Harmony montgomery

What Really Happened to Harmony

Real Heroes in the Fight for Justice for Harmony Montgomery:

WHO REPORTED HARMONY MISSING?

• September, 2021 – The Blare family (adoptive parents) contacted NH DCYF and raised concerns that Crystal Sorey has not seen Harmony since 2019 and has not been able to contact Montgomery to visit with Harmony.

WHO FAILED HARMONY?

• Adam Montgomery – Biological Father, who killed her. Harmony spent a total of approximately 40 hours in supervised visits with her father from her birth to age 4.5.
• Crystal Sorey – Biological Mother – Harmony Montgomery had only lived with Crystal Sorey for approximately six months in her life. Sorey was unable to provide Harmony with a safe environment due to her substance use disorder, and this resulted in Harmony’s removal from Sorey in 2014, only to be placed back with her twice, and removed twice more before January 2018.
• In February 2018, Crystal Sorey was absent from the hearing concerning Harmony, and Adam Montgomery was awarded full custody of Harmony. Sorey was in another court attending a Care and Protection case related to the adoption of Harmony’s half-sibling. However, her presence was not necessary as she had previously lost custody of her son, and his adoption was on November 22, 2019. Adam Montgomery’s court hearing proceeded without her. The Judge then awarded Adam Montgomery, who was living in New Hampshire, full custody of Harmony and determined that the ICPC did not apply.
• Kayla Montgomery, who witnessed the abuse and did nothing to help Harmony.
• New Hampshire’s Division for Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) and some of its employees.
• Hampshire DCYF Employee – Demetrios Tsaros, a New Hampshire DHHS employee from 1995 to 2021, closed the 2019 abuse case against Adam Montgomery, father of a 5-year-old Harmony, despite reports she had been punched and had a black eye. He marked the case “unfounded,” never interviewed Harmony, never contacted police, and took no protective action. Tsaros had a history of misconduct, including a 2001 domestic violence conviction that led to the surrender of his police certification and a 2002 firing from the Sununu Youth Services Center after a sexual harassment investigation. Despite this, he was hired by DCYF in 2011. In his visit, Tsaros downplayed concerns, emailing Manchester police: “I saw the children and did not observe any bruises.” Harmony was murdered six weeks later, DCF and CPCS, the agency whose lawyers failed to protect Harmony

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Harmony Montgomery Source Sections

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Harmony montgomery

Harmony Montgomery Timeline

Case File:

January 22, 1990

• Adam Montgomery is born to Melissa E. Newhall (DOB: 4/17/74) and Michael Montgomery Sr. Melissa was 16 years old at the time.

November 11, 1998

• A paternity test confirms Adam is the biological son of Michael Montgomery Sr. Adam is subsequently placed with the Montgomery family.

October 20, 2004

• Adam is involved in a traffic incident and charged with Leaving the Scene of an Accident.

November 9, 2004

• Adam fails to appear in court.

November 18, 2004

• A Juvenile Custodial Warrant is issued for Adam Montgomery.

February 2, 2005

• Adam pleads not guilty in court.

April 27, 2005

• Adam again fails to appear and is arrested.

July 11, 2005

• Adam is ordered to complete 50 hours of community service, pay fines and fees, and placed on probation concurrent with case 041643DAZANC.

2006 (Age 16)

• Adam, living on Donald Street in Bedford, NH, brings a weapon to school in Manchester. Charged with felony possession of a dangerous weapon on school grounds.

September 7, 2007

• Adam is charged with criminal threatening after allegedly pulling a knife on a 15-year-old girlfriend.

February 10, 2008

• Adam is linked as a suspect in the shooting of Darlin Guzman in Lynn, MA. No charges filed.

March 2008

• Adam stabs a teen in the leg and pushes him from a moving car in Manchester, NH. Charged with first-degree assault and reckless conduct. Incident related to a drug dispute.

January 2009

• Sentenced to 383 days in jail.

June 26, 2011

• Crystal Sorey is arrested in PA for underage alcohol violations.

July 20, 2011

• Crystal is arrested twice for theft and receiving stolen property in York, PA.. Arrest

August 25, 2012

• Crystal Sorey and Adam Montgomery begin dating.

October 2013

• Crystal becomes pregnant with Harmony Montgomery.

January 14, 2014 Adam shoots Robert Jacobs in Haverhill, MA. Crystal is present. Jacobs’ brother, Cameron Vitalone, shoots Adam. Crystal is found hiding in a shed afterward.A surveillance camera in the area captured both audio and video of the shooting. The footage and investigation implicated multiple individuals, including:

• Adam Montgomery (shooter)
• Crystal Sorey (accomplice/witness)
• Jason Sorey (Crystal’s brother and Harmony’s maternal uncle)

When police arrived at the scene, Crystal Sorey was found hiding in an abandoned shed at the rear of the property. The incident occurred during a period of freezing arctic temperatures, further endangering her and her unborn child. January 28, 2014

• Adam is arrested by U.S. Marshals in Manchester for the Haverhill shooting.

March 14, 2014

• Judge orders Adam held without bond January 14 shooting. Report

June 7, 2014

• Harmony Montgomery was born to Crystal Sorey, who was 24, and her father, Adam Montgomery, who was 25 and incarcerated at the time. From the very beginning, Harmony faced significant challenges. She was diagnosed with a rare brain condition called holoprosencephaly (HPE) shortly after birth. Doctors informed Crystal that Harmony was blind in both eyes and had less than a year to live, a prognosis that cast a shadow over her early days. The Haverhill, Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (DCF) became involved almost immediately after Harmony’s birth.

June 2014 – August 2014

• DCF received three reports of neglect of the newborn due to Crystal’s substance use. DCF gave Crystal a chance to overcome her addiction.
• DCF Haverhill Area Office received two additional reports alleging neglect of Harmony, who was two months old. Harmony was removed from the care and custody of Crystal Sorey and placed in foster care by the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (DCF).
• Although DCF initially gave Crystal a chance to overcome her addiction, by August, they took legal action in juvenile court and removed Harmony from her care.
• Harmony was placed with a foster family, with the goal of reuniting her with her mother. Foster mom observes visual tracking, prompting an updated diagnosis. Harmony’s condition was changed to septooptic dysplasia (SOD), which, while still serious, was not fatal. The main impact was that Harmony remained legally blind in one eye.

September 2014

• Adam pleads guilty to the shooting. Sentenced to 18 months at Middleton House of Correction.

December 9, 2014

• Robyn Sorey, the mother of Crystal Sorey and maternal grandmother of Harmony Montgomery, passed away.

January 2015:

• Harmony and Crystal visit Adam in prison. Harmony was six months old when Adam met her for the first time in the visitation room of his prison.

April 2015

• Harmony was removed again from Crystal and returned to foster care. Harmony was 10 months old.

June 2015:

• Crystal is inconsistent in visits and treatment.

July 2015:

• DCF shifts Harmony’s goal to adoption.” Due to the length of time Harmony had spent in foster care, seven out of her twelve months, DCF decided that reunification with her mother was no longer the primary goal. Instead, they shifted the focus to finding a permanent adoptive family for Harmony. Harmony continued to live with her foster family, the Rafterys.

September, 2015

• Adam was released from prison and moved to New Hampshire.

October 2015

• Adam begins dating Kayla Rivera.

June 2016:

• Harmony had turned two years old. She had spent 19 out of her 24 months of life about 80% with her foster family.DCF “Foster Care Review” the goal remained adoption.

September 2016:

• Adam Montgomery contacted the DCF regarding Harmony.

October 2016 – February 2017:

• Adam expresses interest in seeing his daughter. Over the next five months, from October 2016 to February 2017, Adam saw Harmony at least once a month.

December 2016:

• Crystal Sorey began participating in a parenting class and visiting Harmony consistently at the DCF Haverhill Area Office.

January 2017:

• Crystal Sorey relocated, the case was transferred from the DCF Haverhill Area Office to the Jackson Square Area Office (Boston). Adam Montgomery continued to reside in New Hampshire.

February 2017:

• At the time, Harmony was two-and-a-half years old and had spent 85% of her life with her foster family. The new team, with fresh eyes, noticed that Crystal seemed more stable, was participating in her services, and was consistently visiting Harmony. This led to an internal decision to change Harmony’s permanency goal back to reunification with her mother.

March 2017: 

• The DCF case management team returned Harmony to the care of Crystal Sorey, after approximately two years in foster care.

April 2017:

• During her contact with the DCF case management team, Crystal informed them that Adam Montgomery called her and that he spoke with Harmony over the telephone. Crystal Sorey was warned by DCF that she could not do that.

May 2017:

• Crystal maintains contact with Adam, violating DCF rules again. Multiple reports are filed.

July 2017:

• During DCF reviews, Adam Montgomery reported having weekend overnight visits with Harmony for the past four weeks, picking her up from Sorey on Fridays and returning her on Sundays.

September 2017: 

• A report of neglect was filed with the DCF Jackson Square Area Office, alleging that Crystal Sorey neglected Harmony by allowing Adam Montgomery unauthorized visitation with her.

October 2017:

• Another Report of neglect were filed with the DCF Jackson Square Area Office alleging neglect of Harmony by both Crystal Sorey and Adam Montgomery. The concerns were related to the unsupervised visits Adam Montgomery had with Harmony while she was in Crystal Sorey’s care.
• When the DCF case management team confronted Sorey about allowing overnight visits between Harmony and Adam Montgomery, Crystal Sorey stated that Montgomery threatened her with seeking sole custody of Harmony if she did not provide him with visitation.

January 2018:

• Harmony is removed again due to Crystal’s substance use. Returned to foster care. Harmony was about three-and-a-half, DCF placed her back with the Rafterys for the third time.

February 2018 – April 2018:

• The foster family, deeply concerned, expressed their frustration to DCF. They believed that the repeated removals and reunification were causing Harmony trauma. Her behavioral issues were escalating, and her needs were growing more complex. After three months, the Rafterys made the difficult decision to return Harmony to DCF.

June 2018:

• On Harmony’s fourth birthday, DCF held another Foster Care Review meeting.
• Crystal consistently visited and participated in the action plan, but Adam’s involvement remained minimal. Crystal requested a “review and re-determination hearing” in juvenile court.

August 2018:

• Adam resumed supervised visits with Harmony, seeing her one to two times per month for five months. During this time, Adam also took legal action, requesting a “review and re-determination hearing” in juvenile court. Read More

October 2018:

• Adam Montgomery and Crystal Sorey’s custody review and Re-determination hearing was also scheduled for the same date in February 2019.

December 2018:

• The Foster Care Review panel determined that Crystal Sorey was unstable in her sobriety and inconsistent with visits with Harmony.

December 19, 2018

• Massachusetts DCF requests a Home Study on Adam Montgomery via ICPC.

February 22, 2019:

• Adam Montgomery’s Review and Re-determination hearing took place in Juvenile Court. Crystal Sorey was absent from the hearing concerning Harmony due to a scheduling conflict. She was in another court attending a Care and Protection case related to the adoption of Harmony’s half-sibling. However, her presence was not necessary as she had previously lost custody of her son, and his adoption was on November 22, 2019
• The Judge then awarded Adam Montgomery, who was living in New Hampshire, full custody of Harmony and determined that the ICPC did not apply.

Harmony had only lived with Crystal Sorey for approximately six months in her life : 

• Harmony was in foster care for nearly all four and a half yearsDCF was involved with Harmony, beginning when she was two months old.
• Harmony was repeatedly returned to and removed from Crystal Sorey’s care.
• Sorey was unable to provide Harmony with a safe environment due to her substance use disorder and this resulted in Harmony’s removal from Sorey in 2014, only to be placed back with her twice, and removed twice more before January 2018.

Harmony spent approximately a total of 40 hours in supervised visits with her father from her birth to age four and a half.

• Adam Montgomery was in and out of Harmony’s life since birth, not consistently visiting with her for more than four to six months at a time, with long periods of no contact.
• In August 2018, Mr. Montgomery visited with Harmony for the first time since September 2017, 11 months prior. Between August 2018 and his custody transfer in February 2019, Adam Montgomery visited Harmony approximately 11 times at a DCF area office for two-hour visits, supervised by the DCF case management team.

April 21, 2019:

• Crystal Sorey had her last contact with Harmony via FaceTime around Easter. During the video call, Crystal noticed that Adam was visible in the background, and she recalls that Harmony seemed frightened.

June 5, 2019:

• Crystal began dating a man referred to as JE.

June 2019:

• Adam, along with Harmony, Kayla, and their other children, visited Adam’s aunt, Kendra, and stayed at her home during the summer.

July 2019:

• Adam Montgomery admitted to his uncle, Kevin Montgomery, that he had inflicted a black eye on Harmony. Kevin Montgomery is Adam’s uncle, while Michael Montgomery Sr. is Adam’s father.

July 29, 2019 An anonymous call was made to NH DCYF Intake regarding Harmony Montgomery, alleging potential abuse. The reporter alleged that when they visited the home a week prior, on July 22, 2019, Harmony Montgomery had a black eye that Adam Montgomery admitted to causing. The report was screened in, and a CPSW was assigned.

• 10:25 AM: The CPSW – Demetrios Tsaros visited the home and observed the children, including Harmony Montgomery, the same day as the report, July 29, 2019. On that date, the CPSW sent an email to the Manchester Police Department advising that they did not observe an injury on the child consistent with a black eye. This assessment was conducted as Adam Montgomery and Harmony were entering and departing their vehicle. Report

June 2, 2019

• Harmony Montgomery was seen by a doctor, as confirmed by court records. This visit occurred several months after her father, Adam Montgomery, was granted full custody in February 2019. Harmony Montgomery Medical Report

July 7, 2019:

• Kayla called the police on a friend Alex Call, who was high and refused to leave their house.

July 10, 2019:

• The police were called to the house due to a domestic violence incident.

July 29, 2019

• DCYF receives its first report of abuse. Kevin Montgomery reports that Harmony has a black eye. Tsaros visits but only sees Harmony from a distance.

July 30, 2019

• Kevin Montgomery submits a fifth report detailing further abuse.

August 1, 2019

• Adam cancels a scheduled home visit with Tsaros.

August 5, 2019:

• The police were called for a welfare check at 77 Gilford St. after a neighbor expressed concern about a young child living there. The neighbor believed the family was squatting and had no electricity.

August 7, 2019: 

• CPSW – Tsaros – interviewed Harmony Montgomery, Adam Montgomery, and Kayla Montgomery, and noted a red mark in her eye and faded bruising under her eyelid. When interviewed, Harmony Montgomery and Adam Montgomery said the mark was caused by horseplay with another sibling, during which a toy lightsaber struck Harmony Montgomery near her eye. Kayla Montgomery reports that she did not observe the injury when it occurred, but was contemporaneously told the same story. Report

August 8-9, 2019

• Tsaros contacts a doctor and Kevin again; fails to verify if Harmony was medically examined. Report

August 16, 2019: 

• The Millers (adoptive parents) met Crystal and offered to adopt Harmony if the opportunity or need arose.

August 22, 2019: 

• The house at 77 Gilford St., where Adam, Kayla, Harmony, and three other children were staying, was sold at a public foreclosure auction. Despite the sale, the family continued squatting in the home. Adam’s brother, Michael Montgomery, mentioned that the only source of electricity in the house was a generator and that there was no central heating. Concerned family members in Florida had contacted the police and DCYF for wellness checks.

September 2019:

• The property Adam was living in went into foreclosure. It had been owned by Helen Montgomery, 78, and Christina Digirolamo from 2016 until it was sold at auction in 2019.

September 11, 2019: 

• A domestic incident occurred between Kevin and Adam at 12:42 PM. Kevin and Helen Montgomery filed Reports #13 and #14 about foreclosure, filth, and lack of hot water.

September 12, 2019 Detective Sgt. Mike Bergeron of Manchester PD files Report #15, noting clutter and poor home conditions. September 23, 2019: 

• Tabby Scott, a friend of Kayla and Adam who is considered somewhat of a step-sibling to Adam, posted a picture with Harmony in September 2019. She also posted separate selfies with Harmony, Kayla, and Adam, captioned with “No matter what, I love you guys to death.” Friends of the family noted that Tabby’s father had dated Adam’s mother for some time, and they had lived together as kids, maintaining a close relationship since.

October 2019:

• Kevin Montgomery, Adam’s uncle, called the police to request an escort for him and his mother to enter the home at 77 Gilford St. to retrieve some belongings and check on the children. He requested the escort to avoid any confrontation. During this visit, Kevin saw Harmony briefly and described her as looking “timid.”

October 1, 2019:

• Tsaros and the Police made a final visit to the home and saw Adam Montgomery, Kayla Montgomery, Harmony Montgomery, and the other children in the household. The assessment was determined to be unfounded, and the situation was scored high risk for future child welfare involvement pursuant to the Risk Assessment tool, citing the history of substance use, prior family history with child protection, and economic challenges. Police physically saw Harmony during a “Call for Service” at a Manchester home. Law enforcement considers this the last confirmed sighting of Harmony. Report

October 7, 2019

• Kevin called CPS to report an abuse Report

October 17, 2019

• A closing letter was sent to Adam Montgomery and Kayla Montgomery advising the family of the findings and recommending additional services to assist with housing.

November 11, 2019

• Blair Miller and his husband, Jonathan, adopt Jamison, Harmony’s brother (Crystal Sorey’s oldest son)

November 27, 2019

Montgomery family was evicted from the home in Manchester. Adam, Kayla, and the three children began living in their car, which they parked at a friend’s apartment complex in Manchester. Harmony was toilet trained before she was three years old, she started to have accidents once the family began living in the car. When Harmony had an accident, Adam Montgomery became angry and would hit her in the face or on her leg or hand. Montgomery became angrier the more accidents Harmony had and would then hit her repeatedly.

Thanksgiving 2019:

• Christina Lubin, Kayla Montgomery’s mother, claimed that she saw Harmony during Thanksgiving. It was the only time Christina saw her, and she noted that Harmony “looked clean, didn’t have any bruises, was extremely polite, and very cute.” The visit was brief, and Christina mentioned that Kayla had told her that Harmony had gone to live with her biological mother.

December 7, 2019:

• Harmony Montgomery was killed by her father, Adam Montgomery.

• Harmony had an accident early in the morning and the defendant repeatedly punched her in the head. Later that morning, the family drove to a methadone clinic where Kayla and the defendant took turns going inside while the other stayed in the car with the children. When the Adam Montgomery returned to the car, he realized the victim had had another accident and started yelling at her and hitting her in the head repeatedly.

• From the methadone clinic, Adam Montgomery drove the family to Burger King. While they were driving, Harmony was in the back seat crying and making a strange, moaning-like noise. Adam Montgomery told Harmony to shut up, and at each red light at which they stopped, Adam Montgomery reached back and repeatedly punched Harmony in the head. The defendant stopped hitting when they got to Burger King. With the final punch, he said in a scared voice that he felt something and thought he really hurt her this time.

• Later that day, the family’s car broke down at a traffic light and they had to abandon it. As the defendant and Kayla were getting the children out of the car, the victim did not respond and they realized she had died. The defendant got a duffel bag from the trunk, put the victim’s body in it, and brought it back to the friend’s apartment complex, where the defendant put it in a snow bank.

• Following the loss of their car, the family stayed in a friend’s car, then with Kayla’s mother.

December 20, 2019

• Adam & Kayla Montgomery & the boys move into the FIT Shelter. Harmony’s body is kept inside the ceiling in the duffel bag which was accessed through a vent

January 7, 2020

• DCYF receives an anonymous report of Adam and Kayla using drugs around their children Report

January 8, 2020:

• A referral was received by NH DCYF regarding the Montgomery household, but it did not reference Harmony Montgomery. When the CPSW asked about Harmony Montgomery, Adam Montgomery advised that she was again residing with her mother, Crystal Sorey, in Massachusetts and had been there since approximately Thanksgiving 2019.

January 13, 2020

• Another referral was received by NH DCYF regarding the Montgomery household, unrelated to Harmony Montgomery. When the CPSW inquired about Harmony Montgomery, Adam Montgomery stated again that she was still living with her mother, Crystal Sorey, and that he had not seen her in a year.

January 21, 2020: 

• The CPSW called and left a voicemail with Crystal Sorey to confirm Harmony’s residence. Crystal Sorey never returned the call.

January 14, 2020 

• Adam Montgomery began working at Portland Pie Company

February 5, 2020

• Smell complaint at FIT Shelter (Adam & Kayla & kids still there). Adam transfers Harmony’s body out of the due bag and into a CMC maternity bag inside the FIT Shelter bathroom, and they store the maternity bag in the FIT Shelter closet

February 7, 2020

• Kayla pushes a (front and back) stroller to Portland Pie Company with Harmony’s body (inside the maternity bag) placed in between her two boys. Adam then stores the maternity bag in the Portland Pie Co. cooler for “a week or two.”

February 20, 2020

• Adam & Kayla & the boys (and the bag) moved to 644 Union Street #2. Harmony’s body was removed from the CMC maternity bag and treated with quicklime in the apartment’s bathtub before Harmony’s body is repackaged into the maternity bag. Harmony’s body is then stored in the apartment freezer

February 26, 2020

• Adam Montgomery withdrew cash from an ATM and purchased lime, an angle grinder, a blade, and a battery. At some point thereafter, he thawed Harmony’s body in the bathtub at the apartment and had Kayla help remove the Harmony’s clothing. Montgomery had a large bag of lime and spent several hours in the bathroom with the Harmony’s body. When he was finished, he put the Harmony’s body back in the diaper bag and put the bag back in the freezer.

March 3, 2020 Britney Bedard rents two rooms at the Econo Lodge for two nights (216 for Adam & Kayla & the boys, 313 for Britney Bedard & Travis Beach). At the hotel, the friend and Montgomery went outside to smoke a cigarette and the Adam Montgomery began pacing back and forth, repeating “I f**ked up.” Adam Montgomery had asked the friend to rent a U-Haul for him because “he needed to move stuff.” Harmony’s body is kept in the motel mini-fridge, inside the CMC maternity bag.

• 5:49 PM Brendon Middleton rents a U-Haul with Travis & Britney, who then turn the keys over to Adam Montgomery
• Montgomery left the hotel in the U-Haul in the middle of the night. He took the diaper bag containing the victim’s body with him.
• 11:25 PM – Adam tries to reach Travis on Facebook Messenger
• 11:25 pm Adam  “Yo”
• 11:27 pm Adam  “If you are awake, call me.”
• 11:27 pm Adam “Need to talk.”

March 4, 2020 Several calls and messages are exchanged between Travis and Adam

• 12:43 am Travis “Hey, can we use the U-Haul for like 10 mins?”
• 12:43 am Adam missed a call from Travis
• 3:35 am Travis missed a call from Adam
• 3:35 am Adam “Know what’s up, bro, hit me up.”
• 3:37 am Travis missed a call from Adam
• 3:38 am Travis missed a call from Adam
• 3:40 am Travis missed a call from Adam
• 3:44 am Travis missed a call from Adam
• 3:46 am Travis missed a call from Adam
• 3:47 am Travis missed a call from Adam
• 3:49 am Travis missed a call from Adam
• 3:51 am Travis missed a call from Adam
• 3:52 am Travis missed a call from Adam
• 3:53 am Travis missed a call from Adam
• 4:44 am Tobin Bridge Local North – did not pay toll in U-Haul
• 4:45 am Tobin Bridge Local South – did not pay toll in U-Haul
• 5:25 amTobin Bridge Local North – did not pay toll in U-Haul
• Montgomery returned without a bag, telling Kayla he “got rid of her

More calls and messages between Adam and Travis

• 6:59 am Travis missed a call from Adam
• 12:16 pm Travis “Yo plz let me know when I can come by and grab my stuff, because we only have the car till 130. Thank you, Bubba.”
• 12:18 pm Adam missed a call from Travis
• 12:22 pm short calls and video chats between Adam and Travis until 12:57 pm
• 1:47 pm Adam Montgomery returns the U-Haul
• 2:47 pm “Pro, what UHALL did you drop it off at cause we just got a text saying the van was supposed to be back at 2 so plz let me know wtf is going on.”
• 2:47 pm Travis “ASAP.”
• 7:08 pm Adam “I dropped it o on a Willow, my word.” “Please don’t message me stu like this on FB again.”
• 7:33 pm Travis “Um, ok, my bad, won’t happen again, bubba.”
• 9:26 pm – Travis missed a call from Adam
• 9:27 pm Adam – “Yo, bro, can you call me please? I need to talk to you, it’s very important, please call me.”

March 23, 2020

• Assessment Report #850020 is closed as “Unfounded

July 7, 2021

• Chris Lubin applies for a restraining order against Adam to keep him away from her house, her daughter, and her grandchildren. She said Adam was stalking her daughter

September 2021:

• The Blare family (adoptive parents) contacted NH DCYF and raised concerns that Ms. Sorey has not seen Harmony since 2019 and has not been able to contact Montgomery to visit with Harmony.

September 14, 2021:

• The matter was assigned to the Manchester DCYF District Office. DCYF District Office attempted to locate the family but was unsuccessful.

November 18, 2021

• Crystal Sorey reported Harmony Montgomery Missing

November 18, 2021: The Manchester Police Department joined the effort to locate the family, visiting multiple addresses where the family had previously resided. The CPSW attempted to contact Adam Montgomery and Kayla Montgomery and spoke to other family members who did not know where the family was living. The CPSW reached out to Maine and Massachusetts child protection agencies, which had no recent involvement with the family. New Hampshire police began investigating Harmony’s disappearance December 28, 2021:

• Police Interviewed Kayla Montgomery

December 28, 2021

• Crystal Sorey sent a an email to the Mayor of Manchester Joyce Craig Copy of the email

December 31, 2021:

• Manchester Police Department spoke with Kayla Montgomery, who stated that the last time she had seen Harmony was in November or December 2019. She said that Montgomery stated that he was driving Harmony back to her mother. Kayla Montgomery further stated that it was on the day after Thanksgiving in 2019 that Montgomery stated he was taking Harmony to her mother.
• Kayla Montgomery admitted to Manchester Police that she had been receiving the additional food stamp assistance for Harmony.
• They also interviewed Adam Montgomery, who provided contradictory and unconvincing explanations for Harmony’s whereabouts, including claiming that Ms. Sorey picked Harmony up, while he told Kayla Montgomery that he was driving Harmony to Massachusetts to her mother.

January 4, 2022:

• Adam Montgomery was arrested by the Manchester Police Department on one misdemeanor charge of interference with custody, two misdemeanor charges of endangering the welfare of a child, and one felony charge of second-degree assault.

January 6, 2022:

• Manchester Police arrested Kayla Montgomery on one felony charge of welfare fraud contrary to RSA 167:17-b.

January 11, 2022:

• Prosecutors dropped the felony welfare fraud charge against Mrs. Montgomery and added a new felony charge of theft.

January 22, 2022:

• Police determined that Harmony was murdered

April 5, 2022:

• Adam Montgomery was additionally charged with two counts each of being an armed career criminal, felon in possession of a firearm, and theft by unauthorized taking or transfer and receiving stolen property.

April 7, 2022:

• Adam Montgomery was additionally charged with two counts of receiving stolen property related to a gun theft that took place in September or October 2019.

February 8, 2024:

• The trial for Harmony’s murder began

February 22, 2024:

• Adam Montgomery was found guilty of second-degree murder

May 9, 2024:

• Adam Montgomery was sentenced to 45 years to life in prison

March 11, 2024

• Crystal Sorey petitioned a New Hampshire probate court to have her daughter, Harmony Montgomery, declared legally dead and to be appointed as the administrator of Harmony’s estate. This legal step was necessary for Sorey to pursue wrongful death lawsuits on behalf of her daughter. The following day, March 12, 2024, the judge conditionally approved her request, pending the fulfillment of certain legal requirements, such as providing a probate surety bond and submitting the jury’s verdict from Adam Montgomery’s trial

March 12, 2024:

• Harmony was legally declared dead

December 6, 2024 Crystal Sorey filed the initial wrongful death lawsuit against the state of New Hampshire on September 13, 2024, in the Hillsborough County Superior Court, Northern District. The case number is 216-2024-CV-00722.

• The lawsuit alleges that the New Hampshire Division for Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) was negligent in its duty to protect Harmony Montgomery, leading to her death. Sorey contends that DCYF failed to act on multiple reports of abuse and neglect, thereby exposing Harmony to foreseeable harm. Complaint

Note: According to the Investigative Report:

• According to official reports, Crystal Sorey did not return a welfare check call from New Hampshire’s Division for Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) in early 2020. Specifically, on January 21, 2020, a child protection worker left a voicemail for Sorey to confirm Harmony’s residence, but she did not respond.
• Who reported Harmony missing: September, 2021 The Blare family (adoptive parents) contacted NH DCYF and raised concerns that Crystal Sorey has not seen Harmony since 2019 and has not been able to contact Montgomery to visit with Harmony.
• Harmony Montgomery had only lived with Crystal Sorey for approximately six months in her life : Harmony was in foster care for nearly all the four and a half yearsDCF was involved with Harmony, beginning when she was two months old. Harmony was repeatedly returned to and removed from Crystal Sorey’s care. Sorey was unable to provide Harmony with a safe environment due to her substance use disorder and this resulted in Harmony’s removal from Sorey in 2014, only to be placed back with her twice, and removed twice more before January 2018.
• Harmony spent approximately a total of 40 hours in supervised visits with her father from her birth to age four and a half:
• Adam Montgomery was in and out of Harmony’s life since birth, not consistently visiting with her for more than four to six months at a time, with long periods of no contact. In August 2018 Adam Montgomery visited with Harmony for the first time since September 2017, 11 months prior. Between August 2018 and when he received custody in February 2019, Adam Montgomery visited Harmony approximately 11 times at a DCF area office for two-hour visits supervised by the DCF case management team.

April 8, 2025

• Crystal Sorey signed a settlement agreement with the State of New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, the New Hampshire Division for Children, Youth, and Families. Source

May 23, 2025 Justice was not served: Harmony Montgomery’s mother, Crystal Sorey, settled a lawsuit for over $2 million.  As part of the settlement, she agreed not to hold the state or child protective services responsible for Harmony Montgomery’s death. Source

• The denial of justice for Harmony is more important than ever now that Adam Montgomery appealed his conviction to the New Hampshire Supreme Court. Even more disturbing is the fact that in the recent settlement of a civil lawsuit, all parties agreed that the state does not have to admit any wrongdoing or unlawful conduct..
• Apparently, they cannot even speak publicly about the terms of the settlement. The money paid out bought exactly what the state wanted: silence and secrets. There is only one loser in the settlement, and that is “justice”… for Harmony. This, despite the fact that DCYF closed Harmony’s case in October 2019, concluding there was no physical abuse by her father. The state officials simply did not believe that Adam Montgomery brutally punched her in the head, causing a black eye and other injuries. Of course, we now know from the trial that it was true. They could have stopped the abuse, but they didn’t. Harmony was dead seven weeks after they closed the case when he murdered her, once again punching her in the head. Source
• Shortly after announcing a settlement agreement, Crystal Sorey posted a video mocking the public’s outrage over her payday settlement with “Are You Mad I Got Paid?“.. Source
• No justice was served, as Sorey claimed – the responsible parties do not have to admit any wrongdoing or unlawful conduct. Consequently, Harmony was abused again by someone who only saw a dollar sign and wanted to get paid.

As part of the settlement, she agreed not to hold the state or child protective services responsible for Harmony Montgomery’s death. There is only one loser in the settlement, and that is “justice”… for Harmony.Source

October 15, 2025

• The state’s highest court heard the appeal in October. During that hearing, a lawyer for Adam Montgomery argued that he should have been tried separately on the assault and murder charges, that the court should not have allowed testimony from Kayla Montgomery and that police body camera video should not have been shown at the trial.
• Regarding the joining of the assault charge and murder charge in the same trial, the state had argued that “any error with respect to joinder was also harmless as to the second degree murder charge because the ‘state’s case and the evidence of the defendant’s guilt overwhelming.'”

June 11, 2026

• The New Hampshire Supreme Court reversed the second-degree murder conviction for Adam Montgomery Source

“We conclude that the misjoinder of offenses was not harmless as to the homicide charge. Accordingly, we reverse the defendant’s conviction of second-degree murder,” justices wrote.

• “It was a tough decision to read, but it’s the job of our courts, specifically our Supreme Court, to make sure things are done right, and fairness is maintained. So, while I would have liked to see the murder conviction stand, the Supreme Court determined that things should have been done differently, and that’s their role,” Jesse O’Neill, former assistant attorney general, said.

Crystal Sorey Settlement

Settlement

Shortly after announcing a settlement agreement, Crystal Sorey posted a video mocking the public’s outrage over her payday settlement with “Are You Mad I Got Paid?”..

Records

Harmony Montgomery Case Records

Case records and related PDF files.