Adam Montgomery is charged with second-degree murder in the death of his 5-year-old daughter, Harmony.

Prosecutor Ben Agati withdrew the question after an objection from public defender Caroline Smith.

Lubin is the mother of Adam Montgomery’s estranged wife, Kayla. Kayla Montgomery was on the witness stand for most of the day Friday and Monday.

Lubin testified the last time she saw Harmony she had pigtails and wore glasses. She looked healthy.

“She didn’t talk much and they were there very briefly,” Lubin said.

Kayla Montgomery testified earlier that Harmony’s body was stored in the cooler while they lived with Lubin for a short time before getting a room at the Families in Transition family shelter.

Adam Montgomery, 34, is accused of beating Harmony to death in December 2019. He is also charged with second-degree assault for allegedly causing her bodily injury, including a black eye, between July 1 and July 22, 2019.

Montgomery has not been in court since the first day of jury selection, waiving his right to appear.

Prosecutors continued their case that started last week, calling nine witnesses to the stand on Tuesday. The jury of 14 women and three men heard from law enforcement for the first time Tuesday.

Former Manchester detective Joseph Tucker and detective Brian O’Leary testified about processing a 2010 Chrysler Sebring that was recovered from a junkyard. The Montgomerys lived out of the sedan after being evicted from their home on Gilford Street in Manchester the day before Thanksgiving in 2019.

Adam Montgomery allegedly struck Harmony repeatedly in the car after the little girl had a bathroom accident. He discovered Harmony had died when the car broke down at the intersection of Webster and Elm streets in Manchester, Kayla Montgomery testified.

Agati asked Tucker to open a wrapped piece of evidence, which ended up being a pink “Trolls” toothbrush that was found in the trunk of the Sebring. Tests confirmed it contained Harmony’s DNA, according to court documents.

With gloves on, Tucker walked up to the jury box for the panel to get a closer look.

O’Leary testified police used a blood detecting agent, which showed positive results in the trunk of the Sebring. But during cross-examination by defense attorney James Brooks, O’Leary confirmed that no results appeared when they checked the rear seat of the sedan.

On Monday, Kayla Montgomery testified that Adam Montgomery had blood on his hand before cleaning the vehicle. Harmony had dried blood on her face for multiple days after a nosebleed, which Adam Montgomery didn’t care to clean up, Kayla Montgomery testified.

Katie Swango, a criminologist with the State Police Forensic Laboratory, spoke of comparing DNA profiles from Adam Montgomery and Crystal Sorey, Harmony’s biological mother, to items collected by police.

She was able to find one item that likely belonged to Harmony: The “Trolls” toothbrush.

Swango said it was at least 100 sextillion times “more likely to see these genetic results if the profile of the toothbrush was a biological child of Adam Montgomery and Crystal Sorey than if it was two unrelated people.”

Manchester police officer Neil Penttinen testified about a Nov. 29, 2019, car crash at the corner of South Wilson and Vinton streets. He testified Adam Montgomery had been driving while Kayla Montgomery, Tabitha Scott and two young boys were in the car.

Penttinen testified that he did not see any other children in the car. This would include Harmony. “I saw two boys there, I am not sure if they were inside or outside of the vehicle.”

During his opening statement, prosecutor Christopher Knowles said Adam Montgomery put a blanket over Harmony in the car to make sure police didn’t see bruises.

During cross-examination of Kayla Montgomery, Smith suggested the Montgomerys might have been nervous because they did not have Harmony in the car seat or buckled in the vehicle.

Anthony Bodero denied seeing or waving to Harmony when the Montgomery family lived out of his 2004 Audi S4 in the back parking lot of Colonial Village apartment complex off River Road in Manchester. The family stayed for two days.

He admitted to dealing heroin and crack to the couple.

Bodero was a key witness to corroborate Kayla Montgomery’s testimony, but he appeared to struggle with key details, and lost his cool when being questioned by Smith. Bodero testified after reaching an immunity deal.

“You want to have nothing to do with this investigation or Harmony, right?” Smith asked.

“It is not the way you are making it sound,” Bodero said.

He said he wanted to help the prosecution “find who killed that little girl.”

Swango, the state police criminologist, will continue her testimony Wednesday.

jphelps@unionleader.com