Adam Montgomery trial hears closing arguments in daughter Harmony’s murder case

Ms Smith is picking apart Kayla Montgomery’s testimony, noting that she had wrongly recalled the children’s seating arrangements in the back of the car on the day of Harmony’s murder.

Ms Smith has also cast doubt on Kayla’s account of the events, questioning why she decided to ask Montogmery to drive to a Burger King and then go buy drugs right after he allegedly beat Harmony to death.

“She didn’t remember this. She made this up,” Ms Smith said. “As you think about Kayla, think about how she testified.

“She didn’t remember if [Harmony] had peed or pooped.”

“’Wake up, baby girl,’ those were the words Kayla described Adam used,” attorney Caroline Smith said.

“But she didn’t. Those words were the truth, surrounded by Kayla’s lies.”

Judge Messer warned jurors of “posters” outside the courthouse, and reminded them they’re only to take into account evidence presented in court.

Harmony’s remains were relocated several times — first stored in a cooler at the home of Kayla’s mother, later to a ceiling vent at a shelter the family lived in and even taken to Montgomery’s workplace — before Montgomery made efforts to destroy the body and dispose of it in March 2021.

Refuting Kayla’s version of the events leading up to Harmony’s death, the defence has alleged that the minor actually died under her stepmother’s care and that Montgomery only went along with plans to dispose of the body to “protect” Kayla and their two infant sons. Defence attorney Caroline Smith introduced a note Kayla wrote while in prison in 2022 following an arrest on theft charges for collecting welfare benefits for Harmony.

Ms Smith read the letter out loud, including excerpts in which Kayla wrote that she wanted immunity and custody of her children if she was going to come forward to authorities with information about Harmony’s murder. Among other demands, Kayla also wrote that she wanted to see Montgomery “one last time, kiss him, and maybe make love to him,” Ms Smith said — casting doubt on the prosecution’s argument that Kayla initially lied to officials because she was being threatened by Montgomery.

“What you didn’t write was protection from Adam, what you didn’t write was that you were afraid of Adam,” Ms Smith asked. “You just wanted to be with him before you, as you put it, betray him, right?”

“I wasn’t thinking about that …. yes,” Kayla answered.

Anthony Bodero, the friend that Kayla and Adam Montgomery visited on the day that Harmony died, took the stand last week.

Montgomery is standing trial on murder charges after conceding to two charges of abuse of a corpse and falsifying information in connection with his daughter’s December 2019 death.

During his testimony, Mr Bodero told jurors that Kayla and Adam Montgomery visited his apartment complex on 7 December 2019 — the day that authorities say Harmony was beaten to death. Mr Bodero said the Montgomerys told him their car had broken down and they had nowhere to go,

“They gave me a call, told me they had no place to go and came to where I was staying,” he told the court. “I let them upstairs. I told them, ‘I can let you stay in my car, but I can’t let you stay here because this is not my apartment.’”

The Montgomerys stayed in Mr Bodero’s car for two days. Mr Bodero said he went down to the parking lot a couple of times to check in on the Montgomerys, brought them food and waved at their two infant sons, but did not see Harmony.

Under cross-examination by the defence, Mr Bodero became agitated after attorney Caroline Smith suggested that he “didn’t want anything to do with the investigation or Harmony.”

“It’s not the way you’re making it sound, I want to help you guys,” a visibly exasperated Mr Bodero said.

“Help who?” Ms Smith went on to ask.

“The prosecution. I want to help find who killed that little girl,” Mr Bodero said.

The state’s case has largely hinged on testimony by Montgomery’s estranged wife, as well as DNA evidence of the horrific ways in which he worked to crush, reduce and dispose of Harmony’s remains.

On Thursday, jurors heard about a February 2020 $400 purchase of limestone, a metal-cutting diamond blade, a lithium-ion battery and a power grinder.

Rebecca Maines, who is in prison for a parole violation, testified that Adam Montgomery told her in the summer of 2021 that he had been trying to see his daughter, Harmony Montgomery, since 2019, when he dropped her off to be with her mother because he said she was having bathroom accidents “on purpose.”

Even though Adam Montgomery had been granted legal custody of the girl months before she vanished, Maines testified that he told her that Harmony’s mother wouldn’t allow him to visit her.

Maines, who described Montgomery at one point as her best friend, also testified about an incident that happened before he said he took Harmony to her mother. She said he told her he “backhanded” his daughter after seeing her put her hand over her younger brother’s lips and nose. In earlier testimony, Adam Montgomery’s uncle testified that he saw Harmony with a black eye at the family home in 2019 and that Adam told him he “bashed” her around the house after seeing her put her hands on her brother.

During cross-examination, Maines was asked about her criminal record from 2014 to 2019, which includes theft and fraud convictions. She is scheduled for a parole hearing in April, but also faces several pending charges.