US EditionA 5-year-old was murdered by her father. Her fateful custody hearing will be made public
- Adam Montgomery, a 34-year-old man with a violent criminal history, was convicted and sentenced in 2024 for the murder of his five-year-old daughter, Harmony Montgomery, in Massachusetts.
- Harmony was placed in her father's custody after a closed-door 2019 Essex Juvenile Court hearing, despite concerns about his criminal record and risks to the child’s wellbeing.
- A 2022 independent review determined that the Massachusetts child welfare system did not adequately address Harmony’s needs, with custody rulings emphasizing parental rights over her safety amid persistent confidentiality in juvenile court proceedings.
- The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that audio recordings from the 2019 custody hearing can be released for use in Bill Lichtenstein’s documentary exposing secrecy in the child welfare and juvenile court systems.
- This ruling may increase public understanding of systemic failures that led to Harmony’s death and could influence reforms to prevent similar tragedies in child protection services.
33 Articles
33 Articles
The Sun (Lowell)
Editorial: Hearing audio may explain Harmony’s custody nightmare
The reasons for one of the most confounding, consequential and calamitous court decisions in recent memory may finally come to light, thanks to a recent ruling by the state’s highest court. The Supreme Judicial Court has determined that the audio from a private custody hearing, which ultimately sealed the fate of an innocent young girl, can be released to a documentary filmmaker. Essex Juvenile Court has refused to hand over the audio recording …
Court: Audio from Harmony Montgomery's custody hearing can be released
The public has a right to hear audio recordings from the custody hearing of Harmony Montgomery, a 5-year-old New Hampshire girl murdered by her father and vanished in 2019 after being placed in his care, the highest court in Massachusetts ruled Wednesday. Harmony Montgomery is seen smiling with her mother, Crystal Sorey, in an undated family photo. (Crystal Sorey) The girl’s father, Adam Montgomery, was found guilty in her death last year and se…
Rocky Mountain Outlook
Audio from murdered 5-year-old girl's custody hearing can be released, court rules
The public has a right to hear audio recordings from the custody hearing of Harmony Montgomery , a 5-year-old New Hampshire girl murdered by her father and vanished in 2019 after being placed in his care, the highest court in Massachusetts ruled Wedn
Audio to be released of custody hearing for a New Hampshire girl murdered by her father
Audio recordings can be released from the custody hearing of Harmony Montgomery , a 5-year-old New Hampshire girl who was murdered by her father and vanished in 2019 after being placed in his care, the highest court in Massachusetts ruled Wednesday.
Associated Press News
A 5-year-old was murdered by her father. Her fateful custody hearing will be made public
The highest court in Massachusetts has ruled audio recordings from the custody hearing of a 5-year-old New Hampshire girl who was murdered by her father and vanished in 2019 after being placed in his care.
Custody hearing for Harmony Montgomery, killed by her father, will be made public
The public has a right to hear audio recordings from the custody hearing of Harmony Montgomery, a 5-year-old New Hampshire girl who was murdered by her father and vanished in 2019 after being placed in his care, the highest court in Massachusetts ruled Wednesday. The father, Adam Montgomery, was found guilty in her death last year and sentenced to 56 years in prison...
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