Timeline — February 9, 2004

  • At 3:32 AM, Maura emailed her homework assignment to her nursing cohort titled “Maternity Clinical Definitions.” The assignment was for each student to google a set of maternity terms and email them to each other. View that homework assignment here.

  • At 12:55 PM, Maura made a three-minute call to Linda Salamone, the owner of a condo in Bartlett, NH. Though Linda does not remember the call, she later confirmed that she did not rent a unit to Maura. In July 2003, Maura stayed at the Salamones’ condo with her father and her boyfriend, Bill.

  • At 1:00 PM, Maura emailed her boyfriend Bill. The subject was "Hey, hey" and Maura wrote, "I love you more stud. I got your messages, but honestly, I didn't feel like talking to much of anyone. I promise to call today, though. Love you, Maura." This is the last known communication between Maura and Bill.

  • At 1:13 PM, Maura called a fellow nursing student to arrange the return of borrowed clothing. Later, she dropped off the clothes at the student's dorm.

  • At 1:24 PM, Maura emailed her professors to let them know she would be "heading home for a week due to a death in the family." There was no death in the family.

  • At 2:05 PM, Maura called 1-877-GO-STOWE, which is a toll-free number for Stowe, Vermont tourism inquiries. The call lasted less than a minute, and the reservation line was reportedly down, so no accommodation was booked.

  • At 2:18 PM, Maura attempted to place a call to her boyfriend, Bill. However, Bill did not pick up Maura’s call because he was attempting to place a call to Maura's friend, Kate, at the time.

Amherst, MA (UMass)

  • Maura stopped at an ATM in the Big Y Plaza in Hadley, MA, at 3:15 PM, withdrawing $280, nearly all the funds in her account. Surveillance stills from the ATM capture this moment.

  • From the ATM, Maura headed to Liquors 44 in Hadley, MA. Accord to the receipt, she returned 79 cans and bottles (redeeming $3.95) and according to the State Police, purchased a bottle of Kahlua, a bottle of vodka, a nip of Baileys, and a 12-pack of Smirnoff Ice. According to the receipt, Maura departs Liquors 44 after paying for her items at 3:43 PM.

  • Around 4:00 PM, it’s believed Maura picked up duplicate copies of accident report forms from the Hadley Police Station. These forms were later found in her Saturn after her disappearance.

  • At 4:37 PM, Maura made her last recorded call, which was to her voicemail. The call lasted 4 minutes. It's unknown who left the messages she listened to.

Hadley, MA

  • At 7:27 PM, Faith Westman, a local resident, reports seeing a car in a ditch near her home. When asked about the driver’s condition she reports seeing “a man smoking a cigarette”. This is later contested by her husband who believes he saw a “red glow” rather than a cigarette." This call initiates the official response to the scene, and the transcript can be viewed here.

  • At 7:29 PM, two minutes after Westman’s call, Haverhill police officer Cecil Smith is dispatched to the site of the accident. Given his described route (in an interview in 2017) and media reports (SOCO, 2011), Smith’s journey to the accident scene would take between 15 to 18 minutes, depending on driving speed and road conditions.

  • Witness A saw a police SUV parked nose-to-nose with a dark sedan between 7:33–7:37 PM—about 10 minutes before Officer Smith arrived. Dispatch logs, reports, media, and Smith’s route all place Smith’s arrival at 7:45–7:46 PM, with no evidence he came earlier. If that timeline is right, then a different vehicle was already positioned nose-to-nose with Maura’s car before Smith got there. The identity of that driver remains unknown.

  • At 7:42 PM, Butch Atwood, a school bus driver who stopped to assist at the scene, calls 911 to report the accident, and describes seeing a young woman who appeared “shook up.” Atwood observed the crash site from his porch while speaking to the 911 dispatcher and later estimated that officers reached the scene 7 to 9 minutes after his 7:42 PM call.

    While Atwood may not recall the exact time police arrived, he clearly stated it was after his 911 call at 7:42 PM. This lends further support to the possibility that another vehicle was parked nose-to-nose with the Saturn before Officer Smith arrived. Atwood’s 911 transcript can be viewed here.

    Sidenote: Atwood’s call provided more detailed information than Westman’s initial report, likely prompting the dispatch of fire and EMS services at around the same time

  • According to Smith’s police report, he arrives at the scene at 7:45 PM. This estimate is based on his contemporaneous notes. The police report can be viewed here.

  • The official dispatch records indicate that Smith arrived at the scene at 7:46 PM. This timestamp aligns with the police report. The dispatch log can be viewed here.

  • At 7:52 PM, cell records confirm that Witness A places a call from Beaver Pond, a location known to have the earliest reliable cell reception in the area. Based on her route and average driving speed, she likely passed the accident scene between 7:33–7:37 PM. Call #48 is the phone call placed at Beaver Pond.

Haverhill, NH