Harmony Montgomery Case: Timeline and Cast of Characters
- Cassian Creed
- Aug 7
- 8 min read
Detailed Timeline of Main Events for the Harmony Montgomery Case
Early Life and Initial System Involvement (2014-2018)
June 7, 2014: Harmony Renee Montgomery is born in Massachusetts to Crystal Sorey and Adam Montgomery.
August 2014: Harmony, at two months old, is placed in foster care with Tim and Michelle Raftery by the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (DCF) due to her mother's substance abuse.
September 2014: Adam Montgomery is convicted of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and larceny, serving an 18-month sentence for shooting a man in the face during a drug deal.
2015-2018: Harmony experiences multiple movements between foster care and brief attempts at reunification with her mother.
June 4, 2017: Adam Montgomery marries Kayla Montgomery.
July 2018: Crystal Sorey loses official custody of Harmony and her half-brother Jamison due to ongoing substance abuse issues.
Custody Transfer and Escalating Abuse (2019)
February 22, 2019: Massachusetts Juvenile Court Judge Mark Newman awards full custody of Harmony to her biological father, Adam Montgomery, despite his extensive violent criminal history and minimal prior contact with Harmony. Harmony moves to Manchester, New Hampshire.
April 21, 2019: Crystal Sorey has her last FaceTime call with Harmony, during which Harmony appears frightened. Adam subsequently blocks further communication.
July 2019: Adam's uncle, Kevin Montgomery, reports seeing Harmony with a black eye at 77 Gilford Street, Manchester, to New Hampshire's Division for Children, Youth and Families (DCYF). Adam allegedly admits to Kevin, "I bashed her around the [expletive] house." DCYF rates the household as high-risk but closes the investigation as "unfounded" by October 2019.
August-September 2019: Manchester police in the Harmony Montgomery Case receive multiple welfare check requests and complaints about squatting and poor conditions at 77 Gilford Street. Adam's brother, Michael Montgomery, also witnesses Adam's abusive behavior, including forcing Harmony to scrub a toilet with her toothbrush.
October 2019: Manchester police respond to a service call at 77 Gilford Street; this is the last confirmed sighting of Harmony by authorities. DCYF caseworkers make a final home visit, but Harmony is not present.
November 27, 2019: The Montgomery family is evicted from their home at 77 Gilford Street and begins living in their Chrysler Sebring car, often parked behind Colonial Village apartments in Manchester.
Murder and Gruesome Cover-Up (December 2019 - March 2020)
December 7, 2019: Adam Montgomery fatally beats Harmony in the backseat of the family's car after she has a bathroom accident. Kayla Montgomery testifies Adam repeatedly punched Harmony in the head. Harmony moans for about five minutes and then falls silent. The car breaks down near the intersection of Elm and Webster Streets in Manchester, where Adam discovers Harmony is dead.
December 7-8, 2019: Adam places Harmony's body in an Under Armour duffel bag and initially stores it in a snowbank near a dumpster at Colonial Village apartments.
December 8-30, 2019: Harmony's body is moved to a red cooler in the hallway of Kayla's mother's (Christina Lubin's) apartment building.
December 30, 2019 - February 2020: The family moves to the Families in Transition homeless shelter in Manchester. Adam hides Harmony's body in the ceiling vent of their room. Other residents complain of a foul odor, and maintenance is called. Adam then moves the body to a closet in the shelter.
February 2020: Adam stores Harmony's body in a walk-in freezer at the Portland Pie Company restaurant in Manchester, where he works. Kayla testifies she helped transport the body in a hospital maternity bag, placed in a stroller alongside her other children. Adam purchases lime, a metal-cutting blade, and a power grinder from Home Depot, believed to be for dismembering or dissolving the remains.
March 3-4, 2020: Adam Montgomery rents a U-Haul truck. Kayla testifies he drives away overnight with Harmony's remains (likely in the maternity bag) and returns saying, "it's done." Toll records show the U-Haul crossing the Tobin Bridge in Boston multiple times, suggesting disposal in the Boston/Revere, Massachusetts area. Harmony's remains are never seen again.
Discovery and Investigation (2021-2022)
November 18, 2021: Crystal Sorey officially reports Harmony missing to Manchester Police after being unable to contact her for over two years.
December 27, 2021: New Hampshire DCYF notifies Manchester Police they cannot locate Harmony, initiating a formal investigation.
December 31, 2021: Manchester Police publicly announce Harmony is missing and appeal for public help. Police locate Adam Montgomery, who gives conflicting statements about Harmony's whereabouts and refuses to cooperate.
January 4, 2022: Adam Montgomery is arrested and charged with second-degree assault (for the 2019 black eye incident), interference with custody, and child endangerment.
January 5, 2022: Kayla Montgomery is arrested for felony welfare fraud, having collected benefits for Harmony after her death.
June 2022: Investigators search the Families in Transition shelter. Detective Scott Reily discovers Harmony's blood (confirmed by DNA) and Adam Montgomery's fingerprints on drywall inside a ceiling vent in the room the Montgomerys occupied.
August 11, 2022: New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella and Manchester Police Chief Allen Aldenberg announce Harmony Montgomery was murdered in December 2019, based on "recently confirmed biological evidence." The case officially becomes a homicide investigation.
October 24, 2022: Adam Montgomery is formally charged with second-degree murder, falsifying physical evidence, abuse of a corpse, and witness tampering.
November 18, 2022: Kayla Montgomery pleads guilty to two counts of perjury for lying to a grand jury about Harmony's whereabouts, in exchange for her cooperation and testimony against Adam. She is sentenced to 1.5 years in prison.
Trial, Verdict, and Aftermath (2023-2025)
August 7, 2023: Adam Montgomery is sentenced to 30-60 years in prison for unrelated gun theft and possession charges from 2019.
February 8, 2024: Adam Montgomery's murder trial begins in Hillsborough County Superior Court. Adam refuses to attend most of the proceedings. Prosecutors reveal gruesome details of Harmony's death and body concealment through witness testimony, including Kayla Montgomery's.
February 22, 2024: A jury convicts Adam Montgomery of second-degree murder, second-degree assault, falsifying physical evidence, abuse of a corpse, and witness tampering.
March 12, 2024: A New Hampshire judge officially declares Harmony Montgomery legally dead.
March 7, 2024: Kayla Montgomery is released from prison on parole after serving 16 months for perjury.
May 9, 2024: Adam Montgomery is sentenced to 45 years to life in prison for Harmony's murder, plus additional consecutive terms totaling a minimum of 56 years. This sentence is ordered to run consecutively with his existing firearms sentence, for a total minimum of 86 years. Adam declines an offer to reduce his sentence in exchange for revealing Harmony's remains.
September 2024: Crystal Sorey files a wrongful death lawsuit against the State of New Hampshire (DCYF), alleging negligence.
March 3, 2025: Adam Montgomery's defense attorneys file an appeal of his murder conviction with the New Hampshire Supreme Court.
April 23, 2025: The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court rules that sealed audio recordings from Harmony's 2019 custody hearing can be made public, citing public interest in systemic failures.
May 23, 2025: The State of New Hampshire settles Crystal Sorey's wrongful death lawsuit for $2.25 million, without admitting wrongdoing.
August 2025: Harmony's remains have still not been found. Adam Montgomery's appeal is pending.
Cast of Characters
Victim
Harmony Renee Montgomery: (Born June 7, 2014; declared legally dead March 12, 2024) A five-year-old girl who was murdered by her father. She was partially blind in one eye and had special behavioral needs. Harmony spent much of her early life in foster care and was described as intelligent, social, and a protective older sister. Her body has never been found.
Perpetrator
Adam Montgomery: (Born c. 1989-1990) Harmony's biological father, convicted of her second-degree murder and related charges. He has an extensive criminal history including armed robbery, assault with a deadly weapon, and shooting a man in the face. Despite this, he was awarded custody of Harmony in 2019. He beat Harmony to death and then concealed her body for months before disposing of it. He showed no remorse and refused to reveal the location of her remains.
Key Witness / Accomplice (in cover-up)
Kayla Montgomery: (Born c. 1990-1991) Adam Montgomery's estranged wife and Harmony's stepmother. She was present during the murder and subsequent cover-up. She initially lied to investigators but later became the prosecution's star witness, testifying in detail about Harmony's death and the disposal of her body. She pleaded guilty to perjury and welfare fraud, serving 16 months in prison.
Family Members
Crystal Sorey: (Born c. 1989) Harmony's biological mother. She lost custody of Harmony due to substance abuse issues but initiated the missing person report in November 2021 after being unable to contact Harmony for over two years. She has been a vocal advocate for Harmony, pursuing wrongful death lawsuits and seeking accountability for systemic failures.
Kevin Montgomery: Adam Montgomery's uncle. He reported Adam's abuse of Harmony (specifically seeing her with a black eye) to child protective services in July 2019, an alarm that was unfortunately not acted upon decisively. He testified at Adam's trial.
Michael Montgomery: Adam Montgomery's brother. He witnessed Adam's abusive behavior towards Harmony (e.g., forcing her to scrub a toilet with her toothbrush) and provided statements to police, corroborating the pattern of abuse.
Christina Lubin: Kayla Montgomery's mother. She unwittingly harbored Harmony's remains in a cooler in her apartment building for a period and was lied to by Adam and Kayla about Harmony's whereabouts.
Blair Miller & Johnathon Bobbitt-Miller: The adoptive parents of Harmony's younger half-brother, Jamison. They advocated for Harmony and delivered powerful victim impact statements, highlighting Jamison's grief and the lasting trauma caused by Harmony's murder.
Tim and Michelle Raftery: Harmony's foster parents for much of her early childhood in Massachusetts. They provided a loving home and testified at Adam's trial about Harmony's personality and their profound grief over her death.
Anthony Bodero: A friend of Adam and Kayla who lent them his car after theirs broke down, unknowingly allowing Adam to store Harmony's body in the trunk. He also testified to Adam's request to rent a U-Haul.
Aaron Sweeney: The tow truck driver who picked up the Montgomerys' broken-down car on December 7, 2019, testifying that he saw no children present, consistent with Harmony's body being hidden.
Investigators and Prosecutors
Chief Allen Aldenberg: Manchester Police Chief. He led the public search efforts for Harmony and made emotional public announcements about the case, emphasizing the police's commitment to finding her and securing justice.
John M. Formella: New Hampshire Attorney General. He oversaw the murder investigation and prosecution, publicly announcing the determination that Harmony was murdered and committing his office to the case.
Senior Assistant Attorney General Christopher Knowles: Lead prosecutor in Adam Montgomery's murder trial. He meticulously presented the state's case, combining witness testimony (especially Kayla's) with forensic evidence to secure a conviction without a body.
Detective Scott Reily: Manchester Police Detective. His discovery of decomposition odors, bloodstains, and Adam's fingerprints in the Families in Transition shelter ceiling vent was a pivotal breakthrough in the investigation.
Detective Ray Lamy: Manchester Police Evidence Technician. He assisted in processing and presenting crucial physical evidence during the trial, such as the ceiling vent section.
Senior Assistant Attorney General Ben Agati: Prosecutor who assisted Christopher Knowles. He argued for Adam's severe sentence and notably offered a reduced sentence if Adam revealed Harmony's body location.
Katie Swango (NH State Police Lab): Forensic scientist who testified about DNA evidence, confirming Harmony's DNA in blood samples from the shelter ceiling.
Judicial Figures (relevant to case decisions)
Judge Mark Newman: Massachusetts Juvenile Court judge who awarded full custody of Harmony to Adam Montgomery in February 2019. His decision has been heavily scrutinized and cited as a critical systemic failure.
Judge Amy Messer: Presided over Adam Montgomery's murder trial and delivered his sentencing. She imposed a lengthy consecutive sentence, condemning Adam's "callous and heartless" actions.
Child Welfare and Advocacy
Maria Mossaides (MA Child Advocate): Director of the Massachusetts Office of the Child Advocate, whose May 2022 report critically detailed the systemic failures of the Massachusetts child protection system in handling Harmony's case.
Retired Judge Carol Erskine: A retired Massachusetts judge who has formally requested a federal civil rights investigation into New Hampshire DCYF's handling of Harmony's case, alleging ignored abuse reports and potential falsification of records.
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