Missing Person Photos
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are unknown. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2 to 5 percent of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
A number of organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and images of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
Resources for Missing Persons
According to current statistics, 4,000 people in the United States go missing every day.
Sometimes a child suddenly vanishes from the bus stop or the local park or even from their own yard or bedroom. Or a teenager doesn�t return home after a walk to the neighborhood grocery store or a bike ride or a party with friends.
Other times, an adult is mysteriously absent from their job or neighbors haven�t seen them for several days, and family and friends haven�t heard from them either.
Missing Person Photos
Haleigh Ann-Marie Cummings
Haleigh, date, approximate 2009; Age-progression to age 12 (date, approximate 2015); Ronald Cummings; Misty Croslin Cummings; Hank "Tommy" Croslin; Crystal Sheffield; Joseph Overstreet
Date Missing 02/09/2009
Missing From
Satsuma, Florida
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
White
Date of Birth 08/17/2003 (19)
Age 5 years old
Height and Weight 3'0, 39 pounds
Medical Conditions Haleigh has been diagnosed with Turner Syndrome, a genetic disorder present in approximately 1 out of every 2,500 live female births. Turner Syndrome's features may include, but are not limited to: restricted growth of the long bones and ovaries, heart defects and vision problems, multiple birthmarks, and swollen fingers and toes. Most people with Turner's Syndrome don't grow to be more than four and a half feet tall. Haleigh requires hormone treatments and monthly visits to a cardiologist and an endocrinologist due to her condition. She may be in need of medical attention.
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Blonde hair, brown eyes. Haleigh's ears are pierced and she has red highlights in her hair. She has a round birthmark on the lower left side of her back, about four inches in size. She also has brown birthmarks on her left cheek and right jawline. Her nickname is Haleigh Bug. Haleigh is short for her age. She has a lazy left eye and she has chubby fingers and toes.
Details of Disappearance Haleigh was last known to be sleeping in her family's trailer in the 200 block of Green Lane in the area of Hermit's Cove in Satsuma, Florida, late in the evening on February 9, 2009. She went to bed at 8:00 p.m. Her father's live-in girlfriend of five months, Misty Janette Croslin (sometimes identified in the media by her later married name, Misty Cummings), went to sleep in the same room at 10:00 p.m. Haleigh's three-year-old brother was also sleeping in that room.
Haleigh's father, Ronald Lemyles Cummings, finished working second shift and arrived home sometime after 3:00 a.m. on February 10. Misty told him she'd just discovered Haleigh was missing from her bed. The rear door to the trailer was several inches ajar and the screen door had been propped open with a cinder block. Ronald and Misty called 911 at 3:37 a.m. to report Haleigh's disappearance.
The police found no sign of forced entry to the trailer, but they are uncertain whether the back door was locked. Ronald and Misty have insisted that it was, and Ronald maintains the trailer was broken into.
Haleigh's younger brother told investigators that a man dressed in black had come to their home that night and taken his sister. Authorities aren't sure how much credence to give to his story, given his age. An extensive search of the area turned up no sign of Haleigh. Her father stated she wouldn't have left home by herself at night, as she is afraid of the dark.
Initial reports were that Haleigh was last seen wearing a pink shirt and underwear, but police later said they'd found the shirt. They wouldn't say where, but Misty says she found it in the laundry pile after she was allowed back into the house. Investigators now say they don't know what Haleigh was wearing the night of her disappearance.
Photos of Ronald and Misty are posted with this summary. They got married in March, a month after Haleigh's disappearance. Ronald stated he thought Haleigh would have wanted it. They needed to get permission from Misty's parents, as she was only seventeen years old.
In October 2009, six months into the marriage, Ronald filed for divorce. He cited irreconcilable differences as the reason, mainly the stress caused by Haleigh's disappearance and the subsequent police investigation and media attention. The divorce became final within days; since Ronald and Misty had only been married a short time and they didn't share any property or have any children together, there was little to discuss.
Haleigh visited her biological mother, Crystal Sheffield, every other weekend. A photo of Sheffield is posted with this summary. She and Ronald, who never married, separated four years before Haleigh disappeared and fought over custody of their two children in court. Ronald wanted custody because Sheffield had admitted to using cocaine and because Haleigh had missed several doctor's appointments while in her care. Sheffield alleged Ronald was violent. She once sought a protective order against him, but the was dismissed.
Ronald was given full custody of both children in December 2005. He had minor brushes with the law, mainly drug arrests, prior to Haleigh's disappearance, but in most s the charges were dropped or he got deferred adjudication.
Both Sheffield and Ronald retained attorneys after Haleigh's disappearance. Through her attorney, Sheffield accused Ronald of child abuse and neglect. Both sides' attorneys have since withdrawn their representation. Police also questioned Sheffield's fiance as well as other family members, friends of the family, and neighbors.
Police repeatedly questioned Misty about Haleigh's disappearance and looked into the possibility that she wasn't in fact at home when the child disappeared. Misty describes herself as a devoted caregiver to Haleigh and her brother and said she had been home the entire night and hadn't left the children alone.
Investigators have been publicly skeptical of Misty's story, stating she failed four polygraphs and one voice stress test, and changed her story multiple times; they described her accounts as "consistently inconsistent."
Misty and her older brother, Hank Thomas "Tommy" Croslin Jr., later accused Joseph "Joe" Overstreet of kidnapping Haleigh. Overstreet, who is from Tennessee, was in Florida when the child disappeared. He visited the Cummings home on February 9 and left only a few hours before Haleigh vanished. The next day he returned to Tennessee. Photos of Overstreet and Tommy are posted with this summary. Misty stated Overstreet had sexually abused her when she was a child and had been involved in criminal activity his whole life, although he is not registered as a sex offender.
Tommy was the first to accuse Overstreet of kidnapping, stating Overstreet planned to steal a machine gun from the Cummings residence and, when he couldn't find it, he threatened Misty with a knife and took Haleigh. Overstreet and Tommy drove to the St. Johns River, five miles from Haleigh's home, and Overstreet threw the child in the water. Misty later affirmed his statement, saying she had lied earlier because she was afraid of her cousin.
Overstreet denies any involvement in Haleigh's disappearance and he hasn't been charged in connection with it or even named as a suspect, although he has been interviewed. Authorities searched the river in April 2010 and brought Misty to the dock, but the search yielded nothing of interest.
Misty, Tommy and Ronald were arrested on unrelated drug trafficking charges in January 2010, along with Ronald's cousin, Hope Antwanette Sykes, and a friend, Donna Michelle Brock. Sykes, Tommy, Ronald and Brock all pleaded guilty, and Misty pleaded no contest. All the defendants except Misty were sentenced to fifteen years in prison; Misty got twenty-five years.
Misty and Tommy's parents, Hank and Lisa Croslin, were also jailed on drug charges, albeit ones unrelated to their children's drug , in the summer of 2010. They have since been released. Overstreet also is facing drug charges in Tennessee.
Haleigh's favorite food is macaroni and cheese, and her favorite things to play with are makeup and her laptop computer. At the time of her disappearance, she was a kindergarten student at Browning Pearce Elementary School in San Mateo, Florida. Her remains unsolved and is classified as a homicide.
Investigating Agency
Putnam County Sheriff's Office
386-329-0801
Other
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
America's Most Wanted
The Ocala Star-Banner
Florida Department of Law Enforcement
News4Jax
Fox News
MSNBC
The Palatka Daily News
The Gainesville Sun
CNN
The St. Augustine Record
Sky News
First Coast News
MySpace Page for Haleigh Cummings
WESH 2
The Florida Times-Union
WOKV
Fox 30 Action News
Help Find the Missing
The Times of the Internet
CBS News
Florida Department of Corrections
Missing Person Photos
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are unknown. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2 to 5 percent of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
A number of organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and images of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
Resources for Missing Persons
According to current statistics, 4,000 people in the United States go missing every day.
Sometimes a child suddenly vanishes from the bus stop or the local park or even from their own yard or bedroom. Or a teenager doesn�t return home after a walk to the neighborhood grocery store or a bike ride or a party with friends.
Other times, an adult is mysteriously absent from their job or neighbors haven�t seen them for several days, and family and friends haven�t heard from them either.
Missing Person Photos
