The Disappearance of Brianna Maitland

This will be my last post of 2020. I am taking a week off to go and visit my family for Christmas, and will have a brand new case up on January 1, 2021!

For today’s case, I watched an episode of Disappeared on ID. It’s season 4 episode 11, titled ‘Vanished in Vermont.’ I’ve also wanted to do this case for awhile, because it’s one of those cases that is a complete mystery. I think watching the Disappeared episode left me even more confused because there was some information that I haven’t heard of until now.

Background

Brianna Maitland was born on October 8, 1986 and grew up in Burlington, Vermont.

17 year old, Brianna was described as being a “free spirit,” and wanted to do things her own way. She was also bullied throughout high school and left to attend a different high school, where most of her friends went. In October 2003, she also told her parents that she wanted to move out because she wanted to be able to come and go as she pleased. These things didn’t really work out at first, and Brianna dropped out of high school and went to live with her friend, Jillian.

On the day of Brianna’s disappearance she took a test to get her GED, and she was working two jobs, so despite her difficulties she had a lot of good things going for her.

Disappearance Timeline

Brianna’s disappearance is very confusing, but it’s reported that several things happened after her disappearance and so I’m going to go over the most important dates during this time.

March 19, 2004- Friday

Brianna took her test for her GED program in the morning, and then went shopping with her mom, Kellie. Kellie was interviewed in this episode and she said Brianna was very distracted the whole day, and even left for awhile because she saw something outside.

Brianna had to work that day at 3:30pm, so her mom dropped her off and this was the last time Kellie saw her daughter.

Brianna worked as a dishwasher at the Black Lantern Inn in Montgomery, Vermont. She worked that night until around 11:20pm. Her co-workers asked her to hangout with them after work, but she said she needed to go home because she worked at her second job the next morning.

Brianna was last seen getting into her car, a Oldsmobile that was registered to Brianna’s mom, Kellie.

March 20, 2004- Saturday

A Vermont State trooper was called about a car at an abandoned house. The house was a mile from the Black Lantern Inn, and the car was eventually determined to be Brianna’s.

Brianna’s car was up against the house, and it had damaged the side of the house. Brianna’s paychecks and migraine medication was found on the passenger seat.

The police thought it was a DUI accident and they towed the car to a nearby garage. Brianna’s parents weren’t told about the car until five days after it was originally found.

March 23, 2004

Brianna’s roommate, Jillian, came home on and found a note Brianna had left her a few days earlier. She called Brianna’s family asking if Brianna was with them, and Kellie said no. That day after Brianna’s friends and ex-boyfriends were called, Kellie filed a missing persons report. Brianna’s dad was away on business at the time and he came home that night.

March 25, 2004

Brianna’s parents met with the police, and brought photos of Brianna to start the search. The police also showed Brianna’s parents pictures of her abandoned car after they told the police what car she would have been driving.

Brianna’s family was pissed that they weren’t told sooner about Brianna’s car being found.

Could Brianna have been found sooner?

There were many witnesses who actually saw Brianna’s car on the day she disappeared and into the early morning hours of the next day.

The first witness said he saw the car around 11:30pm-12am, which would have only been 10 minutes after Brianna left work. However, the man said that there was no one near the car.

Around 4am, one of Brianna’s ex-boyfriends actually passed the house and thought it was Brianna’s car.

The last sighting came from a few people, who ended up being the only people to take pictures of Brianna’s car right after it was abandoned, and still up against the house. They also said there was a necklace, water bottle and loose change around the car.

Suspects

Three weeks before Brianna went missing, she got into a fight with a girl named Keallie Lacross at a party. It was reportedly over a guy at a party. Keallie had punched Brianna, and she got a black eye and a concussion because of it.

*Brianna after she was punched in the face*

Brianna filed a report after her friend said she needed to after what Keallie did to her. The report was dropped a few weeks later and Keallie was cleared of any involvement in Brianna’s disappearance.

The next few suspects have come up several times, however no charges have ever been filed.

There have been MANY rumors that Brianna’s disappearance was related to drugs. Brianna was apparently in contact with two men named Ramon Ryans and Nathaniel Jackson, who were heavily into drugs and sold drugs for a living.

There was an anonymous tip for the police to search an abandoned house because Brianna was being held there. They didn't find Brianna, but they found Ryans and Jackson in possession of weapons and crack cocaine. They said they knew Brianna, but that she was not in the house.

There was also another source, a woman, who told the police and even signed an affidavit that Ryans and Jackson were involved in Brianna’s murder. The police in this episode said that this woman was not a reliable source, and didn’t go into much detail. As I said, Ryans and Jackson were never charged in anything involving Brianna’s disappearance.

Is Brianna Alive?

In 2006, 2 years after Brianna disappeared, the police looked at surveillance footage from Caeser’s World Casino in Atlantic City. The grainy footage was of a young woman, who looked similar to Brianna. This woman was playing poker with a man.

Brianna’s family also looked at this tape, and Brianna’s mom, Kellie, doesn’t believe it was Brianna.

Other

Brianna’s case has been compared to Maura Murray’s case, and the police even thought the cases were connected at first. However, as of today they believe the cases are not connected.

In 2016, the police have said they did find and take DNA samples from Brianna’s car. They are not saying what they found because it’s an active investigation.

Also in 2016, that abandoned house where Brianna’s car was found, was destroyed in a fire.

There is $20,000 reward for any information about Brianna’s disappearance.

FINAL THOUGHTS

This case is wild and confusing. It’s also really sad that Brianna has been victim blamed constantly, especially through newspaper articles. It has never been stated that Brianna was heavily involved in drugs, or that her disappearance was because of drugs or her owing money to drug dealers.

People that victim blame are just awful. I think it is strange that the names that keep coming up are Ramon Ryans and Nathaniel Jackson, but it could also be because they knew Brianna. Maybe they did something to her, but technically they are still innocent. I also think this Keallie girl should be looked into more, because Brianna’s friend has said that Keallie made certain comments about “Brianna not being her anymore.” However, she is still considered innocent as well.

Brianna’s family deserves justice, and hopefully in the next few years, they can get just that as well as answers.