While I've been reading (I so dislike the term "lurker") at WS for many years, I've only recently registered/posted. This will be my first lengthy post, but I would like to share some thoughts about Misty.
While I don't disagree with various assessments of Misty as being self-absorbed, street-wise, promiscuous, etc., I cannot allow myself to believe that Misty is a bad person. Even if you've never read the book that is among my favorites, everyone is familiar with the promo-poster featuring the little waif, Cosette, from the musical based on Victor Hugo's epic novel Les Miserables. In my mind's eye, Misty is that child who was left alone in the world to fend for herself and to find little scraps of affection from anyone who would oblige her until someone took her to his bosom and cared for her, loved and cherished her like his own.
Yes, Misty has parents, siblings, grandparents, cousins, but did anyone really ever care for Misty? We know that Misty's parents were frequently incarcerated and that Misty was shuffled to different states to live with relatives. Hers has not been a stable life by any stretch of the imagination, and Misty probably never really felt attached to or loved by anyone. Perhaps moving in with Ronald and his children provided an opportunity for Misty to have the family/home life of which she had been deprived.
While I watched video of Misty standing on the dock with detectives, I was saddened by how helpless and hopeless this young woman appeared. My heart ached for her because she seems so alone in all of this, not unlike the little waif in the Les Miserables promo poster. jmho