Harmony Montgomery’s father Adam pins the five-year-old’s murder on his estranged wife – but admits he helped cover up the killing and help dispose of her corpse: ‘She alone knows how Harmony died’
Harmony Montgomery’s father Adam has tried to pin the child’s death on his estranged wife, sparking his murder trial.
In opening statements at the start of his trial Thursday in New Hampshire, his attorney said his estranged wife Kayla “only knows how Harmony died” — but said Montgomery did admit he helped cover up and dispose of her body.
Montgomery, 33, who is already serving 30 years in prison for separate firearms offenses, is charged with murder and assault but pleaded guilty to charges of tampering with physical evidence and abuse of a corpse the day before.
Prosecutors allege he fatally struck his half-blind daughter with a “closed fist” in December 2019 after she had a bathroom accident in the car they were living in with Kayla after being evicted.
“Kayla was an equal participant in the cover-up,” Montgomery’s attorney Jamie Brooks told the jury.
Adam Montgomery stuck out his tongue and grinned as his murder trial began with jury selection Tuesday. He claims he did not kill the five-year-old, but has admitted to covering up her death and helping to dispose of her body.
Prosecutors allege Adam fatally beat Harmony to death after she had a toilet accident in the car they were living in following their eviction
On Thursday, Adam Montgomery’s defense argued that his estranged wife Kayla (pictured) was responsible for Harmony’s death. It is expected that she will be a key witness for the prosecution
Brooks added that “Adam is not innocent,” but insisted there was more to the story.
“He and Kayla hid Harmony’s death. He is not an innocent here,” Brooks continued.
“He and Kayla moved Harmony’s body from one place to another to keep it hidden. And Adam is not innocent here. He and Kayla placed her body in a shower to wash her remains of the decomposition fluids and then permanently hid her remains. You can and must find him guilty of these crimes.”
Kayla, who is currently behind bars serving an 18-month sentence for perjury, is expected to be a key witness for the prosecution, which will likely prompt Montgomery’s opening statement blaming her for the death.
Harmony’s disappearance was only realized by authorities in November 2021 after her mother reported that she had not seen her in two years, and Kayla was also later arrested after allegedly collecting food stamps in the missing child’s name.
She has said she is fully cooperating with prosecutors and is expected to testify against her estranged husband, but Brooks claimed her testimony was intended to reduce her own legal risk rather than undermine the truth.
“Kayla was willing to sing for her dinner,” Brooks argued. ‘Not for the truth. Not for Harmony. But for Kayla. For Kayla, it was about protecting herself so she couldn’t avoid responsibility for her own behavior.”
Harmony disappeared in December 2019, but her disappearance was not realized by authorities until November 2021
Kayla Montgomery will be arraigned in Hillsborough Superior Court in May 2022 – following her arrest for perjury after lying about the last time she saw Harmony alive
Prosecutors portrayed the estranged woman as a beaten and bruised domestic violence victim who agreed to Adam’s alleged crimes out of fear.
To counter this, the defense also brought up a note allegedly written by Kayla after her arrest, in which Brooks said she wrote “about her willingness to, quote, ‘betray Adam'” — to not finally be free from Adam, not to finally be free from Adam. safe for him not to tell the truth.’
‘Betray. Meaning: stab him in the back. But she also wrote about her desire to be alone with him one more time,” he said.
‘To kiss. To make love when she could. She didn’t write that she was afraid of being alone with him. She did not write about any fear that Adam would hurt or kill her because of her betrayal. In her fairy tale musings, Adam would understand and protect her until the end. Their children needed their mother.”
Her perjury offense occurred when she lied about working shifts at Dunkin’ Donuts on the day she said she last saw Harmony alive, reports Law and crime.
But she was caught in the lie after investigators looked at her employment records, and she pleaded guilty to perjury in exchange for a plea deal — which included testifying against Adam.
Brooks argued that this was proof that she is a proven liar, adding, “It was explained to Kayla that she could choose not to answer a question if it might incriminate her… Instead, she chose however, choose to lie. Under oath. The same oath you will see her take later.”
Prosecutors have argued that the lies were actually evidence of witness tampering, one of the remaining charges Adam still faces.
The state’s argument that the father beat his daughter to death in a Burger King parking lot also came under fire in the opening statement, when Brooks responded that Harmony had actually died several days earlier.
Adam and Kayla (pictured together) lived in a car with Harmony after their eviction after Thanksgiving 2019, shortly before Adam allegedly killed his daughter
The convict appeared carefree and strolled through the courtroom without handcuffs as he faces murder charges over the disappearance of his five-year-old daughter Harmony
Crystal Sorey (right) – Harmony’s biological mother – lost custody of the young girl in 2018 due to her drug addiction. She reported her missing two years after Harmony was last seen alive
He claimed he came home from work one night to find “Harmony’s cold, lifeless body” behind the apartment complex they had been parked behind since their eviction, but Adam was “standing by” his wife when he made the grisly discovery.
“Kayla made Adam feel responsible,” Brooks said.
‘She claimed not to know what had happened. It was Adam’s fault for everything they went through. It wasn’t her fault, she insisted. She thought all the children were asleep. He had to protect her. He had to protect their children. If anyone found out, their children would be taken.”
Adam is accused of systematically moving Harmony’s body around various locations to evade detection by police, including in a dishwasher and a friend’s apartment.
In the state’s opening statement, they provided gruesome details about the couple’s alleged actions, including how Harmony was ultimately “the dead girl rotting in the ceiling.”
Brooks continued, “(Kayla) knew that the police thought she had information about what happened to Harmony…And she knew the walls were closing in.” Kayla also knew there was value in pointing the finger at Adam.”
“Is the witness drawing from a source of true memory?” he concluded. “Or are you just making it up?”