Naman Shrestha
Helmed by Elisabeth Röhm, Lifetime’s ‘Husband, Father, Killer: The Alyssa Pladl Story’ is inspired by the real-life events of Alyssa Pladl, who got into an intense relationship with Steven Pladl in her teenage years. The couple gave birth to a daughter named Denise, only to give her up for adoption a few months later, due to Steven’s alleged abusive behavior toward the infant. Years later, when their daughter returned to them, Steven manipulated her into having a romantic affair with him, which ultimately led to deadly consequences for them and the people around them. Meanwhile, Alyssa suffered the brunt of it all as she lost her first daughter.
Alyssa and Steven Pladl’s Marriage Ended in a Divorce
Born in 1980 in a loving family in San Antonio, Texas, Alyssa Pladl (née Garcia) was only 15 years old when she met 20-year-old Steven Pladl online. In the span of a year or so, the bond between them had intensified, so much so that he visited her and allegedly manipulated her into having a romantic and sexual relationship with him. Not long after, she left her parents behind in San Antonio and relocated to New York to move in with Steven. At the tender age of 17, Alyssa became a mother for the first time on January 29, 1998, when she gave birth to Denise Pladl.
As per Alyssa, Steven used to get irritated by the infant’s crying and resort to questionable methods to get Denise to stop crying. He allegedly pinched her and even placed her in a cooler with the lid on, risking their daughter’s life. Although it was one of the toughest decisions of her life, Alyssa put Denise up for adoption in order to keep her safe and away from Steven. Their daughter was adopted by Kelly and Anthony Fusco and renamed Katie Rose Fusco. Meanwhile, Alyssa eventually tied the knot with Steven in 2006. In the following years, the married couple gave birth to a couple more daughters, with whom they lived in Richmond, Virginia.
Several years later, Alyssa and Steven still allegedly shared a volatile relationship while raising their two daughters. However, Alyssa’s life turned upside down when her first daughter, now Katie, reached out to her in August 2016 via Facebook. The 18-year-old moved in with her biological parents, a decision that changed the course of her life. She got to stay with them only for a while, as Alyssa moved out of the house in November 2016 after she started the divorce proceedings, while sharing custody of their two younger daughters. It left Steven and Katie to share the house, which led to the former allegedly grooming her like Alyssa and getting into a romantic relationship with her own daughter. A couple of months after the divorce between Alyssa and Steven was finalized, the latter married Katie on July 20, 2017, in Parkton, Maryland.
Alyssa Pladl Filed a Complaint Against Steven’s Incestuous Relationship
Since incestuous marriage was illegal, the couple lied about being related to one another. Within the next two months, Katie gave birth to Steven’s son, Bennet Pladl, on September 1, 2017. When Alyssa learned about their relationship and child together, she confronted her ex-husband and filed a restraining order against him to protect herself and her young daughters. She even reported their illegal relationship to the authorities. It eventually led to the arrest of Steven and Katie on incest charges in January 2018. Once they were released on bond, she told him that she wanted to end things with him. Steven didn’t take this well and went on to kill their 7-month-old baby boy on April 11, 2018, before shooting Katie and her adoptive father, Anthony Fusco, while they were on their way to visit her adoptive grandmother. To finish it all, he then took his own life.
When the news of the deaths reached Alyssa, she was heartbroken and told the media outlets, “I’m grieving. I’m sad. I’m upset. But I also want to have something good come out of this. If it’s to get truth out there, to open people’s eyes to incest.” Upon breaking the news to her other two daughters, she told Richmond Times-Dispatch that “they were kind of in sheer shock.” She also added, “I’m keeping them out of school for a little while to cope and go through some therapy. Kids are pretty resilient and can also cover up a lot, so I don’t know what the long-term effects are going to be.”
Alyssa Pladl Leads a Balanced Personal and Professional Life Today
Amidst all the commotion in her life, Alyssa Garcia had been finding comfort in her new partner, Eric Hawkins. Not only is he a great partner to her, but he has also treated her two daughters as his own from day one. A few years after the deaths of Steven, Katie, and Bennett, Alyssa and Eric made their relationship official by tying the knot, surrounded by the love and support of their loved ones. From what we can tell, the couple is still seemingly in a healthy marriage. Residing in Richmond, Virginia, she has been working as a Senior Quality Analyst at T-Mobile since May 2019. As for her young daughters, they are also reportedly thriving in their respective lives.
Read More: Katie and Anthony Fusco: Why Did Steven Pladl Kill Them? What Happened to Him?
