NH NH - Maura Murray, 21, Haverhill, 9 Feb 2004 - # 6

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I KNOW that police put out BOLOs. I never mentioned EMTs. You misunderstood my post.

The first officer (police) on the scene found that Maura was not with the car. This officer and Atwood (the bus driver, who called 911) then separately searched the area west of the accident. I was just wondering, if the officer had put out a radio call BOLO on Maura, after he and Atwood did not find Maura. Supposedly, there was a state trooper on the scene briefly. I wonder, if he knew that Maura was missing from the scene and if so, did he make any attempts to find her OR did the local police tell the state trooper that they had everything under control and didn't share the fact that the driver was missing. I also wonder, if local residents could have heard about the accident on their home police radios. I heard that these radios are popular in that area. Someone with bad intentions, could have done their own search, if they knew the young woman driver (Maura) had taken off from the accident scene.

Pretty sure one of the posters over at Topix stated they heard it on their scanner, but what was said in detail? Also why would anyone looking to abduct someone do it knowing there is going to be police and fire presence as well as perhaps others. I think the only person who may take the chance is someone who wasn't aware of the situation and it was opportunity.
 
Pretty sure one of the posters over at Topix stated they heard it on their scanner, but what was said in detail? Also why would anyone looking to abduct someone do it knowing there is going to be police and fire presence as well as perhaps others. I think the only person who may take the chance is someone who wasn't aware of the situation and it was opportunity.

Good point about the scanners. Although, I still wonder about the state trooper's knowledge of the accident and if he had looked for Maura along the state roads that night. If he was told that the driver in the accident had left the scene, one would think that he'd keep an eye out for the missing driver, while patrolling the roads. Leaving the scene of an accident, possibly caused by drinking, is reason enough to track down a missing driver. Even though no one at the time predicted that she would be missing this long, Maura did commit several serious traffic infractions. Maybe the police thought they'd track her down through the vehicle's registration info and then, put a warrant out for her.
 
Good point about the scanners. Although, I still wonder about the state trooper's knowledge of the accident and if he had looked for Maura along the state roads that night. If he was told that the driver in the accident had left the scene, one would think that he'd keep an eye out for the missing driver, while patrolling the roads. Leaving the scene of an accident, possibly caused by drinking, is reason enough to track down a missing driver. Even though no one at the time predicted that she would be missing this long, Maura did commit several serious traffic infractions. Maybe the police thought they'd track her down through the vehicle's registration info and then, put a warrant out for her.

A few people have wondered about the trooper and what he did or didn't do, to my knowledge he hasn't made any statements regarding this case. He may have just swung by the accident scene, turned around and patrolled rt 302. From what I have read there was no search effort made eastbound on rt 112 outside of a few hundred feet.
 
Hi everyone, just some of my thoughts.

I watched the show 'Disappeared' on Youtube. In it one of her friends says that while in High School Maura went to Boston for the day and never told anyone.

In an email to friends she implied she'd be back by the 12th to catch some concert. Did she ring any number enquiring about tickets?

While doing security wouldn't she have to have some contact with the outside world in case some emergency arose?

I remember from old cop shows when people wanted to be noticed at a certain time in a certain place they made a real fuss i.e. crying hysterically so her supervisor was called. I don't know why she would do that though...

Why bring her books if she planned to commit suicide? Why bring them if she planned to get totally drunk? Did Maura drink wine or beer?

If she'd run away from the scene using the tracks on the road left by cars passing wouldn't following cars then destroy her footprints?

I read that the tank was full of gas? If this is true she must have stopped recently prior to the accident. Maybe she bought groceries there. It opens up more possibilities I guess.
 
In an email to friends she implied she'd be back by the 12th to catch some concert. Did she ring any number enquiring about tickets?

There is nothing that indicates that she was planning on coming back for that concert. More importantly, it still hasn't been clear if she made that email before or after she made the decision to flee the school with the story about a relative that had died. A story that wasn't true. If she sent the email about the concert information before her melt down and telling the professors and work about the dead relative, I doubt that there is any substance to the belief that she was planning to come back for the concert.

Why bring her books if she planned to commit suicide? Why bring them if she planned to get totally drunk?

I know that when I was in college, I use to carry all my books in my car all the time except when I was using them. I don't know if that was her habit or not, but I don't consider it unusual or proof that she was going to study, come back or not get drunk and I think it extremely likely she was drunk when she crashed.

If she'd run away from the scene using the tracks on the road left by cars passing wouldn't following cars then destroy her footprints?

Some possibly. But it is unlikely they would have destroyed all of them. Footprints, especially on asphalt is very tricky and why they can be there is equally tricky.

I read that the tank was full of gas? If this is true she must have stopped recently prior to the accident. Maybe she bought groceries there. It opens up more possibilities I guess.

I don't remember any statement that there was a full tank at the crash site. Can you say where this information is from?

Bill
 
I don't remember any statement that there was a full tank at the crash site. Can you say where this information is from?

Bill[/QUOTE]

This is from a poster called "Monarch"

quote ..Before Maura left Amherst she stopped at an ATM machine and she also bought some liqour, etc. The liqour wasn't found at the crash site but the receipt for it was. Also, I've read on several sites that her tank was full of gas." unquote

I have not read this anywhere else so I'm wondering can anyone confirm or deny this? Would it be routine to check the amount of gas in the tank even if just to help theorize where she might have stopped last? Were fingerprints taken from the beer can or coke bottle?
 
There is nothing that indicates that she was planning on coming back for that concert. More importantly, it still hasn't been clear if she made that email before or after she made the decision to flee the school with the story about a relative that had died. A story that wasn't true. If she sent the email about the concert information before her melt down and telling the professors and work about the dead relative, I doubt that there is any substance to the belief that she was planning to come back for the concert.


Thanks Bill for replying to my post. I rewatched that segment of the program and you are correct, it doesn't say when the email was sent, just that it was the last one she sent to her friends. And they seem to say it was proof that at the time it was sent she intended to be around on the 12th. Surprisingly though, as it is something that could have been cleared up. But it could have been a false statement anyway!
 
I know that when I was in college, I use to carry all my books in my car all the time except when I was using them. I don't know if that was her habit or not, but I don't consider it unusual or proof that she was going to study, come back or not get drunk and I think it extremely likely she was drunk when she crashed.


It has been said that she wasn't using the car as there were problems with it! If this is correct why leave your books in it? Were they safer in the car than in her dorm?
 
Some possibly. But it is unlikely they would have destroyed all of them. Footprints, especially on asphalt is very tricky and why they can be there is equally tricky.

But it is possible that the immediate footprints around the vehicle might have gone by way of other vehicles passing by and the EMS turning up?
 
This is from a poster called "Monarch"

..Before Maura left Amherst she stopped at an ATM machine and she also bought some liqour, etc. The liqour wasn't found at the crash site but the receipt for it was. Also, I've read on several sites that her tank was full of gas."

I have not read this anywhere else so I'm wondering can anyone confirm or deny this? Would it be routine to check the amount of gas in the tank even if just to help theorize where she might have stopped last? Were fingerprints taken from the beer can or coke bottle?

The quoted information is correct to my knowledge. I don't know if fingerprints were taken and I don't remember reading anyone saying that enough gas remained in the tank to make it appear that she stopped elsewhere for gas. Remember that fingerprinting isn't routine when someone runs away from a vehicle unless a crime is suspected. This crash scene appeared and I still believe it was a runaway from a car crash with Maura evading responsibility due to alcohol use while driving. Happens hundreds if not thousands of times every day in this country. Whatever happened to Maura in my opinion happened after she fled the scene. Whether minutes or days later, I don't know. Whatever red flags were raised by the scene would have consisted entirely of someone driving, using alcohol, and then fleeing the scene of the crash.

There was no beer bottle that I remember hearing about but there was a "container" with a red liquid that smelled of alcohol outside next to the car that the officer found and a red liquid splashed around on the inside of the car and a box of wine on the backseat. Even if I hadn't seen as many car accidents with alcohol involved as I have, I can do this math.

Bill
 
It has been said that she wasn't using the car as there were problems with it! If this is correct why leave your books in it? Were they safer in the car than in her dorm?

She wasn't using the car for long trips (before this runaway) because supposedly she felt it was unreliable. I don't know if that included not using her car for trips to clinicals and other classes and her jobs. I don't remember hearing that she didn't use it all. And lets not forget that she drove it 175 miles north (give or take) to get away and that what happened wasn't likely due to mechanical failure.

Bill
 
But it is possible that the immediate footprints around the vehicle might have gone by way of other vehicles passing by and the EMS turning up?

All searches start at the place last seen (PLS) or last known position (LKP). The initial search and the reason we are pretty sure that no one else was around the car was the officer on the scene saw only one set of tracks heading away from the car which is very likely why they searched in the direction they initially searched in. Not incompetence as some imply but actual police work. Again, tracking on the asphalt is going to depend on a lot of things including weather conditions, ground conditions, air conditions, lighting etc. The type of search you are doing also depends on does the victim intend to be found or are they actively evading searchers.

Bill
 
What is the time lapse between the accident and the bus driver showing up? A few sources say the accident happened about 7, just after 7. The LE showed at 7:46pm, about 8 - 10 minutes after the bus driver left Maura, so he arrived about 7:20? ( I don't know how long their conversation lasted) .

I'm just wondering why Maura hadn't fled the scene before the bus driver showed IF she had time to. She must have known the LE would show at some point. She seemingly straightened up the car a little, tried to phone on her cell and was sitting there when the SBD showed. Did she discard the bottles of liquor at this point by throwing them into the woods? Why not the coke bottle which smelled of alcohol? Did she think no LE would show till morning?

Can't help thinking as good as the SBD's intentions were if only the LE had shown up before he did then Maura wouldn't be missing. The mention of LE probably made her flee into the night while ten minutes either way would have seen her arrested perhaps but not missing.
 
What is the time lapse between the accident and the bus driver showing up? A few sources say the accident happened about 7, just after 7. The LE showed at 7:46pm, about 8 - 10 minutes after the bus driver left Maura, so he arrived about 7:20? ( I don't know how long their conversation lasted) .

I'm just wondering why Maura hadn't fled the scene before the bus driver showed IF she had time to. She must have known the LE would show at some point. She seemingly straightened up the car a little, tried to phone on her cell and was sitting there when the SBD showed. Did she discard the bottles of liquor at this point by throwing them into the woods? Why not the coke bottle which smelled of alcohol? Did she think no LE would show till morning?

Can't help thinking as good as the SBD's intentions were if only the LE had shown up before he did then Maura wouldn't be missing. The mention of LE probably made her flee into the night while ten minutes either way would have seen her arrested perhaps but not missing.

The time of accident is listed as: 1927
Police notified at: 1935
Police arrived at: 1945

These times are taken directly from the police report. What isn't told in the document is who contacted the dispatch center first. I suspect that someone before the bus driver contacted them since he had trouble getting through. This first contact likely occurred while the bus driver was talking with Maura.

There has always been speculation that the missing backpack contained the alcohol that had been purchased with the exception of the box of wine which remained on the rear seat.

I have asked for years what would have happened if Maura had just stayed with the car. We very likely would not be having this conversation at all. I have tried to teach my boys since they were little to not be that person that is the example of how not to do things. Unfortunately someone tremendous promise, Maura, has become exactly that person.

Bill
 
If she'd run away from the scene using the tracks on the road left by cars passing wouldn't following cars then destroy her footprints?

When there is snow along the sides of the road, I tend to walk in the middle of the lane, where it is less likely to be slippery. Anyone familiar with winter and snow, knows that ice could be under the snow. Since Maura was probably running, I would think she would have ran in the travel lane---not the side of the road. She probably moved away from the travel lane to the side of the road when she heard or saw a vehicle coming towards her.

I read that it was snowing lightly that night. If there was salt on the road, the snow may have melted on impact in the travel lanes. The air temp was 33 F degrees as well.
 
I'm just wondering why Maura hadn't fled the scene before the bus driver showed IF she had time to. She must have known the LE would show at some point. She seemingly straightened up the car a little, tried to phone on her cell and was sitting there when the SBD showed. Did she discard the bottles of liquor at this point by throwing them into the woods? Why not the coke bottle which smelled of alcohol? Did she think no LE would show till morning?

Can't help thinking as good as the SBD's intentions were if only the LE had shown up before he did then Maura wouldn't be missing. The mention of LE probably made her flee into the night while ten minutes either way would have seen her arrested perhaps but not missing.

It seems like the bus driver came along right after her crash. I read somewhere that he couldn't see her whole face, because the deflated airbag was blocking her chin.
 
Reporter Joe McGee, covered the story for The Patriot Ledger in Quincy, Mass. "At a hairpin turn, she went off the road. Her car hit a tree. At that point, a person came along who was driving a bus. It was a neighbor. He asked her if she needed help, she refused. About 10 minutes later, police showed up to the scene and Maura Murray was gone," McGee said.

The LE report says the accident occurred at 7:27. The first accounts I read said just after 7, which made me wonder what she was doing, why neither of the two couples came over or no cars stopped.
 
The LE report says the accident occurred at 7:27. The first accounts I read said just after 7, which made me wonder what she was doing, why neither of the two couples came over or no cars stopped.

It was cold and dark and they saw movement so I suspect they might have figured that the person was OK. I suspect also that that is not the first accident that they have seen on that corner. While I suspect that if Maura went to their house she would not have been turned away, they had no obligation to possibly put themselves in harms way by going out the car to her. My understanding was very few cars, passed by and she may have already been gone from the scene by then and even if she was there, the same things apply. My wife has been instructed to stop for no reason at an accident. As an EMT I have many reasons. I will not stop at any accident if my wife or children are in the car. Sorry, its an accident scene and inherently dangerous to be at and I use my vehicle to protect me when I am there. I am not about to use my vehicle with my wife and kids in the car to protect me or my patient. I refuse to allow your emergency to become my emergency. First rule and obligation of all first responders is scene safety. First yours, then your crews and then the patient.

Bill
 
There was no beer bottle that I remember hearing about but there was a "container" with a red liquid that smelled of alcohol

Quote from whitmanhansonexpress. I can't reconnect to the article just now to find the reporter's name but the link is on some threads.

Fred said there was an empty beer bottle found in Maura's car. I was told by others that the bottle was in the back seat and the rear driver's side window was open a crack. Perhaps someone was in the back seat of Maura's car at some point?
 
I don't think anyone else was in her car that evening.

The beer bottle could have been there for days or weeks. Although, she may have had one beer in her dorm room and took it along on her trip up north and drank it before going to the liquor store. I don't think it was listed on the liquor store receipt.

On the back passenger window opened a crack, I sometimes open my rear windows instead of my front side windows, because I don't like to be blasted with cold air in the face. I do this because I only want some fresh air in the car, especially if I get overheated from a winter jacket and the car's heater. In other words, there are innocent explanations for what was found in her car after the accident. The police would have to do DNA tests and take fingerprints to settle these questions.
 
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