It has been brought to my attention that after TC4A was released, it was taken as sure fact and evidence in this case. Though LE has not discredited it, all they have said to it's merit is that they wouldn't want to be in Ayla's parents shoes. I admit, I wouldn't want to be (and neither would any of you here) in any family member of Ayla's shoes. The heartbreak and hurt they have felt since that fateful December day have to be immeasurable. I simply cannot imagine. But others also believe the DiPietro family did not respond to TC4A in any way... so I am simply bringing you the answer to that.
Recall this?
"Dear Members of the Media and Public -- For 21 months my family has been heartbroken waiting for word on Ayla. Praying daily and hoping every time the phone rings that the authorities have found Ayla. Blog world, the newspapers and even the evening news have a way of distorting the truth.
You have heard and read over and over again that Law Enforcement believe the 3 adults know more than what they are saying. Let me ask you this, if they so strongly believe that, why are they not asking the questions? Why are they not scheduling meetings with my family or with my attorney?
Trista can say and do what she wants. To the best of my knowledge [law enforcement] has not confirmed her allegations nor stated that she has been cleared as a suspect herself. I believe that the Focus should remain on finding Ayla. Once Ayla is found then and only then will I think about justice. Justice is served only when all facts and evidence are known and presented in a court of law.
For my family - the last thing left in Pandora 's Box is hope. We choose to hold on to hope that Ayla will be found and brought home. If 3 adult women were held captive for over a decade and finally rescued then please believe there is hope Ayla will be found alive. So we ask and plead that the public continues to look for Ayla. Her eyes are beautiful and distinctive which will be a good focal point in looking for her.
We continue to pray that a Good Samaritan will come forward with the information [law enforcement] needs to bring Ayla home. Ayla, my granddaughter is out there alive so please do not give up looking for her. If you know anything please come forward.
Phoebe DiPietro"
So I simply ask you this: Why is this not a response from the DiPietro family? How many of you fully commit to believing TC4A in it's entirety?
Justice For Ayla Reynolds - A safe and open place for discussion
Monday, February 2, 2015
Saturday, January 31, 2015
Machiasport - Guest Post
http://www.fosters.com/apps/
Raymond Fortier, 24, who was recently living in Portland, according to court documents, was sentenced to 18 years in prison with all but nine years suspended and six years probation last Thursday, Aug. 26, in York County Superior Court. Fortier had entered a guilty plea and the sentence was a result of a plea agreement.
Fortier was indicted by a York County grand jury on a single count of Class A arson in June 2009 for allegedly setting fire to the multifamily apartment building. The Jan. 6, 2009, fire forced 14 residents to flee the building in the early morning hours with only the clothes on their backs. Residents in nearby buildings had to be evacuated as the wind threatened to spread the blaze. Two apartments in the back of the Mill Street building were destroyed by the fire and the two apartments at the front had heavy smoke and water damage.THIS IS NOT MEANT AS AN ACCUSATION IT IS ONLY FOR DISCUSSION
PLEASE DO NOT BE OFFENDED
Machiasport Maine Correctional Facility
This subject doesn't seem to want to be explained in any detail by anyone why?
Could Trista have gone to Waterville with someone say at around 2 or 3 am that morning? Then returned to the motel in time to meet Mr.Fortier? Could that explain why she was so tired and asleep when Ron called?
If as stated it was just an innocent visit by Trista what is the harm in explaining it, what went down and why. We know that the distance from the airport in Portland is around 230 miles. We also know that the trip will take approximately four hours.
If you take the I295 N route to I95 N you pass through Waterville this is the least stop and go traffic and faster route. 29 Violette Ave is approximately 77 miles from the airport and an hour and fifteen minutes from the airport in Portland.
Is this the route that was taken? I don't know if Trista or Fortier have said publicly.
There is also a route where you exit at Augusta and take Route 3 to Machiasport this would
bypass Waterville but take longer because of stop and go traffic through the city of Augusta and lower speed limits. Was this route taken again I don't know if Trista or Fortier have said publicly. There is another longer and more scenic route with stop and go traffic and little costal towns you pass through. This is U.S. Route 1 the coastal route North. It doesn't take you near Waterville. Is this the route Trista and Fortier took? Again I don't know if they have said publicly.
What time and from what location did Trista and Fortier leave to make their visit?
I know there are a lot of questions a person may have about this trip, hopefully they will be
answered here.
The two hour road trip to Portland before the 911 call which didn't happen was discussed extensively. It still is in articles today never retracted -- WHY!?
Don't you think a road trip that did occur deserves a little discussion??
Raymond Fortier, 24, who was recently living in Portland, according to court documents, was sentenced to 18 years in prison with all but nine years suspended and six years probation last Thursday, Aug. 26, in York County Superior Court. Fortier had entered a guilty plea and the sentence was a result of a plea agreement.
Fortier was indicted by a York County grand jury on a single count of Class A arson in June 2009 for allegedly setting fire to the multifamily apartment building. The Jan. 6, 2009, fire forced 14 residents to flee the building in the early morning hours with only the clothes on their backs. Residents in nearby buildings had to be evacuated as the wind threatened to spread the blaze. Two apartments in the back of the Mill Street building were destroyed by the fire and the two apartments at the front had heavy smoke and water damage.THIS IS NOT MEANT AS AN ACCUSATION IT IS ONLY FOR DISCUSSION
PLEASE DO NOT BE OFFENDED
Machiasport Maine Correctional Facility
This subject doesn't seem to want to be explained in any detail by anyone why?
Could Trista have gone to Waterville with someone say at around 2 or 3 am that morning? Then returned to the motel in time to meet Mr.Fortier? Could that explain why she was so tired and asleep when Ron called?
If as stated it was just an innocent visit by Trista what is the harm in explaining it, what went down and why. We know that the distance from the airport in Portland is around 230 miles. We also know that the trip will take approximately four hours.
If you take the I295 N route to I95 N you pass through Waterville this is the least stop and go traffic and faster route. 29 Violette Ave is approximately 77 miles from the airport and an hour and fifteen minutes from the airport in Portland.
Is this the route that was taken? I don't know if Trista or Fortier have said publicly.
There is also a route where you exit at Augusta and take Route 3 to Machiasport this would
bypass Waterville but take longer because of stop and go traffic through the city of Augusta and lower speed limits. Was this route taken again I don't know if Trista or Fortier have said publicly. There is another longer and more scenic route with stop and go traffic and little costal towns you pass through. This is U.S. Route 1 the coastal route North. It doesn't take you near Waterville. Is this the route Trista and Fortier took? Again I don't know if they have said publicly.
What time and from what location did Trista and Fortier leave to make their visit?
I know there are a lot of questions a person may have about this trip, hopefully they will be
answered here.
The two hour road trip to Portland before the 911 call which didn't happen was discussed extensively. It still is in articles today never retracted -- WHY!?
Don't you think a road trip that did occur deserves a little discussion??
Welcome!
As I sit here and watch my children play together, I often find myself wondering what I would do without them in my life. It's no surprise that being a stay at home mom for so long has made me wonder this more than most, because they are my entire life. If I didn't have my children, I'd have a full time job and most likely a completely different life. It wasn't so long ago that I was living a completely different life - one that involved unwise decisions made by myself as an immature, selfish, but fairly normal 19 year old. That was 9 years ago, and having children changed me. Having children changes a lot of people, but some people just can't shake certain parts of their life. I have a feeling that that exact issue is something that has tainted this situation not only from the day Ayla Bell was reported missing, but from the moment Trista discovered she was pregnant.
I've heard some people say "she should have changed when she had kids". Well guess what, the world isn't always perfect. My father is a drinker and a smoker, and he didn't change when he had children. So she made mistakes. Justin probably made mistakes as well, they just aren't as publicly shown as Trista's. So we have two people, who both probably made some selfish choices, but were parents because God blessed them with a baby.
There has always been a certain level of speculation surrounding everyone involved in this case. I truly hope this venue can give everyone a chance to discuss and express their opinions.
Posts will not be regular, unless there are things happening. Guest posts are suggested - I am busy and doing this alone this time will not be easy. I will allow open commenting unless things become out of hand. We had a really good thing going at J4A and I would love to continue that forum here. The first few posts will be repeat recent guest posts followed by one I was planning on posting before I was stripped of any powers before.
Thanks guys, I really hope we can keep this as planned :)
-KatieH
I've heard some people say "she should have changed when she had kids". Well guess what, the world isn't always perfect. My father is a drinker and a smoker, and he didn't change when he had children. So she made mistakes. Justin probably made mistakes as well, they just aren't as publicly shown as Trista's. So we have two people, who both probably made some selfish choices, but were parents because God blessed them with a baby.
There has always been a certain level of speculation surrounding everyone involved in this case. I truly hope this venue can give everyone a chance to discuss and express their opinions.
Posts will not be regular, unless there are things happening. Guest posts are suggested - I am busy and doing this alone this time will not be easy. I will allow open commenting unless things become out of hand. We had a really good thing going at J4A and I would love to continue that forum here. The first few posts will be repeat recent guest posts followed by one I was planning on posting before I was stripped of any powers before.
Thanks guys, I really hope we can keep this as planned :)
Timeline
Ayla Reynolds Timeline from the Portland Press Herald
Dec. 15, 2011
Trista Reynolds files for full custody of her 20-month-old daughter, Ayla Reynolds, in Cumberland County. Ayla had been in the care of her father, Justin DiPietro, since October, when Reynolds went into a drug rehabilitation program.
Dec. 16, 2011, 10 p.m.
Justin DiPietro sees his daughter for the last time, lying in her bed in their home at 29 Violette Ave. in Waterville, he later tells police. She is wearing one-piece pajamas with the words “Daddy’s Princess.” Her left arm, broken in an accidental fall three weeks earlier, is in a soft splint and a sling.
Dec. 17, 2011, 8:51 a.m.
DiPietro calls 911 to report Ayla is missing after finding her bed empty. Waterville police, firefighters and wardens from the Maine Warden Service search the neighborhood by foot and air. Waterville and Maine State Police detectives search the house.
Dec. 18, 2011
FBI agents, police dogs, neighbors and other volunteers join the house-to-house and neighborhood searches. Wardens scour the banks of nearby Messalonskee Stream. Police interview DiPietro, his sister Elisha DiPietro and his girlfriend, Courtney Roberts, all of whom were in the house the night Ayla disappeared.
Dec. 19, 2011
Police seize two vehicles, one of them registered to DiPietro and the other to his girlfriend, Roberts, of Portland. Police say DiPietro and Reynolds are cooperating. Reynolds appears on ABC’s “Good Morning America” and HLN’s “Nancy Grace” shows. The search swells to 70 law enforcement agents, including wardens looking at Messalonskee Stream with an airboat and circling the area in an airplane.
Dec. 20, 2011
DiPietro releases a statement through Waterville police saying he doesn’t know what happened to Ayla. Investigators drain a section of Messalonskee Stream to look for clues, and examine garbage bins, garages, backyards, ball fields and woods near the home. FBI Child Abduction Rapid Deployment Team canvasses Waterville neighborhoods. Police say it’s still a missing child case. They’ve received more than 100 tips.
Dec. 21, 2011
The search expands across Waterville with help from 50 members of the Maine Association for Search and Rescue. Nearly 100 people attend a candlelight vigil at a local church.
Dec. 22, 2011
Six days into the search, investigators put crime scene tape around 29 Violette Ave., two of the state’s top homicide investigators visit the house and intensify the search for clues.
Dec. 23, 2011
Overnight snow ends the ground search. Reynolds tells NBC’s “Today” show that she blames DiPietro for not keeping Ayla safe and hopes her daughter will be home for Christmas. Police get media inquiries from across the country. Dozens gather for a candlelight vigil at Congress Square in Portland.
Dec. 24, 2011
Waterville police appeal for a break in media coverage so they can do their work “outside the microscope.” Crime-scene evidence tape seals all doors and windows of the house.
Dec. 26, 2011
Ten days into the investigation, police say for the first time that they don’t believe Ayla left the house on her own. Community members offer a $30,000 reward for evidence. A state police evidence response team van is parked in the driveway.
Dec. 27, 2011
Investigators from four police agencies continue the search and follow up on more than 300 tips.
Dec. 28, 2011
DiPietro issues a second statement through Waterville police, repeating that he doesn’t know what happened to Ayla. The Warden Service ends the last of the large-scale ground searches in Waterville.
Dec. 29, 2011
Reynolds appears on the “Today” show, pleading with DiPietro to communicate with her.
Dec. 30, 2011
Police announce foul play is suspected in what is now a criminal case. The Maine State Police Major Crimes Unit takes the lead in the investigation, and Massachusetts detectives join the effort, providing investigative tools at the house.
Dec. 31, 2011
State police release the house at 29 Violette Ave. back to the occupants.
Jan. 1, 2012
The DiPietro family is seen back at the home.
Jan. 2, 2012
DiPietro grants interviews to the Morning Sentinel and NBC’s “Today” show and pleads for Ayla’s safe return.
Jan. 4, 2012
DiPietro grants a second interview to the Morning Sentinel and challenges Nancy Grace to spend a day with him. He says Ayla broke her arm when he fell on her in November. His mother, Phoebe DiPietro, who owns 29 Violette Ave., says she had to sign her home over to investigators and the family was not allowed in for two weeks.
Jan. 6-Jan. 8, 2012
DiPietro appears on New England Cable News to discuss his efforts to find Ayla, Phoebe DiPietro tells CNN she didn’t hear anything in her home the night before Ayla was reported missing, then appears the next day to clarify she was not in the home on the night before Ayla was reported missing.
Jan. 10, 2012
State police and a Warden Service dive team search parts of the Kennebec River and Messalonskee Stream. McCausland says investigators have received more than 600 tips, but they need more. McCausland adds that police encourage Ayla’s family members to speak to the news media about the search. Earlier, Reynolds appears on the “Today” show and says she had spoken to DiPietro, but hadn’t gotten “the whole truth” about what happened the night Ayla disappeared.
Jan. 13, 2012
In a third interview with the Morning Sentinel, DiPietro says he took a polygraph test, but that police didn’t show him the results. McCausland says DiPietro “knows how he did, because we told him.” DiPietro contends that being told the results is irrelevant if he cannot see the results. He added, “I know I went in there and smoked it. I told the truth.” McCausland says special training is required to interpret the printed lines on a polygraph.
Jan. 16, 2012
Angela Harry, a DiPietro acquaintance, launches a website that describes the events of Dec. 16 and 17. The account, Harry says, was compiled from near-daily phone conversations with DiPietro.
Jan. 17, 2012
A second candlelight vigil is held in Waterville. DiPietro attends with his brother, Lance DiPietro, and friends.
Jan. 19, 2012
Reynolds says she has taken a polygraph but wasn’t able to complete it because of a medical condition.
Jan. 25, 2012
Waterville police deny a request by the Morning Sentinel for an audio recording or transcript of DiPietro’s Dec. 17 911 call. Deputy Chief Charles Rumsey cites Maine law saying release of “investigative intelligence” could hinder investigation.
Jan. 27, 2012
The Reynolds family announces that two more of Ayla’s maternal family members have taken polygraph tests. Ayla’s uncle Ronnie Reynolds passed the test the day before and her maternal grandmother, Becca Hanson, couldn’t complete the test because she was on medication.
Jan. 28, 2012
McCausland announces that police doubt Ayla was abducted from her home and DiPietro’s explanation “doesn’t pass the straight-face test.”
Earlier that day, police announce that blood was found at 29 Violette Ave. during the December search. Shortly after the announcement, DiPietro and Reynolds appear together at a third vigil in Waterville. It is the first time they have seen each other since Ayla disappeared.
Jan 29, 2012
McCausland confirms that the blood found in the Violette Avenue home is Ayla’s.
Feb. 3, 2012
State police and Warden Service dive teams return to the Kennebec River and Messalonskee Stream. At a news conference, McCausland says police need more tips.
At 11:15 p.m., Phoebe DiPietro calls 911 to report vandalism at her home after two windows are shattered from the outside. No suspects were immediately found.
Feb. 13, 2012
Augusta attorney Steve Bourget announces he has been representing Phoebe and Elisha DiPietro since early January and they have no idea what happened to Ayla.
In Portland, Ayla’s maternal family announces that state police told them Justin DiPietro bought a life insurance policy on his daughter shortly after she was under his care.
Waterville police summon Jeremy Hanson, 19, of Clinton on a charge of vandalizing the DiPietro home on Feb. 3.
Feb. 28, 2012
DiPietro and supporters, the Tudela family, in an interview with the Morning Sentinel, contend that a kidnapping is plausible, despite contrary claims by state police. DiPietro said there are good reasons to believe Ayla was kidnapped, but wouldn’t say what they were.
March 3, 2012
Phoebe DiPietro speaks at the fourth vigil of about 100 people in Waterville’s Castonguay Square. Justin DiPietro does not attend because of threats against him.
March 18, 2012
Ayla’s stepgrandfather, Jeff Hanson, launches answersforayla.com, a blog that purports to have inside information from state police. The blog contends investigators found more than a cup of blood in the basement at 29 Violette Ave., but police won’t confirm that.
March 24, 2012
More than 100 searchers scour areas of Waterville, Oakland, Fairfield and Norridgewock. Searchers discover the remains of Steven C. Brandon of Waterville, who had been missing since February 2004, but find nothing to lead them to Ayla.
At a news conference, McCausland asks residents in Greater Kennebec County to search their property for signs of the missing toddler. He also says communication between Ayla’s paternal family and investigators has “basically stopped.” Bourget says that is untrue of his clients.
McCausland says state police, Waterville police and the Warden Service have spent about $100,000 in overtime pay during the investigation. Police Chief Joseph Massey later estimates the cost of the investigation could be as high as $500,000.
March 28, 2012
Justin, Elisha and Phoebe DiPietro tell the Morning Sentinel that communication has stopped because investigators won’t answer their questions.
March 29, 2012
Reynolds tells The Associated Press Ayla needed constant attention. She wonders whether DiPietro may have been frustrated by her.
April 4, 2012
Ayla’s maternal family calls for people across Maine and beyond to search their property on Ayla’s second birthday. The family calls it a Gift for Ayla. They also organize a vigil in downtown Portland; more than 100 people attend.
April 19, 2012
Family, friends and community members attend a prayer vigil for Ayla at the Church of God in Waterville, which was organized by her uncle, Lance DiPietro. The three adults who were with Ayla on Dec. 16 – Justin DiPietro, Elisha DiPietro and Courtney Roberts – attend the vigil. News cameras and most reporters are not allowed to attend.
April 25, 2012
Police recover items from the Kennebec River. McCausland says investigators don’t know if the items, brought to the state crime lab, are related to Ayla.
May 5, 2012
At a walk to raise awareness about Ayla, Elisha DiPietro tells a Morning Sentinel reporter that she took a polygraph exam and “did fine,” but wouldn’t say if she passed. McCausland won’t confirm whether she took an exam.
May 8, 2012
Police drain a diversion channel of a Waterville dam to search for evidence. McCausland said some items were removed from the scene by detectives and sent to the crime lab for processing as potential evidence.
May 18, 2012
Reynolds says police told her the items retrieved from the Kennebec River on May 8 are unrelated to the case.
May 31, 2012
Maine State Police and Waterville police say at a press conference Ayla is likely dead.
Attorney John Nale announces that the $30,000 reward for information expires June 30.
June 30, 2012
The $30,000 reward for information expires at the end of the day. A candlelight vigil is held at 29 Violette Ave. from 9 p.m. to midnight.
July 2, 2012
The DiPietro family removes the teddy bear shrine that has been on the lawn of 29 Violette Ave. since shortly after Ayla’s disappearance.
July 14, 2012
Reynolds holds A Benefit Walk For Ayla in Portland from Monument Square to Deering Oaks to mark the 200th day since her disappearance. Reynolds says she wants to share the walk she used to do nearly every day with Ayla.
July 17, 2012
Searchers find “nothing substantial” during another search of the Kennebec River and its banks from Lockwood Dam at the Hathaway Creative Center and upstream to the Hydro Kennebec Dam. The search coincides with the seven-month mark of the investigation.
During the previous weekend, a “missing” sign, with a picture and information about Ayla, was put up at 29 Violette Ave.
Oct. 5, 2012
State police detectives search Messalonskee Stream, which was drained by Kennebec Water District for routine maintenance. Detectives cover a half-mile of riverbank upstream and downstream of the North Street bridge. Nothing is found.
Dec. 14, 2012
McCausland says at a press conference communication between investigators and Justin, Elisha and Phoebe has improved. Bourget says police presented his clients with physical evidence from the case and the DNA evidence from the basement matches Ayla, but it “isn’t necessarily blood.”
Dec. 17, 2012
On the first anniversary of Ayla’s disappearance, about 20 people lights candles and sing Christmas carols in front of 29 Violette Ave. Although the house is well-lit inside and out, there is no sign of its occupants.
July 25, 2013
DiPietro pleads not guilty to domestic violence assault after he was charged July 6 with grabbing and pushing former girlfriend Roberts in Portland during an argument. He is scheduled to appear on court on the charges Sept. 25.
DiPietro tells a Morning Sentinel reporter he is living in his mother’s basement on Violette Avenue and “trying to live a normal life.”
September 2013
A petition is started on pressjustin.com by Jeff Hanson asking the attorney general bring charges against DiPietro in connection with Ayla’s disappearance.
Sept. 10, 2013
DiPietro is arrested in South Portland for violating bail conditions — possession of alcohol.
Sept. 26, 2013
Reynolds and DiPietro relatives quarrel inside and outside the Cumberland County Courthouse in Portland at DiPietro’s hearing on the bail violation. Trista Reynolds says that while the hearing isn’t related to Ayla’s disappearance, it is a chance to raise awareness that no one had been charged. DiPietro pleads guilty to violating conditions of release.
Oct. 23, 2013
A morning-long search by state police and game wardens in woods off Hussey Hill Road in Oakland turns up nothing but animal bones. McCausland said the search was prompted by one of more than 1,400 tips they’ve now received in the case, and the area has come up three times in tips. He said the investigation is ongoing and investigators continue to talk to family members.
“We won’t stop searching until we find Ayla,” he says at a news conference.
Dec. 17, 2013
In the week before the second anniversary of Ayla’s disappearance, McCausland tells the Morning Sentinel that in the two years since her disappearance, there have been 20 searches, both public and private, related to the case. Those in the house the night Ayla disappeared don’t respond to interview requests from the Morning Sentinel, although Elisha DiPietro says in a Facebook message, “All I have to say is that I love my niece and hope that she comes home soon.”
Jan. 25, 2014
About 35 protesters, including Trista Reynolds, her father Ronnie Reynolds Sr. and her stepfather Jeff Hanson, gather outside the Waterville police station in an effort to keep attention on the case.
Feb. 3, 2014
Transcripts from Justin DiPietro’s 911 call the morning Ayla was reported missing are released following a Freedom of Access request by the Associated Press and the Morning Sentinel. The transcripts show DiPietro told the dispatcher he put Ayla to bed at 8 p.m. on Dec. 16, his sister checked on her at 10 p.m., “Woke up this morning, went to her room and she’s not there,” he says. Asked by the dispatcher when the last time someone had seen the child was, he is heard asking his sister, then responds that it was 10 p.m. He tells the dispatcher “there’s no way she coulda” crawled from the crib and left the house. “We’ve checked all through the house.”
McCausland says investigators have checked out 1,414 tips.
March 28, 2014
Trista Reynolds, in a letter to the Morning Sentinel, calls on Kennebec County District Attorney Maeghan Maloney to bring child endangerment charges against DiPietro. She says in the letter, as she has frequently in the past, that Ayla was in her father’s care when she disappeared and there’s enough evidence to prove a crime had been committed. “Who can argue Ayla was not a victim of heinous abuse?” Reynolds asks in the letter. “Her father had a duty to protect her and he did not and for that he needs to be prosecuted.”
Law enforcement officials point out that the investigation is in the hands of the state attorney general’s office, and Deputy Attorney General Bill Stokes says the case is still active, but he can’t comment on specifics or why people haven’t been charged. “I have no reaction to any specifics in Trista’s letter,” he tells the Morning Sentinel. “This is not what I’d call a cold case. We’re working on leads at least on a weekly basis on that case.”
Summer 2014
The Waterville Regional Communications Center becomes the third dispatch center in the state to be certified in procedures designed to better handle 911 calls in a missing person case, spurred in part by the high-profile Reynolds case. Waterville Police Chief Joseph Massey says that is because there were no procedures specifying what questions should be asked of a person making a missing person report — and in what order the questions should be asked — it’s difficult to know if every bit of pertinent information is gathered during initial police contact in such cases.
Nov. 22, 2014
With the statue of limitations on some charges due to run out on the third anniversary of Ayla’s disappearance in a few weeks, Trista Reynolds says she despairs of lesser charges, such as child endangerment, being brought. But she adds of the three people in the house the night her daughter disappeared, “All of them should be put in jail.”
McCausland says the investigation is “active and ongoing.”
Dec. 15, 2011
Trista Reynolds files for full custody of her 20-month-old daughter, Ayla Reynolds, in Cumberland County. Ayla had been in the care of her father, Justin DiPietro, since October, when Reynolds went into a drug rehabilitation program.
Dec. 16, 2011, 10 p.m.
Justin DiPietro sees his daughter for the last time, lying in her bed in their home at 29 Violette Ave. in Waterville, he later tells police. She is wearing one-piece pajamas with the words “Daddy’s Princess.” Her left arm, broken in an accidental fall three weeks earlier, is in a soft splint and a sling.
Dec. 17, 2011, 8:51 a.m.
DiPietro calls 911 to report Ayla is missing after finding her bed empty. Waterville police, firefighters and wardens from the Maine Warden Service search the neighborhood by foot and air. Waterville and Maine State Police detectives search the house.
Dec. 18, 2011
FBI agents, police dogs, neighbors and other volunteers join the house-to-house and neighborhood searches. Wardens scour the banks of nearby Messalonskee Stream. Police interview DiPietro, his sister Elisha DiPietro and his girlfriend, Courtney Roberts, all of whom were in the house the night Ayla disappeared.
Dec. 19, 2011
Police seize two vehicles, one of them registered to DiPietro and the other to his girlfriend, Roberts, of Portland. Police say DiPietro and Reynolds are cooperating. Reynolds appears on ABC’s “Good Morning America” and HLN’s “Nancy Grace” shows. The search swells to 70 law enforcement agents, including wardens looking at Messalonskee Stream with an airboat and circling the area in an airplane.
Dec. 20, 2011
DiPietro releases a statement through Waterville police saying he doesn’t know what happened to Ayla. Investigators drain a section of Messalonskee Stream to look for clues, and examine garbage bins, garages, backyards, ball fields and woods near the home. FBI Child Abduction Rapid Deployment Team canvasses Waterville neighborhoods. Police say it’s still a missing child case. They’ve received more than 100 tips.
Dec. 21, 2011
The search expands across Waterville with help from 50 members of the Maine Association for Search and Rescue. Nearly 100 people attend a candlelight vigil at a local church.
Dec. 22, 2011
Six days into the search, investigators put crime scene tape around 29 Violette Ave., two of the state’s top homicide investigators visit the house and intensify the search for clues.
Dec. 23, 2011
Overnight snow ends the ground search. Reynolds tells NBC’s “Today” show that she blames DiPietro for not keeping Ayla safe and hopes her daughter will be home for Christmas. Police get media inquiries from across the country. Dozens gather for a candlelight vigil at Congress Square in Portland.
Dec. 24, 2011
Waterville police appeal for a break in media coverage so they can do their work “outside the microscope.” Crime-scene evidence tape seals all doors and windows of the house.
Dec. 26, 2011
Ten days into the investigation, police say for the first time that they don’t believe Ayla left the house on her own. Community members offer a $30,000 reward for evidence. A state police evidence response team van is parked in the driveway.
Dec. 27, 2011
Investigators from four police agencies continue the search and follow up on more than 300 tips.
Dec. 28, 2011
DiPietro issues a second statement through Waterville police, repeating that he doesn’t know what happened to Ayla. The Warden Service ends the last of the large-scale ground searches in Waterville.
Dec. 29, 2011
Reynolds appears on the “Today” show, pleading with DiPietro to communicate with her.
Dec. 30, 2011
Police announce foul play is suspected in what is now a criminal case. The Maine State Police Major Crimes Unit takes the lead in the investigation, and Massachusetts detectives join the effort, providing investigative tools at the house.
Dec. 31, 2011
State police release the house at 29 Violette Ave. back to the occupants.
Jan. 1, 2012
The DiPietro family is seen back at the home.
Jan. 2, 2012
DiPietro grants interviews to the Morning Sentinel and NBC’s “Today” show and pleads for Ayla’s safe return.
Jan. 4, 2012
DiPietro grants a second interview to the Morning Sentinel and challenges Nancy Grace to spend a day with him. He says Ayla broke her arm when he fell on her in November. His mother, Phoebe DiPietro, who owns 29 Violette Ave., says she had to sign her home over to investigators and the family was not allowed in for two weeks.
Jan. 6-Jan. 8, 2012
DiPietro appears on New England Cable News to discuss his efforts to find Ayla, Phoebe DiPietro tells CNN she didn’t hear anything in her home the night before Ayla was reported missing, then appears the next day to clarify she was not in the home on the night before Ayla was reported missing.
Jan. 10, 2012
State police and a Warden Service dive team search parts of the Kennebec River and Messalonskee Stream. McCausland says investigators have received more than 600 tips, but they need more. McCausland adds that police encourage Ayla’s family members to speak to the news media about the search. Earlier, Reynolds appears on the “Today” show and says she had spoken to DiPietro, but hadn’t gotten “the whole truth” about what happened the night Ayla disappeared.
Jan. 13, 2012
In a third interview with the Morning Sentinel, DiPietro says he took a polygraph test, but that police didn’t show him the results. McCausland says DiPietro “knows how he did, because we told him.” DiPietro contends that being told the results is irrelevant if he cannot see the results. He added, “I know I went in there and smoked it. I told the truth.” McCausland says special training is required to interpret the printed lines on a polygraph.
Jan. 16, 2012
Angela Harry, a DiPietro acquaintance, launches a website that describes the events of Dec. 16 and 17. The account, Harry says, was compiled from near-daily phone conversations with DiPietro.
Jan. 17, 2012
A second candlelight vigil is held in Waterville. DiPietro attends with his brother, Lance DiPietro, and friends.
Jan. 19, 2012
Reynolds says she has taken a polygraph but wasn’t able to complete it because of a medical condition.
Jan. 25, 2012
Waterville police deny a request by the Morning Sentinel for an audio recording or transcript of DiPietro’s Dec. 17 911 call. Deputy Chief Charles Rumsey cites Maine law saying release of “investigative intelligence” could hinder investigation.
Jan. 27, 2012
The Reynolds family announces that two more of Ayla’s maternal family members have taken polygraph tests. Ayla’s uncle Ronnie Reynolds passed the test the day before and her maternal grandmother, Becca Hanson, couldn’t complete the test because she was on medication.
Jan. 28, 2012
McCausland announces that police doubt Ayla was abducted from her home and DiPietro’s explanation “doesn’t pass the straight-face test.”
Earlier that day, police announce that blood was found at 29 Violette Ave. during the December search. Shortly after the announcement, DiPietro and Reynolds appear together at a third vigil in Waterville. It is the first time they have seen each other since Ayla disappeared.
Jan 29, 2012
McCausland confirms that the blood found in the Violette Avenue home is Ayla’s.
Feb. 3, 2012
State police and Warden Service dive teams return to the Kennebec River and Messalonskee Stream. At a news conference, McCausland says police need more tips.
At 11:15 p.m., Phoebe DiPietro calls 911 to report vandalism at her home after two windows are shattered from the outside. No suspects were immediately found.
Feb. 13, 2012
Augusta attorney Steve Bourget announces he has been representing Phoebe and Elisha DiPietro since early January and they have no idea what happened to Ayla.
In Portland, Ayla’s maternal family announces that state police told them Justin DiPietro bought a life insurance policy on his daughter shortly after she was under his care.
Waterville police summon Jeremy Hanson, 19, of Clinton on a charge of vandalizing the DiPietro home on Feb. 3.
Feb. 28, 2012
DiPietro and supporters, the Tudela family, in an interview with the Morning Sentinel, contend that a kidnapping is plausible, despite contrary claims by state police. DiPietro said there are good reasons to believe Ayla was kidnapped, but wouldn’t say what they were.
March 3, 2012
Phoebe DiPietro speaks at the fourth vigil of about 100 people in Waterville’s Castonguay Square. Justin DiPietro does not attend because of threats against him.
March 18, 2012
Ayla’s stepgrandfather, Jeff Hanson, launches answersforayla.com, a blog that purports to have inside information from state police. The blog contends investigators found more than a cup of blood in the basement at 29 Violette Ave., but police won’t confirm that.
March 24, 2012
More than 100 searchers scour areas of Waterville, Oakland, Fairfield and Norridgewock. Searchers discover the remains of Steven C. Brandon of Waterville, who had been missing since February 2004, but find nothing to lead them to Ayla.
At a news conference, McCausland asks residents in Greater Kennebec County to search their property for signs of the missing toddler. He also says communication between Ayla’s paternal family and investigators has “basically stopped.” Bourget says that is untrue of his clients.
McCausland says state police, Waterville police and the Warden Service have spent about $100,000 in overtime pay during the investigation. Police Chief Joseph Massey later estimates the cost of the investigation could be as high as $500,000.
March 28, 2012
Justin, Elisha and Phoebe DiPietro tell the Morning Sentinel that communication has stopped because investigators won’t answer their questions.
March 29, 2012
Reynolds tells The Associated Press Ayla needed constant attention. She wonders whether DiPietro may have been frustrated by her.
April 4, 2012
Ayla’s maternal family calls for people across Maine and beyond to search their property on Ayla’s second birthday. The family calls it a Gift for Ayla. They also organize a vigil in downtown Portland; more than 100 people attend.
April 19, 2012
Family, friends and community members attend a prayer vigil for Ayla at the Church of God in Waterville, which was organized by her uncle, Lance DiPietro. The three adults who were with Ayla on Dec. 16 – Justin DiPietro, Elisha DiPietro and Courtney Roberts – attend the vigil. News cameras and most reporters are not allowed to attend.
April 25, 2012
Police recover items from the Kennebec River. McCausland says investigators don’t know if the items, brought to the state crime lab, are related to Ayla.
May 5, 2012
At a walk to raise awareness about Ayla, Elisha DiPietro tells a Morning Sentinel reporter that she took a polygraph exam and “did fine,” but wouldn’t say if she passed. McCausland won’t confirm whether she took an exam.
May 8, 2012
Police drain a diversion channel of a Waterville dam to search for evidence. McCausland said some items were removed from the scene by detectives and sent to the crime lab for processing as potential evidence.
May 18, 2012
Reynolds says police told her the items retrieved from the Kennebec River on May 8 are unrelated to the case.
May 31, 2012
Maine State Police and Waterville police say at a press conference Ayla is likely dead.
Attorney John Nale announces that the $30,000 reward for information expires June 30.
June 30, 2012
The $30,000 reward for information expires at the end of the day. A candlelight vigil is held at 29 Violette Ave. from 9 p.m. to midnight.
July 2, 2012
The DiPietro family removes the teddy bear shrine that has been on the lawn of 29 Violette Ave. since shortly after Ayla’s disappearance.
July 14, 2012
Reynolds holds A Benefit Walk For Ayla in Portland from Monument Square to Deering Oaks to mark the 200th day since her disappearance. Reynolds says she wants to share the walk she used to do nearly every day with Ayla.
July 17, 2012
Searchers find “nothing substantial” during another search of the Kennebec River and its banks from Lockwood Dam at the Hathaway Creative Center and upstream to the Hydro Kennebec Dam. The search coincides with the seven-month mark of the investigation.
During the previous weekend, a “missing” sign, with a picture and information about Ayla, was put up at 29 Violette Ave.
Oct. 5, 2012
State police detectives search Messalonskee Stream, which was drained by Kennebec Water District for routine maintenance. Detectives cover a half-mile of riverbank upstream and downstream of the North Street bridge. Nothing is found.
Dec. 14, 2012
McCausland says at a press conference communication between investigators and Justin, Elisha and Phoebe has improved. Bourget says police presented his clients with physical evidence from the case and the DNA evidence from the basement matches Ayla, but it “isn’t necessarily blood.”
Dec. 17, 2012
On the first anniversary of Ayla’s disappearance, about 20 people lights candles and sing Christmas carols in front of 29 Violette Ave. Although the house is well-lit inside and out, there is no sign of its occupants.
July 25, 2013
DiPietro pleads not guilty to domestic violence assault after he was charged July 6 with grabbing and pushing former girlfriend Roberts in Portland during an argument. He is scheduled to appear on court on the charges Sept. 25.
DiPietro tells a Morning Sentinel reporter he is living in his mother’s basement on Violette Avenue and “trying to live a normal life.”
September 2013
A petition is started on pressjustin.com by Jeff Hanson asking the attorney general bring charges against DiPietro in connection with Ayla’s disappearance.
Sept. 10, 2013
DiPietro is arrested in South Portland for violating bail conditions — possession of alcohol.
Sept. 26, 2013
Reynolds and DiPietro relatives quarrel inside and outside the Cumberland County Courthouse in Portland at DiPietro’s hearing on the bail violation. Trista Reynolds says that while the hearing isn’t related to Ayla’s disappearance, it is a chance to raise awareness that no one had been charged. DiPietro pleads guilty to violating conditions of release.
Oct. 23, 2013
A morning-long search by state police and game wardens in woods off Hussey Hill Road in Oakland turns up nothing but animal bones. McCausland said the search was prompted by one of more than 1,400 tips they’ve now received in the case, and the area has come up three times in tips. He said the investigation is ongoing and investigators continue to talk to family members.
“We won’t stop searching until we find Ayla,” he says at a news conference.
Dec. 17, 2013
In the week before the second anniversary of Ayla’s disappearance, McCausland tells the Morning Sentinel that in the two years since her disappearance, there have been 20 searches, both public and private, related to the case. Those in the house the night Ayla disappeared don’t respond to interview requests from the Morning Sentinel, although Elisha DiPietro says in a Facebook message, “All I have to say is that I love my niece and hope that she comes home soon.”
Jan. 25, 2014
About 35 protesters, including Trista Reynolds, her father Ronnie Reynolds Sr. and her stepfather Jeff Hanson, gather outside the Waterville police station in an effort to keep attention on the case.
Feb. 3, 2014
Transcripts from Justin DiPietro’s 911 call the morning Ayla was reported missing are released following a Freedom of Access request by the Associated Press and the Morning Sentinel. The transcripts show DiPietro told the dispatcher he put Ayla to bed at 8 p.m. on Dec. 16, his sister checked on her at 10 p.m., “Woke up this morning, went to her room and she’s not there,” he says. Asked by the dispatcher when the last time someone had seen the child was, he is heard asking his sister, then responds that it was 10 p.m. He tells the dispatcher “there’s no way she coulda” crawled from the crib and left the house. “We’ve checked all through the house.”
McCausland says investigators have checked out 1,414 tips.
March 28, 2014
Trista Reynolds, in a letter to the Morning Sentinel, calls on Kennebec County District Attorney Maeghan Maloney to bring child endangerment charges against DiPietro. She says in the letter, as she has frequently in the past, that Ayla was in her father’s care when she disappeared and there’s enough evidence to prove a crime had been committed. “Who can argue Ayla was not a victim of heinous abuse?” Reynolds asks in the letter. “Her father had a duty to protect her and he did not and for that he needs to be prosecuted.”
Law enforcement officials point out that the investigation is in the hands of the state attorney general’s office, and Deputy Attorney General Bill Stokes says the case is still active, but he can’t comment on specifics or why people haven’t been charged. “I have no reaction to any specifics in Trista’s letter,” he tells the Morning Sentinel. “This is not what I’d call a cold case. We’re working on leads at least on a weekly basis on that case.”
Summer 2014
The Waterville Regional Communications Center becomes the third dispatch center in the state to be certified in procedures designed to better handle 911 calls in a missing person case, spurred in part by the high-profile Reynolds case. Waterville Police Chief Joseph Massey says that is because there were no procedures specifying what questions should be asked of a person making a missing person report — and in what order the questions should be asked — it’s difficult to know if every bit of pertinent information is gathered during initial police contact in such cases.
Nov. 22, 2014
With the statue of limitations on some charges due to run out on the third anniversary of Ayla’s disappearance in a few weeks, Trista Reynolds says she despairs of lesser charges, such as child endangerment, being brought. But she adds of the three people in the house the night her daughter disappeared, “All of them should be put in jail.”
McCausland says the investigation is “active and ongoing.”
A Possibility - Guest Post
A Possibility
Shortly after Ayla was reported missing and the blogs started I think some theories were written.
I think this is where a lot of the blood theories were discussed and some went from the being known as theories column - to the fact column. LE never made the public announcement about the blood spatter, or aspiration of blood it was just taken for granted.
LE did say more than what they figured a small cut would produce. In fact Boston news came out with an announcement and LE has said they never made the statement.
When a case goes on this long it is very hard to keep straight everything that is fact from the, I read it somewhere I think LE said it. The news media is told something and when it gets done with it it doesn't always read like it was told.
Everyone has an opinion of what they think happened and who was involved. If I don't agree with you it doesn't mean you are wrong. It means I view it differently than you that's all. I mean no disrespect.
I may even think you could be correct in some of your thinking, but I am not convinced enough to say this person took another persons life, or their lack of concern was the cause of a persons death.
What are your thoughts?
What Do You Believe -- Guest Post
What Do You Believe
Do you believe three people could dislike a child so much they would kill that child, then dispose of the body and keep the secret for over three years?
Do you believe a grandmother could love her son so much that she would know he murdered his daughter and cover for him?
That would mean four people were keeping a secret now and that blows the theory of three people keeping the secret.
Do you think that a buddy would help with the disposal of the body and be able to keep it quiet?
If you do then now there are five people keeping that horrible secret for over three years.
Do you really think the mother of that buddy could know of the murder and disposal of a child's body and keep the secret?
That makes six people and can the sixth one hide that from her husband and not slip up?
What about the buddies wife? Could he keep it from her?
Could LE have questioned these people and not have gotten even one to slip up and tell the secret?
Do you believe three people could dislike a child so much they would kill that child, then dispose of the body and keep the secret for over three years?
Do you believe a grandmother could love her son so much that she would know he murdered his daughter and cover for him?
That would mean four people were keeping a secret now and that blows the theory of three people keeping the secret.
Do you think that a buddy would help with the disposal of the body and be able to keep it quiet?
If you do then now there are five people keeping that horrible secret for over three years.
Do you really think the mother of that buddy could know of the murder and disposal of a child's body and keep the secret?
That makes six people and can the sixth one hide that from her husband and not slip up?
What about the buddies wife? Could he keep it from her?
Could LE have questioned these people and not have gotten even one to slip up and tell the secret?
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