Alana,
Then how is it that the postings are coming from the Whitmore, some in the middle of the night, when one would assume the kids would be sleeping, if not from Cheryl?

??
Has Tori told you about some of methods used on these kids? Leah seems to have lived through it all, too. She developed some pretty good survival skills early on, but there were times when the wrath of Cheryl didn't escape her. and those times were very brutal. If parents used the same methods, they would be arrested and their children taken away.
I would suggest you take the rose-colored glasses off because they are giving you tunnel vision.