Harmony Montgomery's uncle wants DCF changes after her death

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- One day after investigators announced that Harmony Montgomery's father, Adam Montgomery, is charged with her second-degree murder, Harmony's uncle said there needs to be more attention paid to the child welfare system that did not protect her.

"It just disgusts you that a judge could make that choice to send the baby to a father who just has a record. And not just -- a violent record. It wasn't that he was picked up for shoplifting. He shot a guy in the face," Timothy Flanagan said in a phone interview with WBZ-TV.

In 2019, Adam Montgomery was granted custody of Harmony by a judge in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Harmony's mother had already lost custody due to her drug addiction and Harmony left foster care in Massachusetts to live with Montgomery in New Hampshire.

Harmony disappeared that winter from Manchester, New Hampshire, according to investigators. She was not reported missing for two years.

This spring, the Massachusetts Office of the Child Advocate released a scathing report saying there was no agreement between the child welfare agencies in Massachusetts and New Hampshire to ensure Harmony's proper care.

Since then, the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families says the agency as working with all New England states to develop a memorandum of understanding for children crossing state lines.

State lawmakers worked on legislation to increase oversight of DCF but none made it into law.

The Office of the Child advocate continues to ask for a working group to explore putting the needs of children like Harmony first.

Flanagan said all of this needs to happen with speed before there is another tragedy like Harmony's.

"I think what justice looks like for Harmony is a ton of changes within the states, the way they transfer kids over to other states. I think the system needs to be really broken down," Flanagan said.

"You don't get to see this little girl grow up and see what she could have offered the world."