Missing in Vermont: Introduction

Missing in Vermont

 Introduction

Brianna Alexandra Maitland was seventeen years old when she vanished on March 19th, 2004. She punched out of work at her new job as a dishwasher at the Black Lantern Inn in Montgomery, Vermont at 11:20 pm. Brianna's coworkers had invited her to join them for dinner after the shift, but she was tired and wanted to get some rest before her first day at her second job at KJ’s Diner, as a waitress. She had a long day.

Brianna woke early that Friday morning. Her mother picked her up to go out for breakfast before Brianna took her high school equivalency exam. Earning her GED would be a meaningful accomplishment after withdrawing from high school that previous year. Brianna had also been recently hired for two part-time restaurant jobs. She planned to go to college. By all accounts, Brianna was making sensible choices for her future.

After passing the exam, Brianna’s mother took her clothes shopping. Brianna needed black pants for the dress code at her job at KJ's Diner. While the two waited to check out, Brianna told her mother she would be right back, and left the store out of her mother's sight. Her mother bought the pants, and Brianna met her at her car. Brianna’s mood had changed; she was agitated and guarded toward her mother. The two didn’t acknowledge the change, her mother opting to respect the privacy of her independent daughter. Brianna's mood change has been subject to significant speculation and conjecture- we'll get to that later.

Brianna had been making strides for more autonomy throughout her teenage years. On October 8th, 2003, Brianna turned seventeen and moved out of her family’s farmhouse in Franklin, against the wishes of her parents. She moved in with her friend Katie Manning in Enosburg and enrolled in Enosburg Falls High School. The Maitland family's farm was within the district of Missisoqoui Valley Union High School, where Brianna had trouble fitting in. Brianna was pleased to now be going to school in Enosburg with her friends, including Katie, as well as Megan Jefferson, Keallie LaCross, Sydney Coon, and Hillary Robitaille.

Shortly after Brianna changed schools, by early December, Brianna’s living arrangements with Katie fell through. She then couch surfed, staying with multiple friends (including boyfriends James Robitaille and Mike Gerrow). By February, Brianna was growing apart from her circle of friends and was increasingly isolated. At times she lived out of her car in freezing Northern Vermont temperatures. In late February of 2004, the instability wore thin on Brianna's academic performance. Although she was highly intelligent and a normally a great student, Brianna was forced to drop out of high school. Hoping for greater stability, Brianna moved ten miles away to Sheldon, moving in with her friend from middle school, Jillian Stout and her family. Brianna also joined a high school equivalency (GED) program at a local community college.

After the tense car ride from the clothing store in St. Albans to Jillian’s home in Sheldon, Brianna and her mother hugged and shared I love you’s. Brianna then got ready for work and left a note for Jillian saying she’d be back home later that evening . Brianna planned to return home after her shift. She wasn't sure exactly when that would be, as she didn't have set hours. Brianna was done when the kitchen was clean.

Brianna’s shift at the Black Lantern that night was described as “busy, yet uneventful”. Nothing significant was reported to have taken place, and coworkers didn’t notice anything different about Brianna. Not that they should reasonably have, as Brianna had just started that position two weeks prior and was not close with her coworkers. According to the Vermont State Police, Brianna was observed by one of her coworkers leaving work alone, in her light green clunker, a 1985 Oldsmobile Sedan 88 Royale. She had punched out at 11:20 p.m.

No one saw Brianna Maitland after that. Her car, however, was spotted soon thereafter, abandoned. Brianna had apparently begun the eighteen mile drive to Jillian’s in Sheldon, but made it only one mile down Vermont Route 118. Approximately ten to seventy minutes after Brianna left work, between 11:30 pm and 12:30 am, a man driving on Route 118 saw her green sedan backed into an abandoned farmhouse, known as the Dutchburn house, at an odd angle. He remembered that the vehicles headlights may have been on. In between 12:00 am and 12:30 am, another man observed the car in the same position, and recalled there may have been a turn signal flashing. Later in the early morning hours of March 20th, Brianna’s ex-boyfriend, James Robitaille, drove by the site and recognized the vehicle to be that of Brianna’s. His stories have been inconsistent regarding the time he was there as well as why he was driving in that area. His current account, which is believed to be the truth, is that he drove past the Dutchburn house at about 2:30 am, and pulled over upon recognizing the car. He said no one was around, however the headlights were on and both the driver and passenger side doors were open. James turned off the lights and closed the doors and moved on. He had been drinking that night and was afraid of getting in trouble.

Later that morning, a group of hikers driving on Route 118 observed the abandoned Oldsmobile and found it odd enough to stop. They pulled over, exited their vehicle, and gawked at the eerie scene before them. They took photographs, which are now the only photographs of the crash site accessible to the public. One of the photographers observed loose change, a water bottle, and a broken necklace (later confirmed to be Brianna's) on the ground next to the vehicle's driver's side.

Brianna Maitland’s car

At 1:22 pm on March 20th, a Vermont State Trooper was dispatched to the Dutchburn house. The Trooper observed some personal effects in the Oldsmobile, including two paychecks from the Black Lantern Inn addressed to Brianna Maitland, but the Trooper saw nothing he considered to be suspicious. The officer determined the car was likely abandoned by a drunk driver, a rather common and not necessarily alarming circumstance. He collected the scattered belongings on the ground and threw them into the vehicle. The Trooper then drove up to the Black Lantern, hoping to interview staff regarding the abandoned vehicle, but the restaurant was closed, and the officer proceeded with this day. He took down the tag number of the vehicle. The car was later towed to a local automotive shop. The officer never ran the plates. It's rumored he left for a short vacation the following day.

Jillian Stout spent that weekend away at her grandparent's house and was unaware Brianna had not returned until she arrived home that Monday to see Brianna's note left untouched. On Tuesday, March 23rd Jillian called Brianna’s mother Kellie, and after sharing notes the two quickly realized Brianna was unaccounted for. Kellie made calls to everyone she could think of to try to reach Brianna, but no one had seen or heard from her. She called Brianna’s father, Bruce, who was away in New York on business. The two became desperately worried for their daughter's safety, and Bruce drove through the night to return to Vermont. Kellie called the police to report a missing juvenile.

Kellie and Bruce drove to the State Police Barracks in St. Albans to discuss their daughter’s disappearance. Upon giving the officers information about Brianna’s vehicle, one of them showed the couple a photograph of the abandoned Oldsmobile. Her parents were alarmed and concerned when they saw the picture. The rear end of Brianna's vehicle was lodged into the farmhouse, with one of the boarded windows resting on the car's trunk. They knew Brianna would not have left her vehicle this way. The discovery of the abandoned car made it obvious to her parents that Brianna did not, and most likely could not, have been a runaway without her means for transportation.

The couple was dismayed that they were not notified of the vehicle's discovery. Kellie and Bruce met their son, Waylon, at the auto shop where the Oldsmobile was towed. The Maitland's were informed that the Oldsmobile keys were missing. Bruce learned that the car had not been inspected, so he pried the trunk open with a crowbar. He feared that Brianna may have been inside. She wasn’t. However, in the vehicle he found a number of personal items that they believed Brianna would not have left behind, including her migraine medication, contact lenses, drivers license, ATM card and of course, her paychecks.

Her parents jumped into action. Bruce went to the Black Lantern to interview her coworkers, arriving before the police. The police deployed K9 units to search the open field surrounding the accident site, however nothing was found. The vehicle was processed in the State Police Barracks. Early in the investigation, investigators were open in their belief Brianna Maitland was a runaway. However, in 2012, the police announced that Brianna was most likely a victim of foul play and that there was no evidence to indicate that Brianna left voluntarily.

If you have any information that may help this investigation, please contact the Vermont State Police.