NH NH - Maura Murray, 21, Haverhill, 9 Feb 2004 - #10

[walkingdeadgirl]

I have a couple of theories, but nothing solid.

I wondered for a long while if Maura needed some kind of medical procedure. Renner has often discussed the idea that Maura was cheating on her boyfriend with a running teammate, and I believe that Maura had searched for the effects of alcohol on a fetus before her trip. Therefore, some people have suggested she needed the money for a private abortion. This would explain her seemingly fragile mental state and her desire to get out of town to have the procedure at a clinic where she would know none of the medical professionals. It may also explain why Fred has given off a somewhat strange impression, which some have interpreted as him knowing more about the disappearance than he lets on - maybe he has been trying to protect his daughter's reputation?

However, that theory is pretty much entirely speculation. As a nursing student, Maura had a pretty good reason to be researching fetal development without it being a personal matter. Nobody has let on that Maura was cheating, or looking for an abortion, and Fred's behavior might not be out of the ordinary at all.

Personally, I think Maura planned to drop out of UMass and enroll into a different nursing college - hence why she packed up all her stuff and returned borrowed items before she set off. I wonder if the money was intended to be a deposit on a new place to rent, or for Maura to bank for course fees at a new place. The only hard evidence I can point to for this is the print out of directions to Stowe and Burlington, Vermont, which I believe are both home to nursing schools. (She did not seem to be heading to either of these places when she crashed on Route 112, though).

Anyone else want to discuss theories they have heard or thought of?

I also think she took off (and had been upset) because she was pregnant and contemplating abortion. I think she was looking for places to stay to think it out, and took the week off of school to be able to follow through with it if that's what she chose. I think she packed up her room because she was going to drop out and get a job if she decided to keep the pregnancy, and would want to leave quickly, like she did when she decided to leave WP. You are the only other person I've come across who theorizes abortion...frankly I'm surprised.

 

[walkingdeadgirl]

I think we sometimes put too much into Maura being a nursing student. She had only been a nursing student for one semester. She picked nursing only after being kicked out of West Point, and she was willing to take a week off at the start of the semester.

You know what I think? I do not think Maura was all that pumped about being a nurse. I think she had to pick something that her family would find acceptable after West Point, so she decided on nursing. I have found the speculation that Maura is working somewhere in the medical/nursing field to be a bit odd. She was not a nurse and was only a beginning nursing student, who obviously was not even that devoted to it! Why would she go to look at nursing schools, take a whole week to do it, and take that week off during a time when she was supposed to be in school? That makes no sense to me.

If I look at Maura's actions, and the fact that UMass and nursing was a "back up" after a major screw up at West Point, I am going to conclude that Maura did not give a damn about being a nurse, or nursing school.

According to a poster here who is good friends with people close to Maura, she left West Point because she didn't want to do the mandatory five years. She had always been interested in nursing, but WP didn't offer the courses until you were enlisted. She apparently had a passion for helping people, and her mother was a nurse or something similar.

She never had a "screw up" at WP, was on the dean's list and all of that, and if I remember correctly was dual enrolled briefly so she would meet all requirements of both schools. All of this information is in past threads on Maura. The poster was Peabody, I am almost positive. Hope that helps.

 

[JamesRenner]

Unfortunately, that's not true. She was repeatedly in trouble at West Point. The last straw there was when she got caught stealing makeup from a store near the campus. And she certainly didn't look to her mother for inspiration. Her relationship with her family (with the exception of Kurt) was pretty sour.

 

[Jmoose]

Unfortunately, that's not true. She was repeatedly in trouble at West Point. The last straw there was when she got caught stealing makeup from a store near the campus. And she certainly didn't look to her mother for inspiration. Her relationship with her family (with the exception of Kurt) was pretty sour.

James-where'd you hear about the stealing of makeup from a store up by West Point? There isn't much in the way of shopping up there. Was it at the PX?

 

[walkingdeadgirl]

Unfortunately, that's not true. She was repeatedly in trouble at West Point. The last straw there was when she got caught stealing makeup from a store near the campus. And she certainly didn't look to her mother for inspiration. Her relationship with her family (with the exception of Kurt) was pretty sour.

I only have the words of a family friend to go on, and obviously we tend to try to show those we love in the best possible light. I've gone back through my notes, and can't find anything regarding this. Can you give us a source, please?

 

[KenShabby]

I do not find it to be a bias at all. So give Mr. Renner a break.

@ Fireweed — You might have misinterpreted my brief post. In using the word "bias," I wasn't suggesting that Renner's attitude toward Fred is wrong; I was only saying (for the benefit of the new poster who was looking for new facts of the case) that Mr. Renner's disdain for Fred is often vividly evident in his blog posts. I could have used the word "attitude" instead of "bias." (And here I was, looking for a neutral, impartial-sounding word, in order to appear even-handed.) Also, heck, I'm the guy who keeps reminding people that a lot of the "facts" of this case — including the popular belief that MM's car was in bad shape — are not supported by any hard evidence that we know of. And believe me, I too am plenty suspicious of the whole weird Murray wall of silence, the insistence that Maura's past "doesn't matter," etc.

 

[BillNH]

posted by Helena on MMMG on Facebook tonight:

Helena Dwyer Murray
****-_--_--_--_--_-****FYI...I've been given permission to pass this information along. A while ago, a professional accident re-constructionist examined Maura's vehicle. This is his conclusion, based on the condition of the vehicle AND the black box: "He concluded that there was only one event...at the red barn. She hit a snow bank only. No trees and no prior damage to the vehicle."

And, to clear up another misconception, which I recently cleared up with one of Maura's friends Maura did NOT go to a party in Goshen on New Year's Eve 2003. Because Maura was going to be with Billy on New Year's Eve, Maura and her friends got together on December 27, 2003 at a restaurant in Weymouth. See picture posted...there is a date in the lower right hand corner.
** bear in mind, this is all second-hand information, even if it is from Helena**

 

[Lolacat]

I only have the words of a family friend to go on, and obviously we tend to try to show those we love in the best possible light. I've gone back through my notes, and can't find anything regarding this. Can you give us a source, please?

No disrespect meant towards Maura's family or friends, but she did a lot of things that they might not have expected her to do. If you asked them before she disappeared would she have driven whilst drinking I'm sure they'd say no, and yet she did. I'm also sure they wouldn't have expected her to be involved in credit card theft, and yet she was, or lie to her professors about a death in the family or just take off on a trip without telling anyone where she was going. It seems very obvious to me that Maura was struggling with quite a few personal issues before she disappeared. I completely understand the need for her family to protect her but to portray her as this all american girl who had a picture perfect life and then just suddenly, inexplicably, vanished without a trace is not really truthful or helpful when trying to discern what happened to her. JMO.

 

[Fireweed]

Originally Posted by Fireweed View Post
I do not find it to be a bias at all. So give Mr. Renner a break.
@ Fireweed — You might have misinterpreted my brief post. In using the word "bias," I wasn't suggesting that Renner's attitude toward Fred is wrong; I was only saying (for the benefit of the new poster who was looking for new facts of the case) that Mr. Renner's disdain for Fred is often vividly evident in his blog posts. I could have used the word "attitude" instead of "bias." (And here I was, looking for a neutral, impartial-sounding word, in order to appear even-handed.) Also, heck, I'm the guy who keeps reminding people that a lot of the "facts" of this case — including the popular belief that MM's car was in bad shape — are not supported by any hard evidence that we know of. And believe me, I too am plenty suspicious of the whole weird Murray wall of silence, the insistence that Maura's past "doesn't matter," etc.

I guess I do not see anything wrong with having disdain for a person who is very clearly lying about many things having to do with case. Fred is being very secretive and he has not be forthright about Maura's last few days before she went missing, including why she came to his hotel room that night, or why he even went up there that weekend to begin with. His biggest lie has been that "Maura's past does not matter." Again, I ask how he could possibly know this. He either knows exactly what happened to Maura (which I seriously doubt) or he is lying (again).

I have sympathy for Fred as a man who lost is daughter, but I have disdain for him as a man who is determined to stymie any efforts to find his daughter that might result in some "unpleasant" things about Maura being revealed. I cannot believe any parent would prioritize that over his daughter's well-being.

 

[walkingdeadgirl]

No disrespect meant towards Maura's family or friends, but she did a lot of things that they might not have expected her to do. If you asked them before she disappeared would she have driven whilst drinking I'm sure they'd say no, and yet she did. I'm also sure they wouldn't have expected her to be involved in credit card theft, and yet she was, or lie to her professors about a death in the family or just take off on a trip without telling anyone where she was going. It seems very obvious to me that Maura was struggling with quite a few personal issues before she disappeared. I completely understand the need for her family to protect her but to portray her as this all american girl who had a picture perfect life and then just suddenly, inexplicably, vanished without a trace is not really truthful or helpful when trying to discern what happened to her. JMO.

I agree with you completely. I think when something bad happens to someone, family tends to "circle the wagons", which can unfortunately cause detriment to the case, leading LE in the wrong directions when time is of the essense. It certainly is no crime to want to present the best face of someone you love, and I mean no disrespect either, but the family seems to be taking this idea to the point of delusion.

 

[walkingdeadgirl]

I guess I do not see anything wrong with having disdain for a person who is very clearly lying about many things having to do with case. Fred is being very secretive and he has not be forthright about Maura's last few days before she went missing, including why she came to his hotel room that night, or why he even went up there that weekend to begin with. His biggest lie has been that "Maura's past does not matter." Again, I ask how he could possibly know this. He either knows exactly what happened to Maura (which I seriously doubt) or he is lying (again).

I have sympathy for Fred as a man who lost is daughter, but I have disdain for him as a man who is determined to stymie any efforts to find his daughter that might result in some "unpleasant" things about Maura being revealed. I cannot believe any parent would prioritize that over his daughter's well-being.

I think he decided obscenely early that she was dead, and decided to do whatever was necessary to "preserve her memory".

 

[Fireweed]

You think? I mean that would explain a lot, but would go against the usual denial of death that parents have in cases of a missing child.

 

[BillNH]

I think he decided obscenely early that she was dead, and decided to do whatever was necessary to "preserve her memory".

I agree that he decided very early that she died. With his general evasion of the prior days it makes me think that he knew where she was going and why, knew it involved personal danger to her and that the moments after she disappeared were critical to her survival. His overreaction to the lack of an immediate search by LE supports this. I think the $4k was key to her reason for being in NH and had nothing to do with a new car.

 

[Captain_Khan]

I think the $4k was key to her reason for being in NH and had nothing to do with a new car.

Do you have a theory as to what the $4k was for? (sorry if I've missed your explanation). This line of inquiry is fascinating. I also think the money is important to this case, but haven't settled on one theory that I feel totally fits. What do you think?

 

[BillNH]

Do you have a theory as to what the $4k was for? (sorry if I've missed your explanation). This line of inquiry is fascinating. I also think the money is important to this case, but haven't settled on one theory that I feel totally fits. What do you think?

I really don't have a theory on it. I just feel that Fred's evasiveness points to something other than it being for a car and I have always thought Fred knows more than he has said. When I saw the disappeared episode I knew nothing about this case except a girl named Maura Murray disappeared nearby. When the episode was over, my wife and I almost simultaneously said "the father knows something". I am reluctant to even consider that Fred is not being truthful, he lost a daughter, I can sympathize, as a father myself, he is living our worst fear. But sometimes I just cannot get past the things he has said and done and it is very bothersome. The 4k has not been properly explained and that goes right back to Fred and only Fred.

 

[KenShabby]

With his general evasion of the prior days it makes me think that he knew where she was going and why, knew it involved personal danger to her and that the moments after she disappeared were critical to her survival. I think the $4k was key to her reason for being in NH and had nothing to do with a new car.

Indeed, this angle was pursued by at least one sleuth about a year ago (on another prominent MM blog) — the speculation being that Maura (and the $4K) might have been part of some criminal or dangerous activity that weekend, possibly even tying back to her family — but I don't recall the discussion getting much beyond speculation.

 

[Jane Birch]

Her relationship with her family (with the exception of Kurt) was pretty sour.

James, what are you basing this information on, if the family refuses to speak with you?

 

[Lolacat]

New article about Maura coming up to the 10 year anniversary:

http://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/article/2014/01/28/maura-murray/

I notice they say that Fred stated that Maura's saturn "kind of blew a cylinder" and "was smoking something fierce".

 

[Fireweed]

"Kind of" reduces commitment to a statement, as does "you know," two things that Fred says in connection with Maura's car.

 

[neverletgo]

More snips from the Boston Magazine article:

Will the Internet Find Maura Murray?
Ten years ago, a 21-year-old UMass student vanished without a trace. For an army of amateur sleuths across the Internet, that was just the beginning.
By Bill Jensen | Boston Magazine | February 2014

BBM and EBM

In February 2005, members of the DIY detective message board websleuths.com jumped into the fray. Anonymous posters with names like Grassyknoll2 and CyberLaw attempted to piece together a time line, wondering why Maura would have partied on Saturday night, or what made her so upset at work. In 2007, pages on Facebook and MySpace were created in hopes of gathering tips. And in the Franconia city forum on the small-town message board topix.com, more than 42,000 comments have been posted on a Murray thread in just the past four years.

and

In Maura Murray’s case, Strelzin will not say how often law enforcement monitors online forums, but concedes that the police are “aware of things that are said.” He adds that “nothing fruitful” has ever come from the DIY detectives.

“All we ask is that they do not interfere in the investigations,” Strelzin continues. “You would expect that if people had information they would contact the authorities.”

and

For Helena Murray, the downsides of citizen sleuthing have come to outweigh the benefits.“It’s terribly, terribly sad to see what they do to [Fred] online,” she says. Helena even took down the message board on her site, mauramurraymissing.com, when visitors’ attacks became too sharp.

“I don’t really give a **** about that crap,” Fred says. “That’s a sideshow. The deal is: Where is my daughter?”

http://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/article/2014/01/28/maura-murray/