The case of Ashley Reeves has left everyone in a shock storm and gasping for more facts. So, who is Ashley Reeves, and what is her docu-movie about? Continue reading to find out. Ashley Reeves is a high school junior living in Millstadt, Illinois. Attended school like a normal 17-year-old in the April of 2006. Her perfectly normal day became one of the most bone-chilling instances of true crime in America. The then 17-year-old girl went missing in the April of 2006 and was found a day later near a park, barely surviving.
The incident became a major talk in the town, primarily because of the identified perpetrator. The police found Samson Shelton, a 26-year-old teacher from a rival school, guilty. Shelton was supposedly romantically involved with Reeves. The story becomes especially intriguing for people across because of the impossible survival of the victim. Even after being dumped by her teacher and assumed dead, Ashley survived when the police found her after 30 hours.
The cast of the documentary
Being such a sensitive case, the cast handles their roles quite well. Anwen Driscoll and Jennie Garth are both sensitive to their job and capture the palpable tension between a parent and child quite well. The initial phases of memory loss and the struggle to get back on her feet were beautifully acted.
After strangling, burying, and leaving a 17-year-old girl alone in the woods, it is essential to show what happened to the perp in the end. The incident was just one part of the crime. The search, the court case, and her eventual acceptance of what happened all were significant parts of the docu movie.
Left for dead: The Ashley Reeves story
What was once a case of nightmares has been adapted into a Lifetime original movie, Left for Dead: The Ashley Reeves Story, which premiered on June 12, 2021. a tripartite battle of a young girl- in the woods, in the hospital, and finally in the court.
Also read: A Perfect Planet, Sir David Attenborough’s Documentary Coming Soon
Anwen O’ Driscoll plays Ashley Reeves documenting the traumatic events of her abduction to her rescue. The movie brilliantly captures the initial tension of the crime, which culminates in the court case. The docu movie balances wonderfully between the retelling of the actual crime and simultaneously enacting it. The choice to garb it in the form of a story somehow softens the actual brutality of the crime but the movie still quite wonderfully captures the horror of the crime.
The aftermath of the case
The documentary focuses mainly on the aftermath of the crime and how Reeves restored her motor functions, starting once again from the basics. According to various interviews by True Crime Daily, Reeves displayed enormous strength and resilience, which became the highlight and driving force behind this documentary.
The Reeves case continues to be one of the most horrific actual criminal cases, and the strength displayed by the victim is worthy of applause in every way. Reeves is currently married and living with her two kids, while Samson Shelton is still in Illinois’ Hill Correctional Centre, serving his sentence of 20 years for attempted murder.
