Two more charged from Jonesborough child abuse case — grandmother included

By Staff Reports
JohnsonCityPress.com
webstaff@johnsoncitypress.com
Two more people have been charged in connection an abuse and neglect case involving five children who investigators found living in squalor near Jonesborough, Washington County Sheriff Ed Graybeal said today in a news release.
Investigators arrested Leona Patricia Bentler, 41, 147 Miller Drive, charging her with six counts of child abuse and neglect after additional information was obtained from follow up interviews with witnesses, victims and suspects involved in the case, the sheriff said.
Investigators also summoned Roberta Sauls, 57, same address, on charges of criminal responsibility for the conduct of another in reference to 5 counts of aggravated child abuse, child neglect or endangerment.
Bentler was a friend to both Robert H. Simons III and Mary E. Tittle, the children's parents, who had previously been charged in the case. Sauls is the grandmother of the five children. Both lived at the same address as Simons and Tittle at the time of the abuse.
Authorities elevated the charges against Simons and Tittle on Thursday in a Sessions Court hearing. Both parents are now charged with five counts of aggravated child abuse — which had previously been five counts of child abuse — due to the condition of the children, Assistant District Attorney General Erin McArdle said after the hearing.
Jim Lonon, Tittle’s attorney, first announced his request for a competency exam, then Assistant Public Defender Ivan Lily, representing Simons, joined the motion.
Judge Robert Lincoln granted those requests and reset the preliminary hearing for July 6.
He said the couple will remained jailed on the same bond — $50,000 each — until the hearing.
Authorities went to the Miller Road address a week ago to investigate the educational neglect of the siblings, ages 7-13.
But once investigators arrived, they discovered the children living on a bus and in a camper in the front yard. Neither had running water or bathrooms and were sparse living arrangements for the children, investigators said.
The yard was strewn with trash and the children were using it as a bathroom, according to WCSO Investigator Jared Taylor.
The children had never been to school and could not read or write.
One of the children, a 10-year-old girl, was suffering from stage 3-4 renal failure that had apparently been diagnosed several years ago, Taylor said.
The child was supposed to be on medication for the kidney ailment but it was unknown if she had been getting the proper treatment.
McArdle said the girl is out of the hospital now, but still requires treatment.
Investigators said the family had moved around a lot — apparently in an attempt to avoid detection by law enforcement. Taylor said when authorities began to ask questions about the children, the family would move.
Anyone who wants to donate money for the children can write checks to the Children’s Advocacy Center and note the money is earmarked for the five Jonesborough children.
Send checks to P.O. Box 827, Johnson City, TN 37605.
To contribute items, call 926-6528 to arrange delivery of those donations.
Keep visiting JohnsonCityPress.com for more information

http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/News/article.php?ID=76049

Casey Anthony the felon debuts on state's Web site

Casey Anthony this week made her debut on a state Web site of convicted criminals.

Casey Anthony, accused of killing her daughter, Caylee Marie, is now among the thousands featured on the Florida Department of Corrections' Web site.

Casey Anthony's name turned up on the site — http://www.dc.state.fl.us —after she pleaded guilty in a felony check-fraud case.

As a result, Anthony, 23, is now a felon — even though she isn't serving her sentence in one of Florida's prisons.

Anthony is being held without bond in the Orange County Jail on a first-degree murder charge. That's where she's serving her check-fraud sentence, which includes one year of probation.

The state's Web site lists all the people who are incarcerated, serving probation or parole, or who have escaped from supervision.

Normally, the site also provides photos of those people. But, in Anthony's case, the photo is missing, as well as certain details about her physical characteristics, like hair and eye color.

The state's not in a hurry to update its Web site.

A probation officer will soon visit her at the jail to explain the conditions of her probation and what to do if she is released from jail, said Gretl Plessinger, spokeswoman for the Department of Corrections.

The probation officer may take a photo of her during the visit for the Web site, Plessinger said. Afterward, the probation officer will check on Anthony's status at the jail regularly.

"She's in jail, so we know where she is," Plessinger said. "She is not out in the community like our other offenders."

On Monday, Anthony pleaded guilty to 13 charges in a check-fraud case.

Orange County Circuit Court Judge Stan Strickland found Casey Anthony guilty on six of the charges: one count of grand theft, four counts of check forgery, and fraudulent use of personal identification.

Strickland withheld adjudication for the remaining seven counts.

He sentenced Anthony to time served — 412 days she has already been jailed — and one year of probation. He also ordered her to pay the court and investigative costs associated with the check-fraud case.

The stolen money has already been repaid to Anthony's then-friend Amy Huizenga.

Anthony was caught on video writing checks at local stores, buying clothes and food. She also tried to pay a more than $500 cell phone bill, but by then the account had been drained.

In court, Anthony apologized to Huizenga, who was not present, and said she wished she had been a better friend.

Anthony cannot have any contact with Huizenga under the terms of her probation.

The state's Web site also offers another detail about Anthony's check-fraud punishment: Her probation is scheduled to end Jan. 24, 2011.

In the murder case, Anthony is accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter Caylee Marie Anthony in 2008.

She told authorities the toddler was kidnapped by a baby sitter — a person authorities said doesn't exist.

Anthony has pleaded not guilty in the case. Her lead attorney, Jose Baez, said Anthony is not going to plead guilty in the murder case. It's unclear when that trial will begin.

Friday Casey Hearing Will Be 1st With New Judge

Status Hearing Slated For 9:30 A.M.

POSTED: 5:17 pm EDT April 29, 2010

UPDATED: 6:19 am EDT April 30, 2010

ORLANDO, Fla. -- It looks like a new judge has spurred a new activity in the case against Casey Anthony.

Sources said e-mails and communication between prosecutors and the defense team have picked up significantly since Judge Belvin Perry replaced Judge Stan Strickland.

Perry scheduled his first hearing in the case for Friday. He set the tone in an order that reminded everyone of a need for speed, and it is up to him to keep things moving.

When Perry takes the bench on Friday at 9:30 a.m., he has told both sides to be prepared to discuss the following:

• Deadline for depositions of all ordinary and expert witnesses.
• Deadline for future motions both pending and unresolved.
• Pretrial and trial dates.

In addition, Perry wants lawyers to tell him specifically which motions will require hearings and which can be addressed based on what has already transpired in court.

Sources in the case said the number of emails between the two sides has picked up, and they've already met once in anticipation of Friday's hearing.

Perry also told lawyers to re-familiarize themselves with his 15 point courtroom decorum policy, address remarks to the judge and not each other, and avoid disparaging personal remarks or acrimony towards opposing counsel.

The last point is aimed clearly at Jose Baez and prosecutor Jeff Ashton, who have been known to mix it up a little in previous hearings.
http://www.wesh.com/news/23310853/detail.html

Amber's mother says Gardner was willing to be executed

Revelation one of many by convicted murderer during TV interview, she says

John Albert Gardner III told a local television station that he had been willing to go to death row for the rape and murder of Chelsea King and Amber Dubois, Amber's mother said Thursday.

Carrie McGonigle, mother of the slain teenager, said Gardner told the station that the plea deal that kept him from possible execution was not his idea, but was the brainchild of his attorneys.

McGonigle said KFMB Channel 8 allowed her on Wednesday evening to listen to about seven minutes of a recent telephone interview the station's reporters conducted with Gardner.

The interview is set to air tonight on the station's 5 p.m., 6:30 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts.

McGonigle said a news producer at the station told her Gardner, 31, called the station from jail.

McGonigle said Gardner refused to give details of the crimes during the interview; he said he would only share those details with the family.

But, she said, Gardner did tell the station that the attack on her daughter had been a crime of opportunity, not one that had been planned.

Amber, 14, disappeared as she walked to Escondido High School about 7 a.m. on Feb. 13, 2009. Her whereabouts remained a mystery for more than a year.

Then on Feb. 25, 2010, Poway High School senior Chelsea King, 17, disappeared during a run on a trail near Lake Hodges.

Authorities arrested Gardner and charged him with killing Chelsea, whose body was found in a shallow grave near a lake tributary on March 2. He was linked to her slaying through DNA.

After his arrest, Gardner confessed to killing Amber as well and led authorities to a shallow grave in Pala where he had buried her.

He pleaded guilty April 16 to the rapes and murders of both North County teens.

Call staff writer Teri Figueroa at 760-740-5442.
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/sdcounty/article_e38505ff-ad42-59e5-957f-259ccd736496.html

Dad Sentenced for Dumping Kids in Trash

Slinky's Daily Links

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Rep. Smith's 'International Megan's Law' inches closer to law

HAMILTON — Congressman Chris Smith’s proposed “International Megan’s Law” to protect kids worldwide from child molesters became one step closer to becoming law Wednesday, when the U.S. House’s Foreign Affairs Committee blessed his bill with unanimous support.

“I’ve been working on it for four years,” Smith said of his bill, H.R. 5138, that seeks to prevent sex assaults on children by “strongly encouraging and assisting foreign governments to establish a sex offender travel notification system.”

“It’s been four years since introduced. It died in the last (110th) Congress,” Smith told The Trentonian, adding he’s “absolutely determined it will not die in this (111th) Congress.”

Smith, a Republican from Hamilton, said his bill cleared “a very big hurdle” by being passed through the Democratic-controlled Foreign Affairs Committee with strong backing from the committee’s chairman, Democrat Howard Berman of California.

“We need to do all we can to prevent these predators from circumventing U.S. laws to prey on children in foreign countries,” Berman said Wednesday as the committee was readying to hold a voice vote on Smith’s bill. “I encourage my colleagues to support this bill.”

None of the committee’s 46 members objected to the bill. Smith’s office said the “hardest step” in the lawmaking process is for a bill to receive approval at the committee level.

Smith, who represents parts of Mercer, Burlington, Monmouth and Ocean counties, said he’s “confident” his bill will soon pass the full 435-member House with strong bipartisan support and then sail through the Senate to be signed into law by President Barack Obama by the end of the year.

If enacted into law, Smith’s bill would create a mechanism for U.S. officials to notify other countries when high-risk Americans convicted of child sex crimes seek to travel abroad. It would also call on other countries to notify the United States when sex offenders seek to travel to America.

The bill is modeled after “Megan’s Law,” which allows the American public to check if convicted sex offenders live in their neighborhoods.

“Megan’s Law” and Smith’s pending bill are named after Megan Kanka, a Hamilton 7-year-old who was kidnapped, raped and murdered in 1994 by a notorious sex offender, Jesse Timmendequas, who lived across the street, unbeknownst to residents in the neighborhood.

“We’re trying to protect kids everywhere,” said Smith, a longtime champion of human rights and the architect of several laws against human trafficking. He said his goal is “to get other countries all over Europe, all over Latin America, everywhere, to enact Megan’s Law.”

Link

Father reunited with son, 8, missing since 2008

By Conor Berry / The Berkshire Eagle
Thursday, April 29, 2010 
PITTSFIELD — A Pittsfield man embroiled in a custody dispute with his son’s mother has been reunited with the boy for the first time since February 2008, according to officials with the Lyon County Sheriff’s office in Emporia, Kan.
"It’s my understanding that it went very well," Sheriff Deputy Supervisor Daniel Evans said of Wednesday’s reunion between Pittsfield resident Richard Rodriguez, 42, and his son, Richard "Ricky" Rodriguez Jr., who is now 8 years old.
Ricky was the subject of a 2009 Massachusetts court order that granted legal custody to Rodriguez. But Ricky had been living out of state since Feb. 3, 2008, when Tina M. Helfer — Ricky’s mother — suddenly left for Kansas with her son after meeting a new boyfriend online.

Helfer and Rodriguez were a couple when they lived together with Ricky, their biological child, in Pittsfield, but they never got married. In Massachusetts, the mother is recognized as the sole custodian in out-of-wedlock arrangements. That is why Rodriguez could not file a missing-person report or ask authorities to pursue kidnapping charges after Helfer left with Ricky.
A Nov. 13, 2009, order from Berkshire Probate & Family Court Judge Edward J. Lapointe awarded sole physical and legal custody of Ricky to Rodriguez, who had petitioned the court for custody. The order was granted after Helfer failed to appear for a Nov. 9 custody hearing, according to Rinaldo
Del Gallo III, the attorney who has represented Rodriguez in the case.
But Helfer, who had legal custody of the child when she left Massachusetts, was unaware of the judge’s change-of-custody order and therefore did not commit a crime, according to authorities familiar with the case.
Berkshire District Attorney David F. Capeless said Helfer did not break any laws when she left Massachusetts with Ricky. "I know of no facts that would change our assessment of this situation," he said Wednesday, echoing remarks he made to The Eagle in an August 2009 interview.
In that interview, Capeless stated: "This woman had legal custody [of Ricky] and she leaves [Massachusetts]. A year and a half later, we hear about a custody change. Our understanding is that this woman had no notice of the change. Therefore, she is not knowingly involved in any criminal violation. ... It is not up to us to go looking for her. There is no criminal case."
Law enforcement officials in Kansas have referred to the case as an "abduction," although Helfer will not face any criminal charges in that state, according to Evans.
Rodriguez declined to comment through Del Gallo, who said Rodriguez was elated from Wednesday’s reunion with his son, who left Massachusetts just days before his sixth birthday. The father and son were expected to arrive back in Pittsfield later that day, according to Del Gallo, who will hold a 2 p.m. press conference today outside Berkshire Probate & Family Court on North Street. Del Gallo said Rodriguez will likely be on hand, but Ricky is not expected to attend.
READ MORE

Somer's Mom Sees Jarred Harrell In Court

CLAY COUNTY, Fla. -- Even before Diena Thompson laid eyes on the man accused of strangling her 7-year-old daughter Somer Thompson to death, the mourning mother was overwhelmed with anxiety and grief at the moment she'd come face to face with him.

When it came time for Jarred Harrell to enter the courtroom for a pretrial hearing Wednesday afternoon, the 24-year-old sat down and never looked back.Even though Thompson had been preparing for this moment for months, nothing could ready her for the real thing. She was emotional before, during and after the hearing, and Clay County Sheriff Rick Beseler sat by her side through the proceedings.

"It was hard to keep myself in the seat and not say anything to him," Thompson said. "He's such a coward. He couldn't even turn around and face the mother of the child he murdered.

"In court Wednesday, defense attorneys asked the judge to preserve text messages sent between the deputies who transported Harrell from Mississippi to Florida. The defense also asked that authorities preserve all their notes and memorandums, even though more than 11,000 documents and 35 video tapes have already been entered into evidence.

"I've never seen motions like this," the judge said.The motions were denied, leaving Thompson with a small sense of victory with more difficult days ahead.

Harrell is accused of kidnapping Somer on her way from her Orange Park school in October. Somer's body was found days later in a Georgia landfill, where Orange Park's trash is dumped.Knowing Harrell will be back in court in less than month on May 20, Thompson said she believes that justice for Somer will eventually come.

"I just hope the trial goes as good as today's proceedings. That's all I have to say," Thompson said.

Link

Timeline of events in Haleigh Cummings case

This timeline shows events in the case of missing Putnam County girl Haleigh Cummings:

Feb. 9, 2009 — Family members say Haleigh Ann-Marie Cummings, 5, is last seen at about 10 p.m. at her Satsuma home, 202 Green Lane, in south Putnam County.

Feb. 10, 2009

* 3 a.m. — Misty Croslin, 17, Ronald Cummings’ live-in girlfriend, wakes up to use the bathroom at around 3 a.m. On her return, she says she notices Haleigh is missing.

* 3:30 a.m. — Haleigh is reported missing to the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office soon after Haleigh’s father, Ronald Cummings, 25, returns home from his job at PDM Bridge in Palatka.

* 9:30 a.m. — A nationwide Amber Alert is issued for Haleigh Ann-Marie Cummings.

* A back door at the mobile home is found ajar, propped open by a cinder block, and no initial signs of forced entry are discovered, according to Putnam County sheriff’s officials.

* More than 130 officers from at least 10 county, state and federal law enforcement agencies continue the search for Haleigh Cummings. They converge on Satsuma, population 5,500, located about 10 miles south of Palatka.

* The search includes helicopters, water units and bloodhounds, which are searching a 5-mile radius around the girl’s home, including the banks of the St. Johns River, which is about 300 yards from the residence.

* Ronald Cummings issues a tearful plea for the return of his daughter as her mother, Crystal Sheffield, 23, stands by also in tears and holding a portrait of the child. Continue reading article - go to attached link.........

http://www.gatorsports.com/article/20100413/ARTICLES/100419756?p=1&tc=pg&tc=ar

Video - Hope Sykes in Court

Looking for justice for Nevaeh Buchanan.

It was almost a year ago when Dion Elmore helped coordinate a search involving hundreds of volunteers who walked roads and fields searching for any sign of Nevaeh Buchanan.

On Monday night Mr. Elmore, a Monroe resident, clutched his 2-year-old daughter, Alexis, as he joined other supporters at the Monroe Moose Family Center on N. Macomb St. to distribute posters.

“I couldn’t imagine if something like that would ever happen to (Alexis),” Mr. Elmore said. “Nevaeh was so precious and so innocent. It’s a shame.”

Supporters gathered at the lodge, which is just down the street from the apartment complex where the 5-year-old girl was abducted Memorial Day weekend. Nevaeh disappeared May 24 from her Charlotte Arms apartment and her body was found June 4 by fishermen along the River Raisin. Her body was left in a crude grave covered by concrete off Dixon Rd. Officials said she died of asphyxiation, possibly was buried alive. No arrest has been made.

Risa Thompson, a relative of the little girl, organized Monday’s rally, which included poster giveaways, songs and prayer. Ms. Thompson said 5,000 fliers have been printed along with 20 large posters that are to be distributed throughout the area.

Several months ago, about 2,500 fliers were distributed and Ms. Thompson said many of those she encountered thought an arrested was made. That’s why another round of distribution was necessary, she said.

“This gets awareness out there,” Ms. Thompson said. “It was unbelievable the amount of people who thought the case was solved. They had no clue.”..... (continue article).....

Elizabeth Johnson Assault Video

Updated: Monday, 26 Apr 2010, 6:44 PM MDT
Published : Monday, 26 Apr 2010, 6:44 PM MDT

PHOENIX - Elizabeth Johnson, the woman accused of kidnapping her 8-month-old non-custodial son back in December, is facing additional charges of assault.

Police say she assaulted two female inmates at the Maricopa County Jail, and surveillance video of the incident has been released.

Video from April 3 apparently shows Elizabeth Johnson grab a bottle of cleaning solution and spray another inmate in the face.

The tape shows Johnson then walk towards a second inmate and again spray her with cleaning fluid.

Johnson has been in jail since January, charged with kidnapping. But she refuses to make statements regarding Gabriel's whereabouts.

There are signs the stress of the trial and the months in jail are taking a toll on Johnson. She denies the assault accusations.

The police report says: "The other inmates in the pod were threatening her and making comments such as beating her [expletive] at recreation."

Johnson was placed in the jail's psychiatric ward. She was also refusing the eat Sheriff Arpaio's so-called Nutra-Loaf, made up of water, bread, powdered milk, vegetables, fruit, and chili powder.
http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/local/phoenix/video-jail-assault

Missing Baby's Mother Heads to Court Tuesday

Updated: Monday, 26 Apr 2010, 4:27 PM MDT
Published : Monday, 26 Apr 2010, 7:07 AM MDT

PHOENIX - Baby Gabriel has been missing since 2009 and on Tuesday, the one person who knows exactly what happened to him will head to court.
His mother, Elizabeth Johnson, hasn't been much help so far though.
Johnson kidnapped her son last year and went to San Antonio with him. She claims she gave the boy away to strangers, but also told the boys father that she killed him.
Johnson was captured in Florida and returned to Arizona. She was later put into a psychiatric ward after assaulting fellow inmates and going on a hunger strike. She also wrote out her will.

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/local/phoenix/baby_gabriel_case_court_hearing_042610

Hope Sykes Gets 15 YEARS

(More Article Links Below)

SKY973 - Staff Reports - http://www.thesky973.com/pages/6906509.php

18-year-old Hope Sykes - a cousin of Ronald Cummings, the father of missing Putnam County girl Haleigh Cummings - pleaded no contest Tuesday to one count of trafficking in narcotics. 

Judge Terry Larue sentenced her to 15 years in prison, the minimum mandatory sentence for the crime.

The prosecutor reminded the court that Sykes was arrested Jan. 3 on a drug possession charge. She had been released on her own recognizance when agents charged her with drug trafficking on Jan. 13. 

Ronald Cummings was on the witness list and was in the courtroom on Tuesday, but he did not testify. 

Cummings is among several people connected to the Haleigh case now facing drug-trafficking charges that includes Misty Croslin, his ex-wife who babysat the child the night she vanished and her brother Tommy Croslin.


Misty friend Donna Brock was among those arrested on drug trafficking charges, but is not believed to have any involvement in the disappearance of Haleigh Cummings. 

Putnam County officials recently said the case of the 5-year-old girl's disappearance in February 2009 is now considered a homicide.

ALSO READ: http://www.gainesville.com/article/20100427/ARTICLES/100429468/1109/sports?Title=Cummings-cousin-gets-15-years-for-trafficking

http://www.news4jax.com/news/23277023/detail.html

http://jacksonville.com/news/crime/2010-04-27/story/cousin-haleigh-cummings-father-sentenced-15-years-drug-trafficking


http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-haleigh-cummings-relative-sentenced-20100427,0,4820656.story


PHOTO GALLERY:
http://photos.jacksonville.com/mycapture/folder.asp?event=988854&CategoryID=57821&view=1

The Croslin Family Reunion...Guess who wasn't invited?

Reviewing the Putnam County Criminal Court Dockets -http://www.putnam-fl.com/clk_apps/crim_dkts/frame.php (note: when searching by name use lastname% firstname% or the search comes up blank), it seems that the family invitations have been sent out for May 13, 2010 to the following family members:


Hank Croslin Sr.
Hank Jr (aka Tommy) Croslin
Lisa Croslin
Ronald Cummings


All have court dates this day.  It's interesting to note the Misty seems to be left off the quest list.  Her invite is for June 3, 2010 at her lawyers request.


Now the question is, is Misty the one that's being thrown under the bus by the rest of the family, or is her lawyer waiting to see what happens with the rest.  Can't wait to see how this plays out.

Jarred Harrell

Jarred Harrell Case Put off Until Wednesday; Somer Thompson's Mother in Court

GREEN COVE SPRINGS, Fla. -- The mother of Somer Thompson was in court today at a pre-trial hearing for the man charged in her daughter's murder.
The public defender for Jarred Harrell appeared in Clay County court this morning before Circuit Court Judge John Skinner, who passed the hearing onto 1:15 Wednesday. Harrell was not present.
Somer disappeared on her walk home from Grove Park Elementary Oct. 19. Her body was found a few days later in a Georgia landfill. Harrell, 24, has been charged in the case with murder, sexual battery on a victim under 12, and lewd and lascivious battery. He has pleaded not guilty and is being held on a $1.6 million bond.
MORE:

• Somer Thompson
• Somer Thompson Murder Suspect Harrell Pleads Not Guilty
• Jarred Harrell Indicted in Somer Thompson Case
• Somer Thompson's Mom: Charges Bring Some Relief
• Sheriff: 'We are Confident that Jarred Harrell Committed this Crime'

Diena Thompson, Somer's mother, was there this morning and told the media she planned to attend Harrell's hearings throughout the legal process for her daughter.
Thompson said she wants Harrell to know that she's "not going away but he is." She has not seen him face-to-face.
Harrell was arrested Feb. 11 in Meridian, Miss., on 29 counts related to child pornography. The Clay County Sheriff's Office said the pornography crimes occurred in Clay County, but were not part of the Somer Thompson case.
However, officials said at the time that he was considered a person of interest in the case.
He was extradited to Clay County and arrived Feb. 24. He was charged in Somer's death March 26.

Missing Baby's Mother Heads to Court

Updated: Monday, 26 Apr 2010, 7:09 AM MDT
Published : Monday, 26 Apr 2010, 7:07 AM MDT

PHOENIX - Baby Gabriel has been missing since 2009 and on Monday, the one person who knows exactly what happened to him will head to court.

His mother, Elizabeth Johnson, hasn't been much help so far though.

Johnson kidnapped her son last year and went to San Antonio with him. She claims she gave the boy away to strangers, but also told the boys father that she killed him.

Johnson was captured in Florida and returned to Arizona. She was later put into a psychiatric ward after assaulting fellow inmates and going on a hunger strike. She also wrote out her will.

Trial delayed in Hataway attempted murder case

His lawyer says he’ll ask for a change of venue

By Rene Stutzman, Orlando Sentinel
9:56 AM EDT, April 26, 2010

SANFORD – The man at the center of the Tracy Ocasio missing person's case walked into court in Seminole County this morning, ready for trial in another case, but defense attorneys asked for and got a delay, so there will be no trial until June at the earliest.
James Virgin Hataway, 29, of Ocoee, is charged with attempted murder and several other charges in a 2008 attack on another woman.
During a long bench conference this morning, defense attorney Jeff Leukel said he wants the trial moved to another county.
He will make that formal request later, in writing, he said.
After Hataway was led from the courtroom and back to a cell, Leukel said that media reports about the Ocasio case will make it difficult for Hataway to get a fair trial here in this case, which has nothing to do with Ocasio.
Ocasio's mother, Liz Ocasio, was in the courtroom this morning. Last week, she vowed to be here every day of Hataway's trial.
Leukel today took over the case from another assistant public defender, Al Parsons. Earlier, Parsons had filed a motion, asking the judge to allow him to question potential jurors one by one.
To do it the regular way – to have potential jurors answer questions in front of teach other – he wrote in the motion, could taint other panel members, especially when the judge and attorneys ask about what potential members already know about Hataway.
It's not clear now when Hataway will go on trial, but it won't be before June 9.
This case involves a woman who told authorities she had driven Hataway home after a party Aug. 7, 2008, when he attacked her, choked her, banged her head into the ground several times and tried to snap her neck.
She escaped, she told authorities, and he ran away.
Eleven months later Tracy Ocasio disappeared. She was last seen leaving a Metrowest bar with Hataway. Ocoee police describe him as a person of interest.
At a hearing last week, Circuit Judge Donna McIntosh had ordered Hataway to court this morning for possible trial.
Rene Stutzman can be reached at rstutzman@orlandosentinel.com or 407-650-6394.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-james-hataway-jury-selection-20100426,0,4561065.story

Rewards for tips in Nevaeh's death to be publicized

Monroe -- Residents of the Monroe area haven't given up their search for justice for a little girl who died nearly a year ago.
The FBI is offering a $20,000 reward, and CrimeStoppers of Michigan is offering a $1,000 reward, for information leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever was responsible for Nevaeh Buchanan's death.
Reward posters for businesses and fliers for individuals are scheduled to be distributed from 6-9 p.m. Monday at the Monroe Moose Family Center 884.

Nevaeh was 5 when she disappeared May 24 from an apartment complex in Monroe. Her body was found 10 days later along the nearby River Raisin.
An autopsy found she suffocated after inhaling dirt. No one has been arrested.

From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20100426/METRO/4260357/1409/rss36#ixzz0mD29ziar

Funeral Held For Four-Year-Old Newburgh Boy

April 25, 2010
Friends, Family Mourn Death Of Marc Bookal After Months-Long Disappearance Ends In Tragedy

The parents and friends of Marc Brookal were finally able to hold a funeral for the four-year-old Saturday, four months after his disappearance

Police believe the child was murdered before Christmas, but the remains weren't discovered until after the weather warmed and snow melted.

The murdered boy's father choked on his own grief under the ceiling fans at House of Refuge Church in Newburgh. The long-delayed funeral of young Marc Bookal drew hundreds of mourners, each of whom lived through grim months of searching for the missing boy and not knowing.

But there is no doubt now. The child is dead, and it is impossibly difficult to say goodbye.

"I'll miss you, son," father Yul Bookal said.

Yul Bookal was led away, to a place only a few seats from his ex-wife and the boy's mother, Christina. That her live-in boyfriend is suspected in the boy's death only darkens the web of grief and suspicion.

The boyfriend, Cory Byrd, was seen with Marc in the last image anyone's seen of the boy – a surveillance video taken days before Christmas. Byrd claims the child vanished, but it's his past record of child abuse and reluctance to cooperate with police that's making them skeptical.

The mourners remember what was lost – a child who seemed to have an inner light.

"Marc would just come, whether he would hug, he would hug on you, lay on you, kiss you," Bishop Jeffrey Woody said. "He would so something to help you make it through. An angel."

Although Marc vanished on December 14, his body wasn't discovered until last month, in a black bag hidden near trees a few blocks from his home. It's an incomprehensible crime.

"What could a little four-year-old boy have done to make you kill him?" Yul Bookal said. "I'm trying to make sense out of it, but it makes no sense."

On Tuesday, a tree will be planted in Marc's memory at the pre-school he attended, as Newburgh tries to forget the terrible winter of his disappearance and murder, and remember instead the warmer seasons that precede and follow.

The investigation into the details of Marc Bookal's death is ongoing.

Cory Byrd is currently in prison on a parole violation. So far, no one has been charged with the young boy's murder.


Anyone with information regarding this case is urged to contact the City of Newburgh Police Department at 569-7509, or Lt. Patrick Arnold at 569-7508

James Hataway’s attempted-murder trial starts next week

(**** check the Chat House Calendar for dates)

April 22, 2010|By Rene Stutzman, Orlando Sentinel

SANFORD — A judge Thursday tentatively set the attempted murder trial of James Hataway for Monday morning.
Hataway, 29 of Ocoee, is a person of interest in another case: the disappearance last May of Tracy Ocasio.
She's the young woman who was last seen leaving a Metrowest bar with Hataway following an Orlando Magic playoff game.

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2010-04-22/news/os-hataway-pretrial-20100422_1_tracy-ocasio-liz-ocasio-ocasio-s-mother

Death row inmate Gardner: 'I would like the firing squad, please'

Shackled at his ankles and wrists and wearing an orange jump suit, Ronnie Lee Gardner leaned forward in his chair Friday and uttered seven words that will place Utah in the international spotlight.
"I would like the firing squad, please," Gardner said, his voice choking up.
Choosing bullets over lethal injection may have nothing to do with making headlines for Utah -- the first state to execute a killer after the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976 and the only to allow inmates to die by firing squad.
Gardner's cousin, Jerry Hainsworth, said Gardner told him a few years ago: "I'd rather do it that way because I've been shot a bunch of times."
That includes a bullet wound suffered during Gardner's 1985 escape attempt from the since demolished Salt Lake County courthouse. Police shot Gardner in the neck while trying to apprehend him after he escaped from prison in 1981. Hainsworth said Gardner was shot in the leg with a .22-caliber rifle as a child, was once wounded in a shootout with a brother-in-law, and once accidently shot himself in the thigh.
After hearing Gardner's request, 3rd District Court Judge Robin Reese on Friday signed a death warrant setting his execution date for June 18. The judge rejected Gardner's latest appeal of his 1985 death sentence minutes earlier, leaving a Utah Supreme Court appeal or a commutation from the Utah Board of Pardons as Gardner's only chances to avoid death.
Already on Friday opponents of capital punishment were anticipating the intense scrutiny Gardner's death would generate for Utah.
"It's so unusual and harks back to a whole other era," said Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center in Washington, D.C. "This is a spectacle in a sense."
The last Utah inmate to die by firing squad was John Albert Taylor in 1996, who said he selected the method to embarrass the state. Satellite trucks filled a large parking lot near the state prison in Draper.
Jack Ford, who was then the Utah Department of Corrections spokesman, on Friday read a list of reporters, photographers and other media personnel who were on the prison grounds. Ford estimated there were 150 media personnel in all, including major American news outlets and journalists from Great Britain, Denmark, Italy and Australia.
International journalists detailed how the shots rang out, Ford said, reporting the story as if to say, "You can't believe what they do in the United States."
The current Corrections spokesman, Steve Gehrke, said as of Friday afternoon he had already received inquiries from several national media outlets. Visiting reporters will find the firing squad still has its proponents among Utah lawmakers. In 2004, when the Legislature was debating whether to eliminate the firing squad, then-Sen. David Thomas, R-South Weber, and others like him supported keeping the method.
"I know there are a lot who suggest getting rid of firing squad is more humane but we've had the firing squad since statehood and it's effective," Thomas told The Salt Lake Tribune Friday.
Prior to Taylor, the inmate to die by firing squad was Gary Gilmore, whose crimes and execution spawned the book The Executioner's Song and a television movie of the same name.
Gardner chose to die by firing squad after his conviction in 1985. But when death warrants were issued for Gardner in 1990 and 1996, he chose lethal injection. All those execution dates were stayed through appeals. Gardner, citing his arthritis and leukemia, also has wavered over whether he wants to keep appealing or submit to his sentence.
On Friday, 10 bailiffs and prison guards were ready in the courtroom as Gardner was led in through a side door at 9:14 a.m.
Gardner sat with his lawyers, then turned to greet Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff. Shurtleff reciprocated and asked Gardner how he was doing.
"Good considering the circumstances," Gardner said.
Gardner sat quietly through the two-hour hearing, occasionally pivoting his head from shoulder to shoulder.
His lawyers argued Friday that putting Gardner to death after 25 years of litigation amounted to unconstitutional cruel and unusual punishment and that his rights were violated because the state did not pay for experts to testify about his abusive childhood and alleged brain damage during the penalty phase of his 1985 trial.
Thomas Brunker, an assistant attorney general who represented the state in the hearing, said other courts have already heard and ruled against those arguments.
Gardner's attorneys also introduced evidence Friday that his victims' family and friends oppose the imposition of the death sentence. But Reese said Gardner had exhausted all his legal options.
"It's my conclusion not to second-guess the courts or undertake an independent review," the judge said.
Hainsworth, who did not attend Friday's hearing, said he feels his cousin wasn't surprised by the ruling.
"He knows what he did," Hainsworth said. "The last time I talked to him he told me straight up: 'There's no doubt in my mind I deserve what I'm getting.'"
ncarlisle@sltrib.com
pmanson@sltrib.com
http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_14945392

UPDATE: Authorities believe body found is missing baby thrown over Driscoll Bridge

By TOM BALDWIN
STAFF REPORTER
Authorities said Saturday they recovered the body of a three-month-old girl they believe was heaved by her father into the frigid Raritan River from the Garden State Parkway's Driscoll Bridge in February.
"This morning, shortly after 8:30 a.m., people walking the southern bank of the Raritan River in Sayrevile located the body of an infant," said State Police Sargent Stephen Jones.
"The baby was found just east of the Route 35 bridge, known as the Victory Bridge," he said, adding, "The clothing and wrappings in which the child were found are consistent with the descriptions given in relation to three-month-old Zara Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem, who has been missing since she was abducted by her biological father, Shamsid-Din Abdur-Raheem, on February 16."
State police can not be certain of the identity until lab tests are in.

"They will follow through by submitting DNA samples that will be processed as soon as possible,'' Jones said.
"Zara's mother has been notified of the discovery, but the infant is considered unidentified until DNA testing or other means can prove her identity,'' he said.

The discovery came at a spot about seven football fields' length from where authorities believe the baby hit the water, suggesting the child's body drifted in and out with the twice-a-day tides.
In February, the baby's father, age 21 of Galloway Township near Atlantic City, was said to have seized the child at the home of the girl's maternal grandmother in East Orange.

Police at the time said Abdur-Raheem confessed that he had heaved the girl over the side of the Driscoll Bridge, which with 15 lanes is one of the world's widest. It connects Woodbridge to Sayreville.

Middlesex County authorities charged the father with murder well before the baby's body was found. The father has pleaded not guilty.

About a day before the incident, the baby's mother, Venetta Benjamin, who is 21 and a college student, sought a restraining order against the father, though authorities did not provide the order until a day later, after Abdur-Raheem allegedly grabbed his child.
News reports indicated the man was in a rage, striking the grandmother with his van when she tried to block him from fleeing with the child.

This led Essex County prosecutors to charge Abdur-Raheem with kidnapping and attempted murder.

Reports circulated Saturday that the people who discovered the baby's body had gone to the river's edge following word that a despondent person had leaped from the span. But Sayreville and State Police said they could not confirm that Saturday.

This is a developing story. Check http://www.mycentraljersey.com">MyCentralJersey.com for updates as they become available.
http://www.mycentraljersey.com/article/20100424/NEWS/100424010/-1/newsfront

'Wylie's Angel,' Gerren Joseph Isgrigg ~ Update

.....The suspect's husband, Patrick Phillips, would not go on camera, but he says he's heartbroken and devastated.

He and his wife have been taking care of Gerren for the past three and a half years.

He told us Gerren was in vegetative state and that his wife took good care of him, fed him and gave him medicine every day.

Phillips says he doesn't know what happened, only that his wife of 30 years told him that she left Gerren with a social worker last week....

Link to entire article

Grandmother Charged With Murdering 'Wylie's Angel'

Wylie's Angel has been identified as 6-year-old Gerren Joseph Isgrigg.

Authorities arrested 63-year-old Darlene Phillips for killing 6-year-old Gerren Joseph Isgrigg, the child authorities spent more than a week identifying after being found dead near Lake Lavon.

They announced the arrest hours after authorities revealed the child's identity. Phillips is Isgrigg's maternal grandmother and primary caretaker. She has been charged with murder and is currently being held in the Collin County Detention Facility with a $500,000 bond.

On April 15, a worker who was cutting the grass on the 1900 block of Skyview Drive near Lake Lavon discovered the body and alerted authorities. The medical examiner said there was no sign of trauma, but that the boy had significant medical needs and appeared to have had been fed through a feeding tube.

Investigators identified the child Friday from a tip received by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

More

Nevaeh posters to be distributed Monday

A reward poster distribution campaign on the Nevaeh Buchanan case will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. Monday at Monroe Moose Family Center 884, 1320 N. Macomb St.

The FBI is offering a $20,000 reward for the arrest and conviction of Nevaeh’s murderer. CrimeStoppers of Michigan has a $1,000 reward for any tips leading to her killer; tipsters can be anonymous.

Standard-size reward fliers will be passed out to individuals, while posters will be given to businesses. The event will end with a prayer vigil led by Pastor Dale Hayford of Community Crosswalk Church in Monroe, with prayers focusing on justice for Nevaeh.

The public is welcome to stop by and pick up posters and join friends and family in prayer.

http://www.monroenews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100423/NEWS01/704239971

Wylie's Angel: Hundreds Gather for Vigil for Unidentified Boy

Composite image of unidentified boy. (Wylie Police Department)

WYLIE, Texas (CBS/AP) Hundreds of strangers gathered to attend a vigil for an unidentified boy known as "Wylie's Angel" who was found dead earlier this month near a North Texas lake.
PICTURES: Hundreds Gather at Vigil for Wylie's Angel


Authorities have been working to identify the boy who was found April 15 by a gardener in a park near Lavon Lake. Police believe the boy was about 6-years-old.

Investigators say the boy probably "had significant medical needs." He also showed signs of having had a feeding tube. Autopsy results have not been released.

Malorie Martinez, who helped organize the vigil Thursday night near the lake, told The Dallas Morning News that she didn't think she would get so much support when she started a Facebook page called "Wylie's Angel." The group now has almost 40,000 members.
If you have any information about this case, call the hotline of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-843-5678.
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20003264-504083.html

New Casey Anthony Docs ready to read

Link to docs

The documents include evidence logs, lab work sheets and information about hair samples.

New discovery released in Casey Anthony case

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - New discovery has been released in the case against Casey Anthony.

FOX 35 recently got a look at some jailhouse letters written by Anthony. She wrote roughly 50 letters to another inmate in the Orange County Jail. Her defense chose not to fight the release of the documents.

READ: Casey's Prison Letters Part One >>>

READ: Casey's Prison Letters Part Two>>>

Of Caylee, she writes:

“In a lot of ways, I’m content by the fact that she will never have to have her heart broken, or see the constant negativity that out society breeds, no will she ever be abused or taken advantage of.”

We learn that Casey is also writing a book:

“Started writing a foreword to one of my latest creations: the ‘Lovers and Friends’ book, cleverly stating that it’s not your average ‘Kiss-And-Tell’ story. Inquiring minds want to know and boy are they in for a treat!”

Some of her notes indicate a mistrust of family members. Of her brother, Lee, she writes:

“I find out that my brother was acting according to scripts, via law enforcement, when he came to visit me back in July and August, and he was reporting back to them with whatever I told them.”

Of her mother, Cindy, she writes:

“Come to find out that she put a trademark on Caylee’s name months back, never told me, and even talked about doing the same with mine. This is the same time she publicly states that she plans on writing a book about this! B-E-T-R-A-Y-A-L!!! I’m so sick to my stomach even thinking about this. I’m the only person who has tried to protect Caylee throughout all of this, and it kills me!”

Casey goes on to say that:

“I’ve officially lost my entire blood-related family in the blink of an eye, in the middle of mourning my daughters death, trying to exonerate myself, and figure out what steps to take in achieving these things, and I get [expletive] over by my entire family.”

More here

Polk Co. Detectives Arrest 50 On Child Porn Charges

8 Children (being actively abused or exploited) Rescued From Abusive Adults

Polk County officials arrested dozens in a child pornography investigation, including an Isleworth Country Club security guard.

Cutting edge software is making it easier for law enforcement across the state of Florida to target those suspected of downloading and trading child porn, according to Polk County detectives.

A high-profile bust led Polk County authorities to the Isleworth Country Club where they arrested security guard Stephen Kaczmarski and charged him with 28 counts of child porn possession.

The Polk County Sheriff's Office deputies call their latest investigation "Operation Child Shield Two" and said the program has brought in 50 arrests.Sheriff Grady Judd said during the course of the operation, they were able to rescue eight children who were being actively abused or exploited by adults.

One common complaint from law enforcement is that once they make these child porn arrests, judges are not passing stiff enough sentences.These latest arrests by Polk County investigators brings the number of people arrested on child porn charges to 141 since 2007.

http://www.wesh.com/news/23236568/detail.html

Haleigh Cummings – More Tapes From Ronald Cummings

Posted on April 22nd, 2010

by Simon Barrett in crime

Read 183 times.

The quality of these tapes is not great. They are unlikely to win any awards for sound production, but they do contain some interesting comments from Ron. The clips concern the area of the St. Johns river that law enforcement recently searched for evidence in the Haleigh Cummings case.
Clip One
Clip Two
Once again Cousin Joe Overstreet gets a mention, but maybe the most interesting aspect is the reference to the movie ‘Lake Placid’. I am not offering any commentary on these tapes, I will leave that up to others.
I am hoping that on our program on Sunday we will be joined by an expert in statement analysis. I can not wait to hear what he has to say!
The PCSO have officially said that no human remains were found in the recent search for Haleigh Cummings in the Shell Harbour area of the St. Johns river. The PCSO are rather good with the construction of press releases, they skilfully omitted to offer any information about any other material evidence found in the Haleigh Cummings case. I generally read everything from them at least 10 times before drawing any conclusions. Quite often the message is in the release, you just have to find it.
Simon Barrett
http://www.bloggernews.net/124378

Tracy Ocasio: James Hataway returns to court in separate attempted murder case

6:41 AM EDT, April 22, 2010
SANFORD – What's likely to be James Hataway's final pretrial conference in an attempted murder case in Seminole County is to begin this morning.

The woman who says Hataway attacked her in Seminole is not Tracy Ocasio, who's been missing for 11 months, but this woman told prosecutors her story after she learned that Hataway was a person of interest in Ocasio's disappearance.

Hataway could go on trial as early as Monday on the Seminole County charges. If convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in prison.

In that case, the woman told authorities that she had been at a party with Hataway Aug. 7, 2008, had driven him home and as they hugged good-bye in the car, he began choking her.

She got out of the car and ran, but he chased her down and began banging her head into the ground, she told authorities. She also says he tried to snap her neck.

She got away after she began screaming and neighbors began to come to her aid.

About a year later, Ocasio disappeared. She was last seen leaving a MetroWest bar with Hataway. He has not been charged in that case.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-hataway-pretrial-20100422,0,3339055,print.story

Rene Stutzman can be reached at rstutzman@orlandosentinel.com or 407-650-6394.

Haleigh Cummings - Has Art H. and Nancy G. gone too far?

Melissa Huckaby - Ex-Husband

Melissa Huckaby Case on Good Morning America - Women Who Kill

Sheriff: Haleigh's Remains Not Found

PUTNAM COUNTY, Fla. -- The sheriff in charge of the investigation into the disappearance of Haleigh Cummings has denied media reports that the girl's remains were found during a search of the St. Johns River last week."A rumor has spread throughout our community that her body has been located. This rumor is false," Sheriff Jeff Hardy said in a news release Wednesday afternoon.Hardy said animal remains were recovered during the search, including alligator claws and teeth, but no human remains were found."Misty Croslin could have easily seen these items while she was at the dock while the dive operation was in progress," Hardy said.Earlier Wednesday, investigative reporter Art Harris of The Bald Truth claimed that detectives showed Croslin bones they had recovered from the river. Harris said investigators believed the bones belonged to Haleigh.Croslin was Haleigh's father's live-in girlfriend when Haleigh disappeared from the couple's Satsuma trailer in February 2009. Croslin was the last person to see Haleigh.After a search last week, Hardy announced that the case had turned into a homicide investigation.Croslin was taken from jail, where she is being held on unrelated charges, and brought to the search site last week. The area that was searched is around five miles from where Haleigh disappeared.

new motions

http://itsamysterytome.wordpress.com/2010/04/21/judge-blevin-perry-and-the-newest-motions-filed-by-casey-anthonys-defense/


It’s almost as if Lyons gave her students a graded assignment to come up with ideas for motions, and as a reward she filed every last one of them right down to the most ridiculous. Kind of like throwin’ a group of people’s chit at the wall to see who’s sticks (an “A”) who’s partially sticks (a “B”), who’s sorta almost sticks (a “C”) Who’s leaves brown stains (a “D”) and who’s can’t even draw flies (an “F”).

Sheriff's Office: Bones Seen By Misty Croslin Near Satsuma Dock Were Animal Bones

SATSUMA, Fla. - Misty Croslin saw bones on her recent visit to a dock along the St. Johns River, but they were not human bones, according to the Putnam County Sheriff's Office.
A tip last week led investigators to conduct an intense three-day search at the Shell Harbour boat ramp south of Satsuma in Putnam County.
Haleigh Cummings has been missing since February, 2009, and Misty Croslin is the one who said she put her to bed that night.
Croslin, now jailed on drug charges, was brought in shackles to the boat ramp.
According to the sheriff's office, divers had uncovered many bones and placed them near the dock to dry.
They were mostly deer bones, with some alligator and possibly other animal bones.
An anthropologist was on the scene to identify them.
The sheriff's office said Croslin saw the bones as she was being led to the ramp, but at no time did investigators tell her they were human bones.
The sheriff's office also said many of the bones were shipped to the FDLE lab for further investigation, and that some of those may be shipped on to other labs as well.
While some items have been shipped to a human remains lab in Gainesville, investigators said that was only for teaching purposes at the lab, and they do not need those items back.
The biggest news to come out of last week's search was that Sheriff Jeff Hardy announced that his department believes Haleigh is most likely dead, but he said the search will continue until they know what happened.
Link

Questions and things that make you go hmmm...

This week there has been a lot of speculation as to whether or not Haleigh's remains have been found.  Many believe so due to reports stating:

• The case is now deemed a homicide investigation - http://www.examiner.com/x-7403-Tampa-Crime-Examiner~y2010m4d16-Sheriff-says-missing-Florida-girl-Haleigh-Cummings-was-murdered-video
• Two cinder blocks reported recovered from the water -http://www.news4jax.com/news/23174697/detail.html
• Yellow rope found and also found at the home of Tommy -http://www.artharris.com/2010/04/19/exclusive-yellow-rope-found-in-haleigh-case/
• The family being told to make funeral arrangements -http://www.cfnews13.com/News/Local/2010/4/17/haleigh39s_dad_told_to_make_funeral_arrangements.html
• Reports of Misty being shown bones - http://www.news4jax.com/news/23217461/detail.html - UPDATE (10:40am) : 
  Sheriff's Office: Bones Seen By Misty Croslin Near Satsuma Dock Were Animal Bones
  http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/local/news-article.aspx?storyid=155059

The list goes on.

Today, there is an interesting post on the Nancy Grace blog - Did cops find a body -http://nancygrace.blogs.cnn.com/2010/04/21/haleighs-family-told-to-make-funeral-arrangements-did-cops-find-a-body/

This article brings more questions.  

"Ronald Cummings' attorney told us Ronald and his family were advised to start making funeral arrangements, "They told them that it was now a homicide investigation and no longer a missing persons, and that they would have enough to go forward if they wanted to make funeral arrangements."

According to Merchant (lead investigator) he presented two options to parents Ronald Cummings and Crystal Sheffield about a funeral for Haleigh: The couple could wait seven years for Haleigh to be declared dead by the state of Florida and then be issued a death certificate or they can go before a judge before the seven years lapses to request a death certificate. "

Is LE trying to have Haleigh declared dead so she is no longer a missing person and they can proceed with murder charges and no longer have to worry about the lack of a body? 


Does this put even more pressure on Misty, Tommy, and Joe to finally tell the true story?


If Ron and Crystal proceed with having Haleigh declared dead, can they stop investigating sightings?


Why tell them they would have to wait seven years if they did find remains?


Seems that LE is trying to apply more pressure.  It sure makes you go hmmmmm...

UPDATE 1:30PM - Sheriff: Haleigh Cummings Rumors False - Investigators Say Bones Found In River Those Of Animals - http://www.news4jax.com/news/23217461/detail.html

Missing Flagler boy found in New York City

By The Times-Union

A 3-year-old boy who went missing after his mother was arrested on counterfeiting charges in Flagler County Sunday was dropped off at a New York church Tuesday, authorities said.

Nathaniel Fons was found in good condition at St. Patrick's Cathedral shortly after 6 p.m. He had a note on him asking whoever found him to notify the Flagler County Sheriff's Office.

Fons was dropped off by an unknown woman, according to a Flagler County Sheriff's Office news release.

His mother, Erin Jessie Comeau, 26, of Maryland was arrested Sunday along with Christopher Michael Brandsetter-Howell, 21.

Comeau said she wanted her son sent to relatives in Land O' Lakes.

The boy was last seen in a Jacksonville Holiday Inn parking lot in the 9100 block of Baymeadows Road with Eleanor Black, 29, and William Scott, 32, and their two daughters. They still haven't been located.

Link

Report: Cops Showed Misty Bones

Independent, Investigative Reporter Releases New Details Online

POSTED: Wednesday, April 21, 2010

UPDATED: 7:00 am EDT April 21, 2010

An Amber Alert was issued Feb. 10, 2009, for 5-year-old Haleigh Cummings  MORE ONLINE: Haleigh Cummings Disappearance Timeline Tour Of Satsuma Home Where Haleigh Disappeared

Art Harris, and independent, investigative reporter, claims that detectives showed Misty Croslin bones they recovered from the crime scene along the St. Johns River.
According to Harris' blog The Bald Truth, police believe the bones could be the remains of Haleigh Cummings, the 5-year-old who disappeared from her Putnam County home 14 months ago.
Investigators said when they got the tip that led to the river, they were encouraged it would lead to something significant because it's a place they've never searched before, it's in a remote area and it's a logical place to get rid of something.
Art Harris claims Misty Croslin shared the news with her brother, Tommy Croslin last Friday night. The pair was on their way from the St. Johns County Jail where they are awaiting trial on drug trafficking charges.
According to artharris.com, once they reached the Putnam County Sheriff’s Department in Palatka, detectives put Misty and Tommy Croslin in separate rooms for further interrogation, before allowing them to ride together back to jail in the next county. Sources tell artharris,com, it was their first extended visit since both were arrested on drug charges three months ago.

WKMG A woman who appears to be Misty Cummings was seen on a river dock where investigators were searching for evidence in the Haleigh Cummings case.

Harris goes on to say "other than saying she showed 'emotion,' it’s unclear how either reacted or what was said, but their ride, like collect calls from jail, was caught on audio tape."
Police declined to confirm the account, or comment on any possible evidence.
But Terry Shoemaker, Ronald Cummings attorney, told Nancy Grace police have advised his client, and mother Crystal Sheffield, to make funeral arrangements to bury their missing five year old.
The Bald Truth reports Haleigh's family has turned over items containing Haleigh’s DNA, for forensic experts to compare to DNA from bones found at the river.

Video: Search For Haleigh Enters Second Day
Uncut Video: Searching The St. Johns River
Images: Search For Haleigh Leads To St. Johns River

During one visit to the river, Ronald Cummings told Art Harris, Joe Overstreet enjoyed tossing deer meat into the water and watching alligators go into a feeding frenzy.
“He said, all of a sudden, there were a hundred eyes that popped out of the water, and Joe said, ‘This would be a good place to get rid of a body.’”
Putnam County investigators flew to Antioch, Tenn., last week to question Joe Overstreet, a cousin of Misty Cummings. When Haleigh vanished from her father's Florida mobile home 14 months ago, Overstreet said he was in Satsuma on vacation. Investigators have since flown back to Florida. They said they've interviewed Overstreet several times before.
Overstreet and Cummings' grandmother, Flora Hollars, who also lives in Antioch, said it was her tip that led investigators to search the St. Johns River. Though Sheriff Hardy said the tip did not come from Tennessee, but from a source.
Anyone with information on Haleigh's disappearance or whereabouts is asked to contact the Putnam County Sheriff's Office at 386-329-0808 or Crime Stoppers at 888-277-TIPS.
http://www.news4jax.com/news/23217461/detail.html