Inside the Shocking Misty Croslin Tapes!
Art Harris Reports Latest On HLN Nancy Grace Show 2-5-2010
From Bald Truth Staff, (c) www.artharris.com, all rights reserved
The Bald Truth has learned law enforcement has redacted significant portions of the Misty Croslin jailhouse tapes to protect crucial information in the felony drug cases they are building against the Satsuma, Florida babysitter who married a missing five year old’s father a month after she reported Haleigh Cummings Missing. This coming Wednesday, Feb. 10, marks one year since she vanished from the trailer Croslin and her father, Ronald Cummings shared.
Police believe she holds the key to cracking the case, and has been withholding information, something she denies.
It’s no secret long, thousands of frustrating hours of patient police work have finally landed Croslin behind bars where detectives have wanted her all along, behind bars on an unexpected bonanza of drug trafficking charges, eight in all for selling illegal painkillers, and facing as many as 180 years behind bars if convicted.
Unless, of course, she coughs up enough information about Haleigh to allow her attorney, Robert Fields, to make a deal. For now, she’s talking up a storm to her family in phone calls and visits, all caught on tape. Inmate communication is always monitored, with all collect calls warning the conversation is taped.
In Croslin’s case, those tapes have done alot to reveal her alleged role in the drug case, but sources tell me there’s much more detail officers have edited out. While she remains behind bars in St. John’s County, along with her brother, Tommy, and 44 year old blond confidante Donna Brock, her husband and alleged co-conspirator in the drug cases, Ronald Cummings is in the Putnam County Jail.
While Sheriff Jeff Hardy tells me he’s keeping the drug cases and the missing child separate, with detectives looking into Haleigh Cummings not even told a drug bust of key figures in their case was coming down until the day before it happened, it’s the Haleigh task force that is reviewing and redacting the jail recordings of the drug defendants.
I know, I know. You need a scorecard, but as you can hear for yourself, Croslin’s parents are doing an excellent job of extracting admissions, unwittingly, about their daughter’s role in the drug deals.
As I mentioned on Nancy Grace’s Show, it’s almost painful to hear her admit to this or that from simple questions from her father, Hank, Sr., who tells me he warned her long ago and regrets he ever gave his blessing to allowing her to marry Ronald Cummings. For one, he says he believed Cummings was closer to Misty’s age. “like 19. Then I heard he was 20, and by the time they told me his real age, I thought he’s too old to be marrying my baby girl, but it was too late to change her mind.”
Her sister, Chelsea, and others say it was Cummings who isolated her from them, and corrupted her further. Her father says she was sneaking out to run with a bad crowd, and he felt helpless to stop it, so figured “she would be safer with Ronald. I know it was a big mistake. I wish I could change things; I feel bad about it. But we are all tore up about Haleigh and if she does know anything, want her to tell it.”
What he’s been saying in interviews with The Bald Truth, Hank Croslin is now telling his daughter, on video and audiotape, behind bars. That’s where seasoned detectives figured she’d wind up if she ran out of money, and others stopped enabling her…that she’d get desperate and starting making mistakes. But weeks and months passed, and a frustrated public was grumbling for them to arrest her on anything no matter how small, jaywalking, negligence, whatever.
Most people didn’t get it; but law enforcement knew they needed The Big One, a criminal case that would stick and that woudl be serious enough to shift the balance of power… to their hands, give them leverage to use against her and others to tell what they know about Haleigh…Donna Brock, for instance, did keep in touch with LE, as she picked Misty and drove her around, initially trying to keep her safe from an angry husband when she was a volunteer for Texas Equusearch, then after she was fired as a friend.
But detectives had to bite their lips as Donna bought her cigarettes, took her shopping, coddled and encouraged her, even convinced her to allow her to make tape recordings about Misty’s version of events, as she told me. I didn’t know she had such a fetish for taping, and taped most phone calls, including mine, according to someone she played the tapes for, bragging about all the people she was going to bring down who had done her or Misty wrong.
Then her money apparently began to run short, and a quick run to Virginia to see a dentist gave her a prescription Misty would allegedly wind up dealing because ‘Donna needs the money,” she told an undercover officer. That’s the deal that went down at the Flying J truck stop. All caught on tape, audio, and video. That’s the ending the task force imagined, if they just kept the pressure on, and could convince others to let Misty crash and burn on her own, hit bottom, so they could pick up the pieces and assemble the puzzle, as they are trying to do now.
February 7th, 2010 at 11:09 am
Wow! Another great article, Art. Unlike Casey Anthony, I just don’t think Misty is a “killer”. I think an accident happened, and I also think “others” were in the trailer at the time it happened. Misty is AFRAID to say what she knows because she is not just afraid of Ronald, she is also afraid of whoever was in the trailer when Haleigh died. The bottom line is: FEAR. If she and her family could get out of that area, or go into Witness Protection, I think she would talk. Otherwise, she is simply to scared.
I am so in hopes that she will become more and more rational as she becomes free of drugs.
I think that Donna woman is BAD NEWS…and needs a through back ground check. “Where does she get her money, for instance?”
February 7th, 2010 at 7:06 pm
“Be Fruitful and Multiply”
Nevermind brakes, might as well turn on the ‘tele’ and see who’s on first…raking in bunches of bucks…
TIME WARNER CABLE!
February 7th, 2010 at 7:07 pm
Wonder ‘Who’s their Bank?’
February 7th, 2010 at 7:11 pm
Art, Why is the focus only on Misty that she will break? There is her ex-husband who should be the focus on breaking! I shuddered when I read he is back in Putnam County on drug charges; everyone knows what happens when he gets in the PC jail! Is it gonna’ be another “get out of jail free card” in PC for Cummings? If so, something has to be changed with the PC justice system…..or changes period. Cummings has bragged about his buddies who govern the jail and decision makers. He has to pay for this wrong and what he has done to his own.
February 8th, 2010 at 12:41 am
Hank Sr. warned Haleigh about drugs.. That’s laughable..Weren’t he and Ron drug buddies? The less she talks to her Dad the better off she’ll be..IMO He puts HIS problems on Misty..Whose fault is it that he doesn’t have gas money??? Get a legit job!!…Anthony Hopkins, when asked the trait he most deplores in others, replied “Freeloaders with a sense of entitlement”.. I am beginning to think that of this family..After the jail calls appear on their phone bills they may consider employment, and a legitimate income.. Having a job doesn’t exclude drug addicts from spending every penny of their check for the next fix.. A clean life is a prosperous life.. IMO
February 8th, 2010 at 12:59 am
THEY OUGHT TO GET THE TRUTH OUT OF MISTY!!! IT’S GONNA BE SHAME IF RONALD KNOWS SOMETHING.
February 8th, 2010 at 4:28 am
If you google “children taken from their home” you might be surprised.It happens more often than I thought.The most famous i guess would be Polly Klass.I think that is why Marc treads lightly when discussing this in public.He knows that it can happen and knows what it felt like to have folks doubt you.
“That’s the ending the task force imagined, if they just kept the pressure on, and could convince others to let Misty crash and burn on her own, hit bottom, so they could pick up the pieces and assemble the puzzle, as they are trying to do now.”
Oh Yeah? Thats the ending the task force imagined? It wasn’t finding out what happened to that baby? It was solely to watch a stupid little girl crash and burn?
Robin
February 8th, 2010 at 10:12 am
Corrupting her further?????? I have seen them behind bars more times than I have ever seen anyone in my family. Or a combination of the times my family members have had mishaps do not equal the amount they are all behind bars. Ignorance has no boundaries.
February 8th, 2010 at 10:20 am
A few words of a wise journalist…”Sit’em out and wait.”
February 8th, 2010 at 1:43 pm
Art,
This Donna Brock sounds a little off her rocker. I do not know where she came from, but thank you Miller for letting her go. Donna could have seriously set LE back or compromised the entire case.
February 8th, 2010 at 3:37 pm
CS said the same thing about Ron isolating her. Marie mentioned it as well, that once CS left with Ronald she didn’t hear from Crystal. I wonder why Ronald wants to isolated these young girls? For what reason? I now wonder if there is more to Ron that has not been revealed and it’s a scary thought. If he was this way with other young girls, it makes one wonder how he treated his own little girl.
February 9th, 2010 at 12:16 am
The idea behind isolation is a power play. They (men of that kind) seperate the female from friends, family, anyone they can lean on. It makes the female more dependent on him. She slowly loses all independence. He has her scared and trapped with no one to turn to. Then there is a really bad quarrel, she sees a glimmer of truth and makes a run and escapes; but if she is young and vengeful, hasn’t been in the relationship very long, she goes out and parties then comes back to an unwelcoming man. More fights, right in front of children.
My biggest wonder is if Misty was out and at a party and somehow Haleigh was given drugs, where was Junior? If he sees someone carry a dead sister out, he’s gonna say something. If Tommy went to the house that night, and I believe he did, where was Junior? If there were men in the house and they took Haleigh, where was Junior?
I am also confused as to how Misty looked under the beds, maybe the little bed, but the larger one? And then remade them. Can anyone out there answer any of my questions?
February 9th, 2010 at 1:27 pm
Art…
I truly enjoy your journalism!:) Thank You for keeping Haleigh in the news.
I was wondering, do you know where these so called “Donna Brock” tapes are? These could truly incriminate A LOT of people involved in this case. What is the relationship between Donna and her husband? and how old are her children…they too are victims in all of this. Thanks for getting to “The Bald Truth!”
February 9th, 2010 at 6:09 pm
Hey you know, Science Ron didn’t want to live in that double wide any more, Is their Anyone living there yet?
Someone might want to start digging under that trailer, Some one might Find something, I Have a feeling Little Haleigh, Isn’t Far away from that site, Ron And Misty Knows, They Very well know where she is, this was all cooked up, the Marriage thing and everything else, to cover their Butts. And Gram ma Knows Too!
February 9th, 2010 at 6:27 pm
You Know I was just listening to the program above, About Misty Selling Haleigh for drugs, I have Said this science this all just about cam down, They lived by that water way, Not to far from a Boat Dock, Who’d of been the wiser, of someone taking Haleigh – even so far as out of the Country, to Mexico – Or Even Haiti, Ron Knows as well as Misty, where this little tike is, If She isn’t Berried somewhere near that Double wide they lived in Because of her maybe getting in the way of a fist a cuff fight between Misty and Ron, Than They Sold her for Drugs and She’s in another Country, Bet on it!
February 9th, 2010 at 9:12 pm
MADJG, I feel as you do!!
BTW, did you see Oprah on Monday night? A dad told his story how he groomed his small child, then molested his child for years before she told on him. A grandfather groomed and molested his 5 year old granddaughter. There were 2 more fathers who told their stories how they groomed, then molested their small children before they told someone. It makes one wonder just how Ron treated his own little girl. No accusation intended, just opinion and ?