature than nurture brewing in the mind of Ron Cummings.
Do I believe they are sorry for what happened to Haleigh? Hell to the yes I do! But not enough to come clean and do the right thing. Saving their hide became more important, which speaks to their character but also to the horror and terror that befell that little girl.
In my mind, this case is closed. I do not want to hear the details of her demise. If more guilty parties are out there, they will hopefully be arrested and appropriately sentenced but as far as this little girl goes, she is now free from a future riddled with drugs, neglect and prison.
She was trapped in a vortex of emotional emptiness and on a slow ride to hell. The adults in her life never fought for her. They chose mediocrity and self-gratification. Maybe she would have escaped that life of moral and physical stupor and moved on to greener pastures. But let’s say that the odds were not stacked in her favor. We will never know.
Through time, many artists claim to have created their best work under the influence of drugs. But what is happening right now in places like Satsuma is the mind-body decimation of the residents addicted to prescription drugs and other dangerous and destructive substances like crystal meth. Not a romantic notion anymore if it ever was one.
Lately, I imagine her running in a gigantic field under a beautiful blue sky and she is falling into the arms of the Catcher in the Rye who catches her so she does not fall from the cliff — that beautiful image of innocence so brilliantly described in the novel.
Or maybe she is clicking the heels of her red ruby slippers three times to be transported to Oz. She might also be entering a rabbit hole to follow in Alice in Wonderland’s footsteps. For the religiously inclined, she might be in the arms of an angel. For the reincarnation believers, she might be one day reunited with Ronald, Misty and her mother after a long healing.
What counts is that by some Amazing Grace, she was lost and now she is found.
Author’s note: What I have related is only my opinion. I am a huge Eminem fan and I resent Nancy Grace but I have nothing against trailers. And I totally realize that some might hope that Haleigh is still alive or would want to know exactly what happened to her.
Great recap. Hilarious if not so sad. What always amazed me on this case was that they talked to cops from day one. Always supposed to be a catastrophic mistake, right? This group must’ve gone all the way up to the 5th grade, yet talked to police a zillion times and the cops got nothing really. Yes, they caught them all in lies which could be used against them at trial, but proved useless in seeing what really happened. Amazing. I think that day Misty stood out there with the cops at the water and it was said the alligators played a role in haleigh being nowhere to be found, that was the closest to the truth we will ever get unless one of this Jerry springer group talks one day for money when they get out of the clink. But since it would lead right back to them…. I think you will have finger pointing between Misty and Ron leading nowhere.
I think you’re right. They were all involved and telling the truth to get a deal of some kind was not and will never be an option. Misty would have cut a deal a long time ago if she was not involved and Ron knows exactly what happened. The alligators’ theory didn’t come out of nowhere. I cringe at the idea of this little girl getting caught in their horrible dysfunction and the subsequent cover up.
A very sad situation. If after 10 yrs they haven’t found her or her remains, there is a possibility of human trafficking. Since emphasis was made that Haleigh’s father and his then girlfriend, Misty used drugs, she could have been sold for drugs, money or to pay a drug debt.
Misty with 3rd grade education is not smart enough to fool cops and FBI …no possible way
In reply to Missy
https://www.bitchute.com/video/dCt0QlM6KR9v/
CAUGHT ON TAPE! LISTEN TO SLIMY BLACK MARKET BABY SALES ATTORNEY KIM PICAZIO
Please everyone hear this video. IMost children who go missing go missing because they are sold off to rich people like politicians and other sleazebags all over the world. As the Child Protection Agencies, Police Departments and many many other bodies are involved – this is why children will always remain missing. The culprits are rarely the people you think they are. I agree that the parents of this poor little girl were irresponsible and unfit to be parents. Unfortunately the kids end up being taken away and given to satanists, torturers and other foul people who are nearly always part of the judicial, legal, system. I would like to know your thoughts on this video and what you make of it
In reply to Camilia Jones
I may have a similar experience happening around my daughter. Does the name Jeremiah Regan ring a bell? I have noticed Alot of cult like actions towards me. I am a father of a 16 month of baby girl
Well said.
I knew her. I went the same school as her and I miss her everyday. The school was Browning Pearce Elementery. My cousin also knew her. I just pray to God everyday that they find her. It’s been so long and this is 2017 so it’s been 8 years since she was taken. She was the first girl I met. I was in Pre-K and she was in kindergarten. I hope they find her. I don’t live there anymore bulecause we moved but I still get newsfeed from Sarauma and I hope one day, one will be about Haleigh. Love you Haleigh!
This is such a sad situation. Misty was lost from the start. Her parents being drug addicts, her falling into a cycle of drugs and sex, no education (I think I read that she couldn’t read much). I believe that poor haleigh died of an overdose and misty covered it up…. Because I don’t want to believe that she was molested or raped.
My daughter is 4. She has no babysitters, isn’t allowed contact with many people. The only place she is allowed to stay is the grandparents that live next door. Between the caylee and haleigh situations I think it definitely changed how I parent.
You’re right Starla. Misty had a rotten start in life and her drug addiction didn’t help either. She probably covered up what happened to poor Haleigh.
I am glad you’re protecting your daughter. You’re never too careful and these situations are definitely a warning sign for any mother.
Why this was all done by people these children knew or were related to
I agree with you completely Starla. You are careful with your 4 year old because it is your motherly instincts which I think is biological. The jury is still out on nature vs nurture. I believe it is a little of both. Mothers in the wild protect their young at any cost. Primates learn how to be a mother from her mom and the mothers in her extended family group. Female elephants will go out of their way to protect the ‘baby’ of the group. Misty had no education and no role model. She and dirt bag Ron are hopefully still incarcerated.
So eloquently written!
Thank you Kelly!
I’m so sorry, beautiful Haleigh. I pray that you will never be forgotten and those responsible for what only God knows you went through, will be exposed. I pray you’re still alive. We love you. …well written story Thanks
This is so odd. I was wondering if that little girl found in Boston could have been put in a freezer and just dumped recently and thus wasn’t totally decomposed so I just googled to see and I found your site. I just wanted to let you know that I don’t live in FL anymore and I’m a CPA so not exactly white trash. I do happen to know Ron Cummings and like so many in Central FL, he was a small town pill taker when he happened to have some. He did get caught up in that setup and like you, I think FL mandatory sentencing laws for that small amount of pills is flat ridiculous and just further proof the “war on drugs” is a total failure. Rehab and job training in the case of someone like Misty (had she not been involved in Haleigh’s disappearance) could have changed her life.
Ron is extremely intelligent and took some college classes and could easily have continued on and gotten a degree. He is very well written, surprisingly so, but just further proof of his intelligence. I do know that the FDLE is fully satisfied that he never left work that night due to entrance exit at the plant and the many video cameras on his route home. He also really did pass a LDT. Misty on the other hand, in my opinion only, had Tommy and Joe over that night and something happened to Haleigh. Maybe it was an accidental overdose of a crushed to be snorted amount of oxy (though it would take a decent bit to do that) or meth which Tommy and Joe, and most likely Misty did do. The key to this has always been Tommy and Joe in my opinion. You just have to trust me, a stranger on the internet, for that. Why Ron felt he truly loved Misty and married her, I’ll never understand and while I hate the phrase “white trash”, I guess that’s an example of it. I KNOW the police tried to convince him that at the least Misty knew what happened, but only after his time alone in prison did he finally accept this.
As far as Crystal, she’s as bad a parent and more of a pill popper than Ron ever dreamed of being. She is most definitely a victim of her upbringing and I feel sad for her. She knew her court date and just didn’t show. In actuality though, she is far closer to Teresa than she is her own mom and they’ve worked out visitation for Ron Jr to the extent that the last I heard, Crystal lived with Teresa more than she did down where her mom is.
Sorry to write a book in response to your thoughtful post. I just thought I could add some local, sort of informed, thoughts to what you wrote. I wish we’d find out some day, but Misty is very loyal to Tommy. Regarding the little girl up north, that is near where Tommy’s sister-in-law lives and they took off very fast to head back home. I guess it’s not possible, but the picture of that little girl reminds me of Haleigh a little, especially considering it’s computer generated and not an actual drawing of that poor little girl. I guess I’m just dreaming, but I can’t get the thought out of my head that they hid Haleigh in a freezer and just now felt safe to dump her. Back to google to find out the affects of freezing a body on decompensation. Thanks for “listening”.
Thank you Lori for your very interesting comment about my blog and the compliment about my name, I don’t believe for a minute that Ron was present when his daughter disappeared. His work alibi was strong enough. He had tried to call Misty many times and she didn’t answer. I believe that if it was only an overdose, she might not have been so scared to spill the beans. Mind you, disposing of her body would have required help and she would have to tell on someone.
Grandma Flo seemed to agree with you about Tommy and Joe. Crytal and Misty were addicts and needed help. I can believe that Ron is quite intelligent and probably also the result of his screwed up upbringing, but in my book, he took advantage of very young and vulnerable girls.
I couldn’t find any evidence anywhere that he passed a polygraph, but it is possible. I never thought he was there when it happened. But he sure clammed up about the reality of this tragedy and the possible leads. He lied on TV a lot to appear white as snow, which was almost pathetic to see.
They should have received help and not long jail sentences. This case is a really bad example of ‘drug on war’ sentencing. Somehow, Misty was at the heart of the matter and could not tell on anyone or else.
The mystery remains. Feel free to share your findings because you seem to know the case very well. It is always interesting to have the views of someone who knows the protagonists. They were human beings stuck in the middle of a vicious circle of drugs and mental poverty. Even if Ron is a smart guy, his addictions and actions remained linked to his surrounding and basic character. They all decided to sacrifice Haleigh to save their own hide.
Misty had 3rd grade education why is it I’m only one can see their no possible way she could’ve did this fool cops and FBI…no way that’s possible and if she did know she would’ve song like bird by now…..my opinion
It is now 2023, I live in Jacksonville Fl, 50 miles from where this happened and I followed this case very well, I just got through watching a program about this case and other missing and murdered children and it is very sick. The part of your story I did not agree with is the jail sentence they received, I believe they got the right sentence because Florida has a no tolerance to drug trafficking, the drug crisis in America can not be fought by putting people in rehab and letting them go it has been proven not to work, if we put everyone that gets caught trafficking drugs into rehab where does it end, we are already letting murders who committed their crimes when they were minors out of prison to murder again so hey let’s just start supplying the addicts their drug of choice. The two of them may of had messed up lives but I myself have seen many girls come through our doors that have been in that same situation and turned their life around, it has to start within yourself.
Lise, I meant to add that Ron knew getting married was no protection from the law for two reasons: one, it involves a child and two, it happened prior to the marriage. I also wonder if Haleigh woke up and one of them hit her, thinking in their ignorance that is was just a “spanking” and it fatally harmed Haleigh. Or at least harmed her to an extent they knew they had to get her out of that trailer.
Thanks again for letting me post on your blog. You have a pretty name.
I love the way this was written, I feel like Haleigh was just brushed under the rug. She was on Nancy Grace all the time and then boom– I never hear of her again,, and you’re right…. This was one hell
Of a media circus back in the day. I think of Haleigh often… Her, Caylee, and Shania Johnson are the 3 stories that truly hurt my heart. I never thought about Misty and Ronald taking so much time with the pills because telling the truth would land them in jail for even longer…. You’re probably totally right about that, although, I remember always thinking Ronald seemed innocent. Drugs can make you do stupid things, like marrying the girl that lost your daughter while you were working…. But hopefully they didn’t make him a murderer. It really bothers me that we’ll never know what happened to that poor baby 🙁
I doubt we will ever know for sure even if they eventually find her skeletal remains. I know some people hope she’s still alive, but I personally don’t think it is a possibility.
Ronald fooled Nancy Grace also. He was so high all the time and cried a river, but he is a player and his freedom was on the line. The truth would have landed him in prison, no matter what happened. I somehow doubt that he would have murdered his baby, but they probably all covered a very sinister tragedy to conceal some illegal deed.
It is pretty obvious that drugs are in some way involved in this tragedy. Thanks for reading and for your comment.
Not Shania Johnson Shaniya Davis, sorry
http://www.oppermanreport.com/archive/timothy-holmseth-the-murder-of-haleigh-cummings
lori, you may be right.
On the subject of Ron Cummings, on the morning of February 10th 2009, on channel 4, Ron stated ” I never HAD such a polite child” also in the same interview said” I’d give my LIFE for my baby’s LIFE back” that to me is admission… Who’s not to know if Ron took Haleigh to work with him alive or dead.. He works on land clearing vehicles… Also last week a little girl “baby doe” that was found at the shore in Boston, well some of (Ron’s relatives) live in that area…
The great-grandmother of missing 5-year-old Haleigh Cummings, Annette Sykes, said that she was at the house that night to bring laundry. She also said that Misty Croslin made the kids dinner. So Ron didn’t leave with his daughter and didn’t leave work that night. He called several times to talk to Misty but she never answered.
In reply to P c Jilson
All is so sad. Did the police ever check the property’s well? Just curious. It doesnt take much effort to find the lid and open it especially if is an above ground well. Most are in Satsuma.
I don’t know what to think. Little Lonzie and little Haleigh’s story are so similar that is plum creepy.
I know little Lonzie is related to Haleigh, but I am waiting to find out more about the case. It is a bit early in the game. They will hopefully come to a resolution in his search.
I think 17 year old Misty Croslin knows that the pedophiles did something to Hailey causing her death then the three of them panicked and left the trailer to find a place to hide her body and that’s when Ronald kept trying to call her but she didn’t answer because she was up to no good…
I doubt Ronald Cummings would have married Misty if he suspected that. Something was obviously going on if she didn’t answer him and it was probably tragic. I will never get why he protected Misty if he is not involved somehow.
I think both of the kids were sold to underground for drug money……
What a cruel fate that would be.
The majority of you people including the author have ever been to Satsuma or Putnam County.
There are no safety nets – no one to step in and put them in rehab. The corruption, child trafficking, drugs, money laundering is the feast of this backwoods garbage hole.
And those behind the curtains in power like it that way.
I have never set foot in Satsuma or Putnam County. It doesn’t keep me from having an opinion. It is sad that people grow up without safety nets and end up like this bunch.
http://www.wvgazettemail.com/article/20140602/gz01/140609960
I honestly believe somehow that Haleigh and Lonzie cases are connected. There is just too much similarities. Both being beautiful blonde hair blue eye babies. Both grouos of people being drug addicts. I’m more prone to believe these babies are not dead but have been sold or traded for drugs or drug debts. Just something to think about
I found this blog when I was trying to find out if anymore was ever found out about Haleigh. At the beginning of the investigation ,when Ron finally got ahold of Misty he said ” You let them take my little girl”. I never heard anymore of that comment that he made. Based on that comment he made, both Ron and Misty know, who took Haleigh and Why. If you can find that clip from when the story first broke, that is the key.
I remember him being mad at Misty and saying he was going to kill whomever took his daughter and go to prison for it. But he changed his tune and married her. He also said he didn’t take drugs. The guy was very shady. Even with the clip, it does not prove anything. He even got a reduced sentence for agreeing to collaborate with any investigation about his daughter. None of it makes any sense.
Ron said he called and no answer.He said he called her brother to go over and check but, Tommy said, Ron didn’t call him…The Grandmother said she came over and was upset because misty had left the kids alone..So misty was gone,she didn’t say for how long. Then misty must have returned while the GM was still there..There was several family and friends living within blocks of each other or directly next door. It was also said, that a known offender was in the next trailer, but he didn’t register being there until later so the police wouldn’t have known he was there…Misty says in a more recent interview that a black man came up to ron in a parking lot. ron told her to get back in the truck. She said the man said, the mexicans had her and they would only return her for the money he owed them…..Thanks for the blog
I recently reacquainted myself with this story and found your site. Love your writing. Okay. so why no one suggests Misty really doesn’t know what happened to Haleigh and that is why she won’t tell on anyone? It is really hard to think someone like her would not tell when she was threaten to be locked up. The way she cried while she was in jail talking on the phone with her mom per youtube video, I would think she will spill the beans if she knew anything. Why no one thinks she maybe really really doesn’t know so can’t spill any beans?
Thank you Kay. I must say that’s an interesting take on the situation.
I agree
This case has haunted me since it began. Thank you for this beautiful write. It gives me some peace.
TY Patty! It is quite a haunting saga of disappearance and innocence lost for this lovely girl. Haunting story as well of the pathetic group of individuals living life to the lowest that surrounded her.
Wow, this is almost the exact same story as the Lonzie Barton case in Jacksonville FL who ironically is a distant relative of Haleigh Cummings. Sad how this family loves drugs more than their children!
Drugs are hard to resist when you’re hooked and living in narcotic infested area. They should have detox and maintenance programs for inmates. I don’t know if treatment would have made them better parents. I guess we will never know.
I applaud your site! Very well said! Especially about Nancy Grace. You are spot on! I too was floored that she treated Ronald like he was such a nice guy. He got with Misty when she was underage! That’s a nice guy? It’s called statutory rape where I come from. I am shocked that this case has never been solved yet. Misty washed Haleigh’s blanket that night. To me that is highly suspicious. I have read family members say Ronald was abusive to Haleigh. Said they saw him knock her down on the porch. The whole family is a mess…. and sad to say, but Haleigh is better off out of there. I hope one day they can find her and find out what really happened.
Thank you. This is still a mystery to me. How on earth could she support Ronald who was constantly high as a kite, lied about it and practically everything else and entrusted his underage drug addicted girlfriend with his children? In this case, she didn’t even try to pretend it was appalling.
The mystery remains and as more time elapses, the more difficult it becomes to get answers.
My heart broke when I learned of this case. Somehow this little girl touched my ❤. I live a few hundred miles up the coast from Satsuma. Was hard to believe.
I’m sure I might not know all. I followed this case in every way p Misty finally toldossible.
I believe what happened in a combined truth. Is Haliegh was abused and was taken out her home just like Misty said. Then was taken to the dock where Misty took investagators finally. Where she was threw in water. Guess a cinder block was the weight. Like holding door open at mobile home was a cinder block.
When you do this to any human being. I think the Florida dept. Of law ect. Made the right decision to get them one way or another.
Myself having no authority I wanted to come to Satsuma. And find that little girl. I knew would be wrong decision. I will never forget HALIEGH CUMMINGS. ALL MY LOVE TO YOU. I KNOW GOD HAS YOU.
A FRIEND YOU WILL NEVER KNOW
WILLIAM PRINE. SOUTH CAROLINA
I know that you care about Haleigh and would have liked to help elucidate the mystery of her disappearance, but breaking the law to get ‘your man’ is never a viable option. It leads to more tragedies.
It is inspiring to realize that so many people were touched by this little girl and will keep her in their heart.
Can someone tell me if Ruben Ebron’s name was it ever mentioned in the Haleigh’s case?
The police have mentioned similarities with the level of frustration they experienced during the cases of Somer Thompson, Haleigh Cummings and Lonzie, but have made no connection to Ebron.
I believe the two cases are connected.Trafficking drugs and children go hand in hand…those babies were taken for drug debt and are alive
First, I don’t believe they should get lighter sentences they are repeat offenders that were found selling drugs and lying to police over and over. With a history like theirs they more then earned their three strikes in one sitting. Next, we don’t know if she’s free from a world of drugs, and darkness because we don’t know who took her, has her or might be sexually or physically abusing her.. I think back to Jaycee Dugard..I pray this isn’t so. I pray that if someone did take her they are loving up on her like nobody’s business, and that they took her with the purpose of rescuing her from the life she was living..it’s just too bad they didn’t take her little brother as well…This makes me so mad that they just simply.. STOPPED looking for her or her killer, and I feel it’s just because they have Misty and Ronald in jail. grr.
OH C C I also think what you wrote is CORRECT!! I just can’t believe no one has picked up any leeds after ALL THIS TIME!!!! GOD PLEASE TAKE CARE OF POOR SWEET HALEIGH. I also have been watching from day 1 and I can’t believe no one cracked!!!
I find myself hoping that somehow Haliegh Cummings escaped the hardships of growing up among those people. I can well imagine that one of the possible circumstances surrounding Haliegh’s disappearance involved her being sold to some family as a black-market baby. Given what I know of this criminal enterprise of a so-called family however, it is much more likely that Haleigh is no longer alive.
I was one of the lost children of the misbegotten Cummins / Cummings clan from Kentucky. Myself and five siblings were taken by state adoption care when I was around one year old due to being bounced around from relative to relative while my parents did whatever it was they were doing besides taking care of all the kids they should have never had. I escaped the depravity and criminal lifestyle that these people carried on with the help of two very unlikely people that in a round-about way, adopted me and raised me in a very unusual, yet much better manner than the Cummins clan was ever capable of doing. At this point, I’m fourty-four years old, and have no interest in the bunch that didn’t want me or my siblings and is every bit capable of ‘losing’ children as Haliegh was lost. I’ve disowned them in kind. Such is often the way when sperm donors and walking incubators like these people neglect, abandon or dispose of the children that they bring into this world.
First, again I’d like to say how much I love your writing style. Also, I find it totally unbelievable that anyone could possibly go on living with a secret like this. Eventually someone is going to break. Knowing how young all those involved are and the fact that they use drugs to buffer any real emotions it will take some time, but there will I hope come a day when the foggy drug fueled cloud that they live in now will clear and they will develope a consience. Unless this happens, they may die with their secrets. How absolutely disgusting it is to think that such monsters exist amongst us. I lose sleep if I’ve said something rude to someone. God help this world and what it’s become.
Thank you for caring, I remember Haleighs story from HLN. I like your write up, you’re sharp & to the [oint but not rude about it. This story is just sad. Hayleigh never had a chance with the people in her life
The dock and alligator story is false. Feb 9th 2009 Satsuma Fl… Temperatures were cooler than normal during January, February and March. Two significant freezes affected south Florida: one on January 21st and 22nd and the other on February 5th. The coldest temperatures in 6 years were experienced in many areas of south Florida from both cold outbreaks. Freezing temperatures occurred as far south as the agricultural areas of southeast Florida on January 22nd and all the way into metro areas of Palm Beach and Broward counties as well as coastal sections of Collier County on February 5th. Lowest temperatures recorded during both events were 22 degrees in Palmdale (Glades County), with readings in the mid and upper 20s over large portions of the interior southern Florida peninsula. Heavy frost on January 22nd led to severe crop damage in southwest Florida and around Lake Okeechobee. Satsuma was as cold or colder during this time. Gators stop feeding at 70 degrees and are completely dormant at 55 degrees. The gators were dormant the entire month of Feb and March a 2009 due to the nightly lows at that time. http://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/managed/alligator/facts/
Interesting information Barb. I would imagine that Grandma Flo came up with that one to try to help investigators. She threw it out there, but they never found anything.
Lise, I strongly agree on the sentences in Fl for these drug offenses. Misty Croslin slipped through the cracks many times in her young life. No one cared. She had a 5th grade education (which child services did not investigate why at 12 she did not attend school) she was sexually molested and beaten at 11 years old, was with drug addict parents. She was a lost child. For anyone to think she outsmarted law enforcement for years now or did not “break” under conditions that even seasoned killers confess and get plea bargains for is really puzzling to me. I don’t think anyone paid much attention to child phycology in this case. Croslin had an IQ of a 12 year old child at the time of this crime. This case was investigated and she was repeatedly questioned for hours and hours on end by experts in interrogation with out an attorney present. She was not smart enough or strong enough to hold out information if she had it. Either she was drugged or was sleeping. Haleigh’s little brother who was almost 4 at the time was never afraid of Misty after Haleigh disappeared. Jr said a man in black took his sister. He said the man came through the wall. He also said Croslin was sleeping, For months or longer he had nightmares about the man taking Haleigh. I do not understand why no one believed a 4 year old child telling events like JR did. Children that young do not have the experience to make up stories with that much detail. I wonder what JR says now that he is 11 years old.
Thank you for keeping Haleigh’s story alive. Children should never be forgotten. Bless you!
I totally agree with you. Children should never be neglected or forgotten. But you said it yourself, Misty was also a young girl who had a really tough life and lived with addictions while no one seemed to care. She should not have been neglected or forgotten either. She is rotting in prison with no help or hope for rehabilitation, unless the system changes and offers more programs.
I do not think that she outsmarted law enforcement. I think she is less afraid of her present sentencing than the truth if it came out. Which is very telling.
I also wonder why Ronald was never charged for having sex with minors. Nancy Grace who supposedly defends vulnerable children and victims never mentioned it either. On the contrary, she took his side.
I feel that their drug bust was entrapment and the sentences way too long. As they usually are in the US. But strangely enough, they reduced Ronald’s sentence for future cooperation involving the case of his daughter.
When it comes to Junior, it depends if what he said at first was spontaneous or suggested to him. We will never really know and it is too late now to go back. I hope that he is safe and never has to go through what his sister did.
Thank you for the comment.
Lise,
Florida is notorious for their cruel and unusual treatment of children in their courts systems. Florida has more kids under 17 serving life sentences for crimes not involving a death than any other State. Florida sentenced the youngest child ever sentenced as an adult in the US to life in prison . He was 12 years old. Two others 12 and 13 were sentenced as adults (no trial there just pled) and are now being released after 18 years. Many more young children in Florida are serving in adult prisons. Very sad that this is happening.
I agree the drug sting was entrapment. I was particularly bothered by a few things. Misty Croslin did not provide the drugs she was charged for. They were Donna Brocks drugs and Misty Croslin did not get the money for the deal. Donna Brock who drove the car did get the entire 800.00 for her own pills. All Misty Croslin was paid in the “drug deals ” was 100.00 by the undercover for facilitating the “transaction”. She had refused to do any drug deals for the UC at least 5 times before he finally convinced her to “help him get drugs to …RESELL!! In Florida they go by total weight not by the amount of drug weight sold. The total weight of the narcotics in the pills sold by all of them was very, very low and the Street value …about 3900 for all 7 deals with all involved. Misty Croslin’s incarceration is costing the tax payers almost a half a million dollars. Who can justify that? Perhaps Berger.
Misty’s attorney should have ask for the court to her evaluate her IQ, physiological ability/ conditioning and her functional ability. I believe had this been done she could not have been tried as an adult and the youthful offender 6 year sentence would have had to have been considered,
As far as Jr, yes I do agree his statements could have been influenced but his action would not be so easily altered. He was never afraid of Misty while he was around her or Tommy Croslin either. He never mentioned either one doing anything to Haleigh. Had he seen anything involving either one it would be hard to keep him from talking about it. I believe he would have talked about it to his mother at some point while living with her. He did in fact have nightmares of a man coming through the wall and taking him according to his mom after she got custody. Why would he have that kind of fear unless he did see something? Crystal believed Misty was involved and the man in black story was certainly not Crystal’s.
The Gator story was Tommy Croslin’s story and pure fantasy. At one point it was said Tom, Ron and Joe were all at the dock feeding deer meat to the gators in Jan early Feb. Ron Cummings repeated this story to that crazy bounty hunter. Also pure fiction. Misty said Tommy told her Haleigh was thrown in the water at the dock. Flo ran with that and other tall tales as well. Sorry but I felt Flo was a very sick twisted old woman who also prayed on Misty for her own gain.
Hopefully the truth will come out. Too bad it will not be in time to help these 2 forever lost children, Haleigh AND Misty.
The justice system in Florida treats children horribly. As I said in another blog, it is in need of a legal exorcist.
You seem to have done your homework about the case. Thanks for sharing.
I am from this area and have followed this story since the beginning. To a certain extent, I also feel sorry for Misty. She, much like Haleigh, never stood a chance. She grew up with drug addled parents who constantly in and out of jail. They were too caught up in their own drugged out lives to ever protect Misty. I am sure when she met Ron his family seemed like the Brady Bunch compared to hers and the Croslins were more than happy to get her off their hands. I believe this made her easily manipulated and used by Ron and and his family–which is exactly what they did. Ron’s entire family know’s what happened to Haleigh, they are just too selfish to put their lives ahead of theirs. I believe Ron marrying her was to keep her quiet. I believe Misty knows exactly what happened to Haleigh, but she will never tell out some misplaced loyalty to Ron’s family. I think whatever happened to Haleigh was a tragic accident. My best guess would be an overdose–either Ron or Misty gave her something to make her sleep or she took it herself. When it comes to rumors–where there is smoke there is fire so I believe the overdose rumor could definitely be true. Teresa said Haleigh would never take anything on her own, but I wouldn’t be so sure. Kids like to be just like their parents and I am sure Haleigh saw them taking drugs fairly often and it was also rumored that they used to give them drugs to make them sleep so they could party. Either way, it was a recipe for disaster. Unfortunately I don’t believe we will ever find out what happened to Haleigh or where her body is. I think all involved are in jail and will never tell. They believe that what sentence they got for selling pills is far less than what they would get if they came clean about Haleigh and it is best to keep their mouths shut. As far as the severity of their sentence, well they knew they were being watched but felt that they were above the law. If the law came down on them too hard–they did it to themselves. It’s sad but putting drugs and sex before your kids is all too common around here as evidenced by what happened to Lonzie Barton.
Very good post, Lisa, and I agree, little Haleigh is surely dead. I did believe Ron initially because his reaction (recorded over Misty’s 911 call) sounded genuinely furious with her and whoever took his daughter. Whatever the truth, I agree that the innocent child escaped a wretched environment, but no child should die the way she likely did. It bothers me is that (after following the case avidly until the arrests and incarcerations of Misty and Ron), I’d forgotten her last name and how to spell her first. Little Haleigh needs to be remembered – the poster child for the effects of poverty mixed with drug abuse on precious children who do nothing to cause the tragedies that befall them.
Thank you. Ron was kind of believable at first, especially when you heard him during the 911 call, but when I saw him cry a river and swear he was not using drugs with feigned sincerity, I realized he was playing games. They knew what happened and talking would have been way worse than their actual sentences. This beautiful little girl was collateral damage. Very sad and I hope that the mention of her name inspires many to take another path in life.
I could swear I saw a news story where misty took the police to some canal or river or somewhere and described how she and someone else tossed the baby in tied to some cinder blocks. Anyone else remember this?
Grandma Flo told the story about the cinder blocks and Haleigh being thrown in the water.
They showed footage of the cops with Misty on the scene but she denied any involvement. Maybe someone else would know more about this part of the case.
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1004/30/ng.01.html
I desired to inquire about any movement on little Hailiegh’s case. I’ve read all participants comments. And unfortunately, I also believe she died that night. I also believe Ron knew, due to his interview “slips” give me this opinion. I don’t live in Fl. I’m in Ca.. I remember her disappearance, I had 4 young daughters then. All alive and well, Thanks be to GOD! I’ll now look up Lonzie Barton?. God bless the little children….
I have read so many articles and I agree with them all. I especially agree with Nancy Grace’s attraction to Ron and he surely used it. I can tell you this, she’s retiring……is Ron due out anytime soon????? Just a thought.
A funny thought indeed. Maybe they will reunite through another human tragedy, like the photo of Nancy in the tub as a great justice defender.
Rub a dub, Nancy’s in the tub http://dailym.ai/1lSsxGQ#i-8a79a606573c2e
And to think that she built this mansion through bigotry and mostly false accusations.
Haleigh was obviously taken as a payment for drugs. I also kind of get the feeling that she is still alive as no trace of her remains were ever found.
It’s florida. She was tossed in the water and eaten by alligators. No body.
Misty clearly left the kids alone to sell drugs.
Someone above mentioned, the time of year of dear Haleigh’s disappearance was unseasonably cold. Alligators go dormant and do not feed in cold weather. I’m thinking that’s maybe why alligators didn’t eat that sweet baby that was dragged under by alligators and drowned in Disney World. JUST A THOUGHT!
Alligators will take their food under, let it drown, wait for it to decompose, and then eat it.
I also need to say that to defend these disgusting humanoids is criminal. Poor Misty my ass. That scum is a murderer! And Lori, the older Ron is so smart and is really a decent guy rant is nauseating. Get a grip miss. CPA, the north central Florida community colleges are comparable to middle schools in the north. I can’t get over the excuses you people are making for these WHITE TRASH IDIOTS. Sorry Lose but really! Your readers are forgetting that Haleigh, and countless other children suffer!!! To defend them and say they can’t help it is BS! I say off the entire bunch of losers!!!
I worked with Crystal while she was in Pensacola during her rehab time. She was a very kind hearted and sweet girl. She just had an addiction. Just like many other people in America. People do change and calling her white trash is kind low. Drugs will make you do stuff you would never even think of doing in a sober state. Now what she does today I have no clue. And I never knew about her daughter until we were having a film made at our job and she would hide from the cameras. I asked her what was she doing she finally told me. Something about her daughter being missing. So I looked it up. It shocked me when I read this story. But I do know Crystal had nothing to do with it. But that father and girlfriend they know what happened to that poor baby. I keep up with the case every now and then. I haven’t heard from Crystal in over three years. I would love to make contact with her again. But i pray that one day this case can actually be closed and justice is served for baby Haliegh.
I also think that Crystal had nothing to do with the disappearance of her daughter. Enslavement to drugs usually have a huge ripple effect on your loved ones. I am convinced that if the adults in Haleigh’s life had not been in the throes of addiction, she would still be alive. This is why they should have received rehab treatment instead of locking them up and throwing the key for that long. Maybe then they would have spilled the truth about her death.
I think Crystal was another young victim of Ron. He took these young girls, and basically ruled over them. When Crystal split from Ron, she couldn’t even drive. She had no job or income. This is why the courts gave Ron custody. Misty was even underage when he started dating her. How is that even legal. I think had Crystal been given custody….the child would be alive today.
Ron tricked Crystal into not showing up for a court hearing. You’re probably right about the custody issue, if Crystal had Haleigh, it would have been far from perfect, but certainly not dangerous as it ended up to be with Ron and his addicted underage babysitter/girlfriend.
I’m tommys girlfriend and I can assure you he knows nothing!
I hope that this blog and Haleigh are never forgotten.This is like a story with no ending. No one shoud give up hope of finding the truth. We should not just drop this case like Nacy did. Just saying.
Haleigh is my most read blog Maggie. I think that she will not be forgotten, but we might never know what really happened. On the other hand, her disappearance remains an open case so you never know.
Nancy only cared about her ratings.
Whatever happened about the baby boy supposedly given away by his mother to strangers in San Antonio? Her name, I think, was Elizabeth Johnson. It’s another sad story too. But instead of drugs the mother, I believe, killed her infant son to spite her boyfriend who supposedly was seeing other girls. She’d actually called the boyfriend and admitted killing the baby but later said she didn’t mean it. Sick sick people in the world and the poor innocent children who pay the price for their parents mental illnesses and/or drug addictions.
Dad may of been at work but i believe Misty told him what happen and he help her hide it. Explain why he married the little ratchet drggie. Nieghter can testify against each other. Everyone of thoses
Trailer trash was involved. Weather Misty bother and cousin came looking for a gun or haleigh accidentally over dose, they know what happen and where they put the body of this little girl. I don’t care if poor little Misty came from a dysfunctional or even if Ronald family was dysfunctional. There is no excuse,. They are responible for their own action. The murders are where there are suppose to be in prison. Maybe on a drug charge but they are in the right place.
This is not how due process and the justice system work. Gut feelings and speculation are not part of the process. So many things do not make sense in this case. Why would they give Ronald a deal for future testimony? You are right to say that it was a very dysfunctional situation, but this clan was born into it and makes it difficult to break the cycle. Drugs are surely at the heart of this tragedy. They need to tackle this problem to avoid more and more human tragedies.
I don’t agree with the theory that Haleigh overdosed because if that was the case Ronald and/or Misty would have rolled over long ago. Awful as it would be they could put it down to a horrible accident, their known as addicts anyway. My theory is something much more likely which is some type of sexual molestation that they could never be forgiven for. They know no matter what they’re forever bound by secrecy. The two of them are in cahoots weather they sold that baby or used her to pay a debt the speculations are endless but one thing for sure we’ll never know cause they’ll never tell.
Haleigh Cummings is probably living in Indiana with another family that is taking care of her Misty should have woke up to see that Haleigh was being abducted from the trailer I know Haleigh is still alive and she will be found and given back to her grandma not her dad and stepmother
I say that when Tommy and Joe came to the home, They came with a plan and drugs. The Children were asleep. It was very late. they all did drugs. Misty passed out. that would be why 4 year old knew Misty was a sleep. They must of taken Haliegh . Little brother must of seen one of them carrying out his sister . They probable took and abused her. Misty didn’t want to tell on her relatives . They probably told Misty that they didn’t mean to do what they did. Ron must of Married Misty because she was under age . That may of kept him from charges of statutory rape . I don’t know the law on that matter.
Very good article, but I disagree about the abuse of power concerning the narcotics. Apparently, these two learned nothing and were still spreading the poison of trafficking and using drugs going about their lives and cycle of destruction. They were still willingly breaking the law, concerned with self-gratification, getting high. and not cleaning up their act even while Haleigh is never to be found again being dumped in a swamp.
Trafficking narcotics is on a Federal level, not state, and that’s one thing they could get them on. Now they will all sit in prison for years instead of getting high and numbing their conscience, while Haleigh rots in a swamp. Welcome to sobriety. Maybe they will talk, but I doubt it.
Yes, they were breaking the law but let’s not forget that it was a setup with an undercover cop pleading to get some relief for his pain. And that basically, Ronald was the leader of the two. They waited for Misty to turn 18 to pull that stunt so that they could prosecute her to the full extent of the law. She had no criminal record and it was $3,000. Only kingpins and repeat offenders would get that type of sentence.
Her public defender told her to cop a plea and she would probably get 6 years. And Ronald got a reduced sentence? It makes no sense.
He was the one in a relationship with a minor. Who leaves two children with a drug addicted teen? She was raised by drug addicts and left school because of a learning disability. She could not even write or read. She has now managed to get her GED and represented herself in 2018 to get a reduced sentence.
Whatever happened to poor little Haleigh had to be the ultimate responsibility of her father. It seems that Misty was scared into submission. She should not be the one doing 25.
The legal system cannot punish people for a crime to compensate for another one they could not solve. As frustrating as it is, it would be the end of due process and justice for all.
“Her favourite rat pet” got me bursting, though it’s hard to laugh in a case like this. Dark humour is a double-edged, bitter medicine for the mind, but eventually necessary.
The “drug” concept fascinates me. In my despicable opinion there is not such things as “drugs”, it is impossible to properly define the concept. What exists is a relationship between individuals and their consumption of substances, which involves psychological, social and financial interactions; positive or negative.
The consumption of the so-called “drugs” (which in human history and depending on sources have included things like alcohol, coffee, tea, sugar, chocolate and tobacco) as of any substance is a matter concerning individual freedom. Substances do not destroy people, in any case they are part of a destructive way of life involving many aspects not linked to the substance itself. Ban on drugs does not aim to protect anybody, on the contrary it makes them destructive while ensuring big profits for a minority.
I also think the unknown situation of any child should be investigated to the utmost extent. I can’t get any consolation about “better places” and even find the idea, frankly, kind of strange. If there is a “better place” then let’s go there, choosing to stay here proves at least the idea is not that convincing.
“…there ARE not such things as…”. Sorry about my English, also despicable.
Kids born with no future having kids born with no future. Drug addiction had a much stronger hold on these people than respect for human life.
I wonder if they ever considered the girl friend sold Haleigh to sex traffickers for drug money?