Delmarva Victim's Guardian Could Have Used Sex Offender Registry

Sarah Haley Foxwell

SALISBURY, Md. (WBOC/AP)- Wicomico County Sheriff Mike Lewis enlisted the help of just about everyone along Maryland's Eastern shore, from hunters to homeowners, to find a missing 11-year-old Salisbury girl, and thousands took time from their Christmas Day plans to search, with the hope she was alive.

On Friday, at around 4 p.m. three days after Sarah H. Foxwell was last seen at her home, police found her body near the Delaware line.

"This is not the way we wanted to find our young lady on Christmas, but at the very least we've given closure to the family," Wicomico County State's Attorney Davis R. Ruark said at a news conference.

The focus of the investigation is on 30-year-old Thomas J. Leggs Jr., of Bennett Road in Salisbury, who was charged Wednesday in Sarah's kidnapping.

"There's no indication of involvement of any other individuals at this point," Ruark said.

No new charges were filed as of late Friday. An autopsy was planned at the medical examiner's office, but the sheriff's office did not know when.

Leggs is a former boyfriend of the girl's aunt, who is her legal guardian. A public defender representing him has not returned phone calls and a woman who answered the door at Leggs' parents' house declined to speak to a reporter.

Lewis, said the body was found in the area of Melson Road, west of Hampton Court, about half a mile south of the Maryland-Delaware line, where authorities had focused their search. Read more...

As a parent on the Delmarva penninsula I have followed this local story with interest. This is a parent's worst nightmare and our thoughts and prayers are with Sarah and her family.

There are safeguards to help prevent these types of things. While no one seemed to suspect the alleged perpetrator, there seems to be an indication that something was amiss:

from the WBOC article's comments-

Tommy actually worked in a local establishment in Ocean City as a bar back. As a local I considered him an acquaintance. We knew each other’s names and would exchange chit chat. We had a friend that he came on to one night at the bar but she was leading him on and we even all went for pizza after the bar closed. We all went home our separate ways and always joked about it when we would go to the bar. They exchanged phone numbers and texted often. She would hide from him in hopes of not having to face him asking her out again. They got along because she has three kids and he has a tattoo of his daughter's name on his arm and talked about her being his life. She got a strange vibe from him and stopped talking to him and going to that bar all together. We thought she was just being paranoid but maybe it was a motherly instinct. Time passed, he would ask about her often but we remained friendly. I was actually just wondering where he has been I haven't noticed him at the bar and then I saw his picture with this article and I couldn't believe my eyes. I would have never known he was always a nice guy. It makes me wonder if he even has a daughter or if it is another victim's name on his arm.

Suspicions should always be verified and the Department of Justice Sex Offender Public Website has the resources to help. Here is the accused's record from the listing in MD. He is also listed in DE. A fact check on Leggs name in this database could have prevented this senseless tragedy. Call me paranoid but I'm going to be using this. I want to know who is a sex offender and where they live in my neighborhood so I can better protect my young children.

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