- Adam Montgomery, 34, could be sentenced to life in prison on Thursday
- Harmony’s next of kin will be addressing the judge at the sentencing
- READ MORE: Harmony Montgomery's stepmom is granted parole
By Germania Rodriguez Poleo For Dailymail.Com
Published: | Updated:
Harmony Montgomery's father will be sentenced on Thursday for the five-year-old's brutal murder.
Adam Montgomery, 34, faces life in prison after being convicted of the 2019 murder in February in New Hampshire. He punched Harmony to death for soiling herself.
He was also convicted of witness tampering, falsifying physical evidence and abuse of a corpse
A judge ordered the killer to attend his sentencing after he refused to appear in his trial.
Prosecutors have asked that Montgomery be sentenced to 56 years to life.He’s currently serving a minimum sentence of 32 1/2 years in prison on unrelated gun charges.
Adam Montgomery, 34, could be sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of the 2019 murder in February in New Hampshire. He is seen in February
Police believe that Harmony Montgomery was killed nearly two years before she was reported missing in 2021
Harmony was only reported missing in 2021 when her mother, Crystal Sorey, who did not have custody of the child, discovered she had never been enrolled in school
In a sentencing memo, prosecutors cited testimony by Harmony's stepmother Kayla, who said the father hit his daughter several times after she had a bathroom accident in the car.
Harmony Montgomery's dad is a 'career criminal'
The violent felon, who had previously been jailed for shooting a drug dealer in the face, is currently serving a 32-and-a-half year sentence for an unrelated fire arms case
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The memo reads: 'The defendant robbed Harmony and her family of the person she was going to become...He killed all potential she held and eradicated the potential good she could do for her family and the community.
'Harmony left behind young siblings, one who was 1 year old when he last saw her, and another born later who will never know her.'
Montgomery had attended his first day of jury selection in February, but did not come to court during his two-week trial.
Police believe that Harmony Montgomery was killed nearly two years before she was reported missing in 2021.
Her body was never found but a judge declared her legally dead in March at the request of her mother Crustal Sorey.
Montgomery’s lawyer recently asked for him to be excused from his scheduled May 9 sentencing in Manchester, saying Montgomery has maintained his innocence on charges of second-degree murder, second-degree assault and witness tampering.
He had admitted to abuse of a corpse and falsifying evidence.
State law says that in second-degree murder cases, 'The defendant shall personally appear in court when the victim or victim’s next of kin addresses the judge, unless excused by the court.'
Kayla confessed to placing the tote bag containing Harmony's body in between her own young children in a stroller and brought it to her husband's workplace
Harmony's mother, Crystal Sorey, who did not have custody of her daughter, called Montgomery a 'coward' following the verdict
The attorney general’s office said in March that Harmony’s next of kin and others would be addressing the judge at the sentencing, so it was mandatory for Adam Montgomery to show up.
The Montgomery case spurred a bill in the state Legislature requiring people charged with serious crimes to be present for the reading of verdicts and at sentencing hearings. The bill passed in the House and awaits action in the Senate.
Last year, Montgomery proclaimed his innocence in the death of his daughter, saying in court he loved Harmony Montgomery 'unconditionally.'
His lawyers suggested that the girl died while she was with her stepmother.
Montgomery's estranged wife Kayla is currently serving 18 months in prison for perjury and provided key testimony against her husband
Montgomery repeatedly punched the helpless child in the face after she had a bathroom accident while sleeping in the car in December 2019
Harmony's stepmother, Kayla Montgomery, is expected to be released on parole in May after serving an 18-month sentence for perjury.
She testified that her husband killed Harmony Montgomery on December 7, 2019, while the family lived in their car.
Kayla Montgomery said he was driving to a fast food restaurant when he turned around and repeatedly punched Harmony in the face and head because he was angry that she was having bathroom accidents in the car.
She said he then hid the body in the trunk of a car, in a ceiling vent of a homeless shelter and in the walk-in freezer at his workplace before disposing of it in March 2020.
New Hampshire
