A Girl in the Picture - Netflix Crime Documentary

On 1990, a girl was found unconscious just beside the road by two men who were on their vehicle. She then was rushed to the hospital and later was pronounced dead by the doctor. The husband, Clarance Hughes came to the hospital and claimed the girl is her wife, Tonya Hughes. They had a young son named Michael. He also added his wife worked as a stripper in Mont Venus, Tulsa. 

Michael Anthony Hughes

Due to the Tonya's death, her friends from the dancing club house, tried to find her mother to inform about the death. Unfortunately, the lady that they found told them her daughter has been dead for a long time and she was just 18 months. The new fact left everyone flabbergasted knowing their Tonya is not Tonya. Heather Lans, Tonya's manager in Mons Venus described her as an innocent, sweet girl. Another friend of hers mentioned Tonya had a special bond with her son, Michael and they were so engaged to each other. Nonetheless, both of them seemed to feel uncomfortable with the presence of Tonya's husband, Clarence. Tonya mentioned several times to her friends, she was afraid of Michael's safety and was thinking to run away from Clarence. 

Hence when Tonya passed away, her friend just knew Michael is not going to be safe around Clarence, so she called Department of Human Services (DHS) about the situation. Not long after, DHS took Michael from Clarence and he was given for an adoption to Ernest Bean and Merle Bean. Michael had wonderful family even though during that period, Clarance insisted to take his son back. Hence, he got visiting hours to spend time with Michael. However, the Beans mentioned Michael often refused to visit his dad and said he's a mean guy. The Beans then received a call from DHS that they wanted to do paternity test between Michael and Clarence. To their surprise, the test revealed Clarance is not Michael's father thus, the visiting hours is immediately revoked by the court. 

Things got worse when Clarence kidnapped Michael at the school. He carjacking the principal's car and abducted Michael. Law enforcement did background check on Clarence to study his background and soon learnt he had many different names or aliases. His real name is Franklin Floyd and his other names are Trenton Davis, Warren Marshall and Clarence Hughes. Clarence (now Floyd) involved in several criminal conduct which are abducting a girl, attacking a woman and robbed a bank. He served in jail for sometime before he got out from the jail and did not report to his parole officer. 

Since the case is building up, it caught media attention and the disappearance of Michael and the death of Tonya were all over the news. The news reached a lady, Jennifer. She contacted the police in charged of the case, Joe Fitzpatrick and revealed the girl she saw on TV, Tonya Hughes is her friend, but her name was Sharon Marshall. 

(flashback) 

Jennifer mentioned in the documentary that Sharon (Tonya) was a bright student and she received a scholarship but then declined because she had to take care of her daddy. The next most shocking part is that, Jennifer revealed Floyd who everyone perceived as Tonya/Sharon's husband is actually her father. Jennifer walked down the memory lane, how she befriended with Sharon. Jennifer said Sharon was a smart and pretty girl but she could sense there's always something weird about her dad, Warren Marshall (now Floyd). She shared an incident where her mother permitted her to have an overnight at Marshalls'. When Sharon and her were changing clothes, Warren came into the bedroom and with a gunpoint at Sharon, he raped Sharon in front of Jennifer. Jennifer was utterly traumatized because of the incident that she did not even tell any adult about the tragedy. When she learnt that they were officially married in New Orleans, she just could not imagine how a father can marry a daughter. 

After the school years in Oklahoma, Sharon worked as stripper in Mons Venus. During that period, she got a son, Michael. Sharon also befriended with a dancer named Cheryl. According to her friends in Mons Venue after Sharon's death, Floyd asked Sharon to have sex with men in the club for money and he soon grew interested with Sharon's friend, Cheryl. Heather, one of the dancers saw once Floyd and Cheryl had heated argument outside the club before he screamed at Cheryl he would kill her. 

(present)

With the information, police dug further on Floyd when he was Warren Marshall in Oklahoma. A former neighbor of Floyd came out with a picture of Floyd and a young Sharon around 5 or 6 years old. According to the Behavioral Science, the picture that shows a sad girl and not smiling is one of the characteristic of abducted child. Police went through the timeline, Sharon died on 1990 at the age of 20 and she might be born on 1969 or 1970. The timeline is crossed exam with Floyd's. Floyd was in prison from 1963 to 1972 and there's no way that he is the biological father of Sharon. The only way to explain about this mystery is that, Floyd had kidnapped Sharon since she was a kid. So who actually Sharon is? What is her identity? Who are the parents? Like Floyd, Sharon also had many aliases which are Tonya D. Hughes, Tonya Dawn Tadlock and Linda Williams. 

A picture of young Sharon and Floyd

Since now, the police aware the names that Floyd uses, every local offices were informed about the names as it is predicted that Floyd soon would renew his driver license. Well, that was what happened, he renewed his licensed in Kentucky, New York under Warren Marshall. Police succeeded catching him while delivering the license to him. However, Michael was not found. Police suspected he killed the boy but with no body, they cannot charged him with murder. Hence, the attorney charged him with carjacking, kidnapping Michael, using firearm during carjacking and using firearm during kidnapping. He then was sentenced to 25 years of imprisonment. 

While the case is still on going, an agent found principal's truck that Floyd stole in kidnapping Michael. A stack of photographs which has been taped underneath the truck was found. Most of the photos are obscene that show young Sharon and an unknown girl who seemed to be beaten badly. In the meantime, almost a complete set of skeleton were found in a highway,  when a worker stumbled a skull near the interstate, north of Gandy Boulevard. Further investigation revealed that it is belonged to Cheryl Commesso and police managed to find link between Cheryl and Floyd through the pictures they found underneath the truck. With the existence of the evidence and the found of skeleton, Floyd was charged to first degree  murder and he then was sentenced to death. Cheryl was a good friend of Sharon who Floyd grew interest towards her while the two girls worked in stripper's club. 

Cheryl Commesso

Thus, police now can make compelling reason why Floyd left Florida in such a hurry together with Sharon, it is because he killed Cheryl. Floyd knew that police would search for a man-his daughter and her son, not a man-his wife and their son. Hence, they stopped by at New Orleans and they officially got married there. 

Not long after, an investigative journalist started to study on Sharon Marshall, he tried to find out who Sharon is by interviewing Floyd in jail, but nothing good comes from him. Nonetheless, he managed to publish the book in tribute to Sharon Marshall. He received numerous emails and feedbacks from people from all walks of life, locally, internationally that expressed their empathy to the late Sharon. Until he received a lead a year after the book is published, that wrote to him, 'Would the DNA of Sharon's daughter will help you?' 

Another fact about Sharon is revealed, she had three pregnancies with the first one who she supposed to give out for adoption, the second one, Michael and the last baby, Megan. Megan was given out to a couple, Mary and Dean Dufresne the moment Sharon delivered the baby. Mary shared that there's something awry about Floyd (Clarence at that time) and Sharon (Tonya at that time). Clarence led the conversation, just wanted to give away the baby and want money meanwhile Sharon did not talk much at the moment. 

Megan

In the meantime, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children stepped in the picture to give it a shot, searching for Sharon's identity. The agency connected with the police in charged of the case to assis, Joe Fitzpatrick, who feel attached with the case and even during his retirement, he could not close the case on Who is Sharon Marshall and What Happened to Michael Hughes? Not being able to tie up the loose ends kind of aggrieved him. So, when he was given a second chance to try solve the mystery, he immediately agreed. 

Sharon Marshall

Two FBI were deployed to Florida to conduct another interview with Franklin Floyd who were on a death row. Those two mentioned of how Floyd talked too much about his past, his innocence assuming these two FBI were his lawyers. The interrogation occurred for quite a while until a crucial information slip out of his tongue. Floyd mentioned about a lady who just lost her three girls to the states. One of the FBI asked a very important question at that time, 'what is your name at that time?'

'Brandon Cleo Williams,' not only Floyd gave his name, he also walked the FBIs to whom he met with during that period. Another question from FBI that untangled the mystery was, 

'What is the name of the oldest daughter?' 

'Suzanne Sevakis'

'Who is Suzanne Sevakis'

'The girl that you are asking for. She is Suzanne Sevakis' 

Police immediately retrieved Suzanne's / Sharon's birth certificate and the cert indicated the name of the both parents are still alive. They are Sandi Chipman and Cliff Sevakis.

And this is the story of how Suzanne got abducted since she was a child from her parents according to them. 

Sandi got married with Cliff and they were bored with a daughter named Suzanne Sevakis. Not long after, Cliff had to deploy to Vietnam and when he returned to the states, Sandi was already seeing another man and she asked for a divorce. She then married with Dennis Brandenburg and had another two daughters with him, Allison and Amy. 

Due to the difficulties, she went to social service for help, she then had to give out her three children, Suzanne, Allison and Amy to the organization. (perhaps because of her incompetence as a mother). When she begged for the kids, she was told by one of the staff to pray which she did. She went to the church at that was when she met Floyd who talked to her in most calming and charming voice. He promised that he would take care of her daughters and marry her. They lived as one family for some time when one day, Sandi wrote a bad check to buy diapers for her daughters. She was jailed for 30 days and when she returned home, she found that the house was vacant and all the three daughters were gone. 

When the three girls were at the orphanage initially, Cliff was called if he would be able to adopt all the three girls. Since the three girls were attached to one another, they did not want to break the set and it was either Cliff adopted three of them or gave out three of them. Cliff mentioned to the documentary that during that period, he was mentally unstable due to his returning from the war, he was also unemployed and he lived with his family. As a result, he gave out all the three little girls. 

As for Floyd, she kidnapped the three girls before dropped Allison and Amy at an orphanage before he brought Suzanne along. The two changed their names frequently and they had been moving together for a long time from one place to another. 

The most disheartening part about this documentary is that, Sharon/Tonya/Suzanne never knew who she really was until the day she died. Second, the disappearance her love of life, Michael could not be solve.

So many people have failed Suzanne most importantly is her parents. They did not try to search for her and if they did, Suzanne might still be alive by now. I also believe people should stop asking why Suzanne did not ask for help when she's able to because they would put bad image on her reputation. People should aware as a person who is abducted since she was a young child, she sees Floyd as her guardian, a father figure to her. Whatever Floyd did to her which include raping and such, they are normal to Suzanne. Suzanne was not only sexually groomed by Floyd, but she was assigned to take care of him and we have no idea what other horrible things might have happen behind the closed door. 

Suzanne Marie Sevakis

Let us all remember Suzanne Sevakis as someone who was a real fighter, a dedicated mother and daughter. A someone who gave out a lot of love to the people around her when she received none of them at home.