commentary by Patrick H. Moore
Haleigh Cummings disappeared from her family’s home in Satsuma, Florida on February 10, 2009. Approximately 24 months later another little girl, 20-month old Ayla Reynolds, vanished from her home far to the north in Waterville, Maine. Although the cases bear some striking similarities (drugs, the fact no one has ever been arrested in either case, and the fact the little girls appear to be gone forever), Ayla – unlike Haleigh who vanished without a trace – left behind more than a cupful of blood, or as the investigators so quaintly described: “More blood than a small cut would produce.”
Ayla Reynolds was last seen at 10 PM on the evening of December 16, 2011. According to a family member, she was there in her bed that night, but was discovered missing by her father, Justin DiPietro, the next morning. Ayla’s disappearance triggered the largest criminal investigation in Maine state history, and was the third largest search for a missing child.
It was a somewhat circuitous route that ultimately placed Ayla in her father’s care. She had been cared for by her mother, Trista Reynolds (although heart-breakingly beautiful, you should never name your child Trista for grief is likely to strike at the heart of anyone whose name contains this essence of sadness), but Trista had a drug problem which led her to enter a substance abuse recovery program. She therefore sent Ayla to stay with her maternal grandmother, who apparently did not pass muster, leading the social workers to remove her from her grandmother’s home, which meant she was then sent to stay with her father, Justin.
Although Justin DiPietro and his two companions who were there at the house that fateful evening, namely, his girlfriend Courtney Roberts, and his sister Alisha DiPietro, have never been arrested and are no more than “persons of interest”, the investigators have always believed that little Ayla was not abducted, the obvious implication therefore being that either Justin or one of his companions that night, or perhaps all of them, are responsible for the toddler’s disappearance. Thus, this is one of those maddening cases in which there would appear to be obvious suspects yet “they are not suspects”.
Justin DiPietro told the police that “the last time he saw Ayla, she was wearing green polka dot pajamas with “Daddy’s Princess” written across them, along with a soft cast on her left arm.”
It was at a news conference five months after Ayla’s disappearance that the investigators’ findings concerning the copious amount of blood and the identities of the three individuals who were at the house that night were announced.
A mystifying further detail is the reported claim that “DiPietro had taken a two-hour road trip before reporting Ayla missing”, which seems inculpatory, and the fact that “DiPietro had also taken out a life-insurance policy on Ayla” (equally or even more inculpatory).
David Sharp of the AP writes in a new article:
Though investigators believe Ayla is dead and the three adults know more about what happened that night than they’re telling, no charges have ever been filed.
Now the clock is running out on some of the lesser charges the girl’s mother believes could have already been brought. The statute of limitations on misdemeanors like child endangerment expires in a matter of weeks, on the third anniversary of Ayla’s disappearance.
“All of them should be put in jail,” said Ayla’s mother, Trista Reynolds.
Trista, however, is not in regular contact with police and does not believe that any charges — including those of a capital nature – are on the horizon.
Although Trista is very frustrated by the apparent lack of any substantial progress (which of course would seemingly include charges) in the investigation, Steve McCausland, a Maine State Police spokesman, insists that the investigation remains “active and ongoing.”
Jim Burke, a professor at the University of Maine School of Law, has a convincing explanation for the fact the police have up till now chosen not to bring any of the lesser possible charges. First of all, there is no statute of limitations for any type of homicide charge and there’s a six-year limit for other felonies, which means the prosecutors still have a full three years to bring any other felony charges such as kidnapping or false imprisonment. While it’s true that the statutory limit of three years for the lesser charges – misdemeanors including simple assault and endangering the welfare of a minor – is rapidly approaching, it could (and possibly would) be completely counterproductive to bring misdemeanor charges at this time.
According to Burke, the last thing the prosecutors want is to put their homicide investigation at risk for the sake of pursuing misdemeanors. Bringing the lesser charges “would expose evidence central to the homicide investigation and could allow the defense to try to prevent harsher charges by claiming double jeopardy, said Assistant Attorney General Leane Zainea. She said prosecutors are keeping “an eye toward the more serious offenses.”
In a similar vein, Kennebec County District Attorney Maeghan Maloney, who is well aware of the case although she is not prosecuting it directly, expressed her belief that the prosecutors know exactly what they are doing and are fully aware of what sort of evidence they would need to win at trial should murder charges be brought. Maloney stated:
“They’re absolutely devastated by this case that has consumed them. They’re trying to do everything they can. I have 100 percent confidence in them.”
As the months have trickled by, Reynolds has done what she can “to put pressure on DiPietro and law enforcement agencies while trying to keep her daughter in the public eye.” In a curious encounter, she and her compatriots actually chased DiPietro following an unrelated court appearance last year, shouting “murderer!” and “Where’s Ayla!”
Maloney, who is clearly sympathetic to Trista, said she doesn’t blame her for being frustrated and demanding justice: “What she’s going through is the worst thing a parent could go through.”
Professor Burke reminds us that in the real world criminal investigations often do not play out nearly as quickly as they do on TV or in film. In fact, they often take years.
“The state is not going to go away,” said the professor. “Sometimes it takes 20 years for someone to slip up. So they sit and wait. They never give up.”
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It appears to me that the investigators are leavening urgency with needed caution. They are undoubtedly determined to bring the killers to justice while being equally determined to not screw things up by jumping the gun or otherwise exposing any weaknesses on the side of the prosecution.