Harmony Montgomery: The Trial of Adam Montgomery

This is the second episode in a two part series on Harmony Montgomery. Click here for Part One.

Harmony Montgomery is reported missing

On December 31st, the Manchester NH Police Department held a press conference, and the public learned of now 7-year-old Harmony Montgomery’s disappearance. The chief said, “At this time I have dedicated all available resources and personnel to locating Harmony. I’m begging the community. I don’t care if you saw this young girl a year ago and you think it’s irrelevant. Call us.” The case exploded. Every regional media outlet picked up the story and many national outlets followed. We released our first episode on Harmony on January 18th, 2022, about three weeks after the announcement.

That same day, police spoke with Kayla Montgomery again. And again, she lied, saying that as far as she knew, Harmony was back with her mother. Adam Montgomery said the same.

Pressuring is mounting

Police were looking to exert some pressure on Adam and Kayla, and they had just the ammunition that they needed.

Adam’s uncle, Kevin, walked the police through the incident that happened back at 77 Gilford. In July of 2019, Kevin said that Adam had given Harmony a black eye by hitting her in the face. Police were satisfied with the account about her black eye and took action.

On Tuesday, January 4th, 2022, police arrested Adam on several charges. Second degree assault for the July 2019 strike to Harmony’s face, a charge of “endangering the welfare of a child” arising from her Thanksgiving 2019 disappearance, and “interference with custody by concealing a child”.

On January 5th, police arrested Kayla Montgomery at FIT Shelter. Kayla’s mom took temporary custody of her kids. She was charged with felony welfare fraud. Kayla, on her paperwork with the state, claimed that Harmony was a part of her household after Thanksgiving 2019, (despite the fact that she was not) and therefore collected extra benefits on Harmony’s behalf—money that she wasn’t entitled to. Because the amount exceeded $1,500, it was considered a felony-level offense. A judge set bail for her at $5,000, but Kayla couldn’t make bail, and so she sat in jail, awaiting her trial.

Adam’s arrest for felony weapons charges

A few weeks later, on April 4th, Adam was arrested again—this time on more serious charges. The cops had evidently connected him to the firearm theft back in 2019 of the AR-15 assault rifle and the 12-gauge shotgun. He was a felon at the time, and was no stranger to the law. As a felon, he was not allowed to own a gun, so the prosecutor loaded him up with charges: 2 counts of receiving stolen property, 2 counts of being a felon in possession, and 2 counts of “armed career criminal.”

2022, May — Kayla turns state’s evidence

On May 20th, Kayla was called to testify before the grand jury of Hillsborough County. She was sworn in, and was asked a series of questions about the final days that she saw Harmony. She said that Adam brought her to work at Dunkin Donuts on November 30th, 2019 at 6:00AM and Harmony was in the car with her. She said that after dropping her off, Adam said that he was taking Harmony to her mom. Adam picked Kayla up at work at 2:00PM that afternoon, and she said that Harmony was gone. Following the hearing, Manchester PD fact-checked Kayla. It turned out that Kayla hadn’t worked at the Goffstown Dunkin Donuts location at all in 2019. She had worked at a different location, 20 minutes away, in Hooksett, but she had been fired from that location a week prior, on November 23rd.

Cops had her in a clear lie and they applied some pressure.

Two weeks after her testimony, on June 3rd, they charged her with a count of felony-level perjury. She was arrested and released three days later.

Kayla was buckling under the pressure. She hadn’t even seen or spoken to Adam in 6 months. His hold over her was fading.

She agreed to cooperate with the state and became the star witness for the prosecution.

She sat down with the prosecutor, and for the first time since law enforcement got involved, was honest about what happened to Harmony. She gave what became known as her “first proffer interview.” A proffer agreement is basically a deal with the state to get some kind of leniency in exchange for cooperation. In Kayla’s case, though the agreement wouldn’t be finalized and signed for months, she would ultimately escape being charged with anything relating to Harmony’s death or the concealment of her body. She would have to plead guilty to the perjury charges, and she would ultimately serve 18 months in prison.

2022, June — Gathering evidence

Immediately after Kayla told the cops what she knew, they sprung into action. Her mom consented to a search of her home and cops seized the red and white cooler. They searched their former apartment at 644 Union Street, hauling a fridge out. Investigators were assisted by a sewer plumbing team. Detectives searched the Econo Lodge, Room 216, and processed the mini-fridge. They got the toll records from Massachusetts Department of Transportation. They tracked down the U-Haul van, which was no longer part of the fleet and had been sold to a third party. They got other witnesses to turn state’s evidence and interviewed Kayla a second time.

But the most crucial physical evidence was recovered from FIT Shelter. This was outlined in an affidavit that would later be drafted by the lead detective:

Detectives removed the vent in order to check the top side of the ceiling sheetrock. There, next to the opening for the ceiling vent, detectives located a large area of staining. This area is directly next to the ceiling vent where Kayla described that Adam put Harmony’s deceased body in the Under Armour bag. Detectives noted that this area had a smell consistent with decomposition
The ceiling sheetrock with the metal framing attached, together with the vent, were submitted to the State Lab for blood, DNA, and fingerprint processing. In a report dated 06/10/2022, [a forensic analyst] at the State Lab wrote that thirteen [fingerprints] were developed—six on the metal framing attached to the sheetrock and seven on the metal vent itself.
[The fingerprint expert] matched all nine of the identifiable impressions from the metal vent to Adam Montgomery— [fingerprints from both hands and a palm print].
The ceiling was tested for DNA but nothing conclusive was determined initially. Then they decided to send the whole ceiling section to the DNA lab. As they were disassembling it, they discovered that between the ceiling grid and the drywall there were a lot of fluids that seemed preserved and smelled like decomp. They sent this to the lab and the lab confirmed DNA that belonged to Harmony.

2022, October - Adam charged

On October 24th, 2022, 10 months after that alarm was raised publicly about Harmony’s disappearance, and 4 months after Kayla agreed to cooperate, Adam was official charged with the murder of his daughter.

The affidavit that laid out the state’s reasoning for the charge was sealed for the time being. Adam had not yet gone to trial for his weapons charges, and the state wanted to get that behind them before revealing to the public why they believed Adam was the killer.

2023, June – Adam weapons charges trial

In June of 2023, Adam went to trial for his weapons charges. He was represented by public defender Caroline Smith. The prosecution brought witnesses to the stand that said that Adam had bragged about having the guns. Kayla testified at trial. He was found guilty and became an “armed career criminal,” evidently a special designation in New Hampshire.

On August 7th, Judge Messer gave him 15-30 years each for the armed career criminal charges, to be served consecutively… so that’s 30-60 right there. After that he was sentenced to 7 1/2 - 15 for the theft charges, to be served concurrently, but after the 30-60 sentence. The judge said that five years of those sentences could be suspended for good time, so discounting that, Adam’s sentence for stealing two guns was 37 1/2 - 75 years.

2024, February – Adam’s murder trial

Adam was a prisoner waiting for his next trial—the big one—his murder trial.

Caroline Smith represented him again. You might remember her from another high-profile double-murder trial in New Hampshire—Steve and Wendy Reid. She represented Logan Clegg.

On February 6th, 17 jurors were picked, and they went on a field trip to key locations.

The first real day of trial—where the attorneys presented their opening arguments and the state started calling witnesses—Adam was nowhere to be found. He had evidently “waived his right to appear in court,” and left it up to his attorney to represent him without his presence.

Adam told the judge via video conference that his attorney, Caroline, would acknowledge his guilt on two of the charges—falsifying physical evidence and abuse of a corpse. Caroline argued that though Adam helped to hide Harmony’s body, he said that it was Kayla who was the last person to see Harmony alive.

On Days 2 and 3 of the trial, Kayla took the stand. In total, she spent about 9 hours answering questions from both attorneys.

She revealed that it was not only the morning of Saturday, December 7th (the day of Harmony’s death), that Adam had hit Harmony. They were evicted from 77 Gilford the day before Thanksgiving—November 27th, 2019—and over the next 10 days, during which they were living out of their car, the violence against Harmony escalated. Harmony had visible injuries that Adam worried would draw unwanted attention.

Kayla was the star witness for the prosecution. Without her testimony, it’s not clear whether the state would have had enough to charge Adam with murder. Aside from her young sons, too little to understand, she was the only person who saw Adam kill his daughter. And though she did nothing to stop him, she spoke, at times through hot tears and choked sobs, at the pivotal moment when her help was most needed: the day that Harmony died.

She described Adam’s spiral into rage and paranoia after Harmony’s death. She said that his rage turned on her. A photo of Kayla with two black eyes was shown to the jury as she explained that he started breaking everything in the house looking for hidden surveillance equipment. In her final proffer interview to police she had said, “Every time that he would freak out, it was either… I was trying to kill him… I was telling on him about Harmony… or I was cheating on him. Or all three.” She said that the crack cocaine made everything worse, saying, “Right after he took that hit, it was over. That was it. It was like he was just gone… and, like, destroying everything.” She talked about the material things he destroyed as well, “He was always breaking everything. He was breaking phones. Anything we had… anything electronic. The TV, the phones, the tablets that kids got for Christmas… He broke every single one of them and destroyed them because he thought that the phones were tapped or the cameras were being used… that the cops were listening.”

And she reflected on the final time she saw Harmony alive — “She was … fetal position … just covering herself … and she was crying.”

Over the next 5 days, the state called the rest of their 47 witnesses. One of those witnesses was Travis Beach, a close friend of Adam’s. Travis was the one that Adam contacted to help him rent him a U-Haul van. None of the witnesses presented by the prosecution said that Adam had confessed to them that he had killed Harmony, but Travis was the closest.

After the state finished their presentation, the defense called no witnesses. It seems that they made their case through opening and closing arguments and the cross-examination of the state’s witnesses.

Finally, the prosecution had the last word with the jury. Ben Agati delivered a forceful condemnation of Adam Montgomery.

Deliberations began on Wednesday, February 21st and concluded the next day.

They found Adam guilty on all charges.

Adam Motgomery’s Sentencing

On May 9th, 2024, the day had finally come for Adam to get his sentence, but he didn’t want to attend. He wanted to have his lawyer go in his absence, just like in trial. This is the day when people affected by the crime would have a chance to address Adam in court and express themselves in what is called a “victim impact statement.” People were outraged that he could duck this important hearing.

So, he was legally ordered to attend, and attend he did.

Prosecutor Ben Agati spoke at the sentencing hearing, and after condemning the crime and making his sentencing recommendation, he made a surprise offer to Adam.

Ben Agati: If the defendant will, right now, tell us where he hid her body, sufficient for us to find her, so that her family and the Manchester Police Department can recover her remains in the next 7 days, then the state would amend its recommendation to 35 years to life, and let the second-degree assault, falsifying physical evidence, abuse of a corpse, and witness tampering to be served concurrent.

Unsurprisingly, Adam did not take him up on the offer.

Harmony’s mother, Crystal Sorey, spoke, and Harmony’s little brother, Jamison, spoke through his adoptive fathers, Blair and Johnathan Miller.

Adam, though given the opportunity, made no statement. Caroline said that he maintained his innocence relating to the murder charge and planned to appeal.

The judge, after recapping Adam’s criminal history, pronounced sentence.

Amy Messer: At this point, the court has the responsibility to impose a sentence that not only punishes you harshly for the crimes that you have committed, but considers deterrence—that is, how to keep you from hurting others. In light of the egregious nature of the crimes of which you have been convicted in this case and taking into consideration your extremely violent criminal history, the court finds the only way to do this is to keep you off the streets.
To the extent you seek to rehabilitate yourself, that will have to happen behind the prison walls.

Judge Amy Messer followed the prosecution’s recommendation and gave Adam 56 years to life on top of his other sentence for the weapons charges. Even with reductions for good time served and parole, Adam won’t stand to be released from prison until he is over 100 years old.

And on May 15th, 2024, a week after Adam’s sentencing, Kayla was released from prison on parole.

Harmony’s lasting legacy

Harmony had a short and terrible life.

Despite the odds stacked against her, she managed to make a beautiful impression with her foster family, the Rafterys, with whom she spent more time than anyone.

Michelle Raftery said that “Harmony was an independent toddler. She enjoyed playing with dolls and playing with her peers. She had well-developed language, and she liked books. She was very active.”

“She was empathetic and charming.”

“She ate all kinds of foods including fruits, vegetables, and… even onions. She would sometimes play in a vegetable garden and pick cherry tomatoes and cucumbers.”

“And despite her physical disabilities, she had a knack for overcoming challenges.”

Harmony’s death was senseless and preventable.

Kayla could have stopped this. She had a front seat to the escalating abuse against her and the deterioration of her domestic situation. Hopefully, the mercy she received is something that she doesn’t take for granted—the next time she is confronted with an ethical dilemma involving a child, I hope she chooses to protect that child.

It’s a shame that Jamison’s parents, who wanted to adopt Harmony too, were never given that chance. Somehow, the system chose Adam over them.

But I hope that Harmony’s death has created a path towards lasting change.

Her death caused a reevaluation of the system—an inquiry of whether or not it’s serving the children it is entrusted to protect. Harmony’s death may make a difference for the next Harmony Montgomery. That child may not even know it until they are fully grown, but hopefully, twenty years from now, when they are adults, and they look back on the reformed system that placed them with a supportive and loving adoptive family, that they have someone to thank.

They can thank Harmony.

This text has been adapted from the Murder, She Told podcast episode, Harmony Montgomery, Part Two: The Trial of Adam Montgomery. To hear Harmony’s full story, find Murder, She Told on your favorite podcast platform and check out part 1 of this series here: to Harmony Montgomery: A Child is Missing.

If you have any information on the location of Harmony Montgomery’s remains, please call the new Manchester Police tip line at (603) 932-8997.

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Adam and Kayla Montgomery’s home, 77 Gilford St., Manchester, NH

Harmony’s room, decorated with a Mickie Mouse theme, at Adam and Kayla Montgomery’s home, 77 Gilford St., Manchester, NH (Zillow)

Adam Montgomery and Kayla Montgomery stayed here after Harmony’s death (Kayla’s mother’s apartment on Dubuque St, Manchester) (Google Maps)

FIT Shelter, Adam and Kayla’s room, ceiling vent, Harmony's body stored here (NH DOJ)

Police press conference on the search for missing person, Harmony Montgomery, 12/31/2021 (Boston25)

Crystal Sorey, conducting interviews after the announcement Harmony is missing (NewsNation)

Search of 77 Gilford St., Manchester, NH (WMUR)

Search of 77 Gilford St., Manchester, NH (NewsNation)

Murder trial of Adam Montgomery, cooler used to store Harmony’s remains (Law & Crime)

Sources For This Episode

Mentioned in this episode: the case of Steve and Wendy Reid

The original episode on Harmony from 2022

Newspaper articles

Various articles from the Associated Press, Boston Globe, Boston Herald, CNN Wire service, Daily Star, Insider, New Hampshire Union Leader, TCA Regional News, The Daily Beast, The Haverhill Gazette, The Independent, The Telegraph, USA Today, Washington Post, all listed here.

Primary authors were Dean Shalhoup, Dugan Arnett, Gabriela Miranda, Jeffrey Hastings, John Ellement, John Hilliard, Jonathan Phelps, Josie Albertson-Grove, Kathy McCormack, Marie Szaniszlo, Marisa Iati, Mark Hayward, and Pilar Melendez.

Official documents

2014-01-24 - Narrative regarding Jan 2014 shooting

2014-02-04 - Adam Montgomery's docket record for Jan 2014 shooting

2014-02-04 - Detective narrative underlying charge against Adam for Jan 2014 shooting

2019-06-02 - Medical report on Harmony Montgomery from Catholic Medical Center

2019-07-07 - Manchester PD report regarding 77 Gilford St

2019-07-10 - Manchester PD report regarding 77 Gilford St

2019-08-05 - Manchester PD report regarding 77 Gilford St

2019-08-19 - Manchester PD report regarding 77 Gilford St

2019-08-21 - Manchester PD report regarding 77 Gilford St

2019-09-05 - Manchester PD report regarding 77 Gilford St

2019-09-11 - Manchester PD report regarding 77 Gilford St

2019-09-11 - Manchester PD report, Kevin and Adam confrontation (1 of 2)

2019-09-11 - Manchester PD report, Kevin and Adam confrontation (2 of 2)

2019-09-12 - DCYF report

2019-09-18 - Manchester PD report regarding 77 Gilford St

2019-10-07 - DCYF summary of Harmony's case

2019-11-05 - Manchester PD report, Adam's friend took Sebring

2019-11-29 - Adam's Chrysler Sebring - Carfax accident report

2019-12-02 - Adam's Chrysler Sebring - Carfax accident report

2020-01-12 - Manchester PD report regarding 77 Gilford St

2021-07-06 - Application by Christina Lubin for restraining order against Adam Montgomery (1 of 2)

2021-07-06 - Application by Christina Lubin for restraining order against Adam Montgomery (2 of 2)

2021-12-29 - Email from Crystal to the mayor of Manchester

2021-12-29 - Response from mayor's office to Crystal

2022-01-04 - Detective report from Manchester PD

2022-01-05 - Supporting affidavit, Adam Montgomery assault against Harmony,

2022-01-05 - Bail order for Adam (bail not granted)

2022-01-06 - Kayla bail requirements

2022-01-09 - Narrative recap of interview of Roseanne Smith (Manchester PD)

2022-01-12 - Crystal text to Brian Entin

2022-01-18 - Letter from Gov. Sununu to MA SJC (1 of 2)

2022-01-18 - Letter from Gov. Sununu to MA SJC (2 of 2)

2022-02-25 - NH AG's report on Harmony, update to the public

2022-05-01 - Office of the Child Advocate, Massachusetts (OCA-MA) investigative report

2022-07-19 - Detective narrative (Manchester PD)

2022-10-21 - Supporting affidavit, murder charge against Adam Montgomery

2022-11-15 - Kayla's deal with state for testifying against Adam

2023-03-16 - Interview of Kayla Montgomery (transcript)

2023-12-13 - Defense motion in limine, exclude defendant's pre-arrest silence

2023-12-21 - Defense motion in limine, admit impeachment evidence against Kayla Montgomery

2023-12-21 - Defense motion in limine, exclude defendant's prior bad acts

2023-12-21 - Defense motion in limine, exclude purchase of pelletized limestone

2024-01-02 - State's opposition to defense's motion to exclude prior bad acts

2024-01-04 - Defense motion in limine, marital privilege

2024-01-04 - Defense witness list

2024-01-08 - State's motion in limine, exclude defendant's prior statements

2024-01-08 - State's witness list (amended)

2024-01-10 - Defense response to state's opposition to defense motion in limine to exclude limestone purchase

2024-01-12 - Defense response to state's opposition to defense motion to exclude prior bad acts

2024-01-14 - Defense response to state's opposition to defense motion in limine to impeach Kayla

2024-01-15 - Defense motion to sever assault and murder charges

2024-01-15 - Defense opposition to state's motion in limine to defendant's own prior statements

2024-01-15 - State's opposition to defense motion in limine, marital privilege

2024-01-16 - Defense witness list supplement

2024-01-17 - Defense response to state's response to defense motion to sever

2024-01-19 - Defense motion in limine, to admit impeachment evidence

2024-01-25 - Judge's omnibus order on motions

2024-01-25 - Judge order on motion to sever (denied)

2024-02-01 - State's witness list, amended

Photos

Photos from Google Maps, various newspaper articles, and as credited above.

Credits

Research, vocal performance, and audio editing by Kristen Seavey

Research, photo editing, and writing by Byron Willis

Murder, She Told is created by Kristen Seavey.