May 23, 2005

A Miracle Out of a Tragedy

In a world seemingly full of evil for our children, finding this 8-year-old girl alive is a blessing and a miracle:

LAKE WORTH, Fla. (AP) - An 8-year-old girl who was raped and buried alive under rocks and concrete blocks inside a trash bin told a friend that the last thing that she remembered before passing out was her attacker towering over her. But she said she awoke when she heard rescuers' voices, and wiggled her fingers to let them know she was there.

The girl was found seven hours after she was reported missing early Sunday.  She is now in good condition and reunited with family and friends.  Who did this to her?  A seventeen-year-old boy, now charged with attempted murder.

Police Sgt. Mike Hall found the girl after climbing into a 25-foot-long trash bin and opening the lid to a 30-gallon recycling container. Inside, he saw the girl's hand and foot peeking out amid heavy concrete slabs.

Rescuers feared the worst, but the mood turned jubilant when they saw the girl's fingers move and realized she was alive.

"There's no doubt in my mind that this child would have been dead if he didn't find her. She was dehydrated and in rough shape with pieces of cement blocks on top of her and she was face down," Sgt. Dan Boland said. "There was no way for her to get out on her own."

This little girl survived and had the courage to also describe her attacker, a teenage boy who had been staying at her home.

Authorities said Milagro Cunningham, 17, confessed and was charged with attempted murder, sexual battery on a child under 12, and false imprisonment of a victim under age 13, police said.

It sure is amazing what people will say about a person who just tried to leave an 8-year-old to die:

"He was a good person. He would clean and do chores, laugh and play jokes and stuff. We never thought he would do something like that," Holloman said. "The only reason I can think he went crazy like this is his father died and his mother didn't want him. Nobody wanted him."

Awww, poor child raper and attempted murderer - nobody wanted him so he buries an 8-year-old girl, after raping her, in the hopes she dies in a landfill.  Somehow, I don't feel sorry for him.

Authorities said the girl was found far enough from any homes that no one would probably have heard if she had cried out. The trash bin was in a fenced-off former landfill behind a park where she often played with friends.

Thank God she was found before she died.  I only pray that she can be strong and get over what has happened to her.  I know I say it time and time again, but there's something evil brewing in our society and something needs to be done.  We're always reading about something happening "somewhere else" and breathing the proverbial "sigh of relief."  But it happens in someone's back yard and next time it could be mine...or yours.

Update:  Carol at An American Housewife also has a post on this - please stop by her place!

Cross Posted at And Rightly So!