The most dangerous time for a woman in an abusive relationship is when she leaves.

If you need help, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-Safe or visit

thehotline.org.

It was described as one of Vermont's most frustrating cold cases.

A dedicated mother and beloved schoolteacher disappeared in November of 1979, with nothing

but a smashed up vehicle and a strange handwritten note left behind.

When her ex-boyfriend disappeared a month later, two authorities had two people to track

down, one they presumed to be dead, and the other, they suspected of causing her death.

The search for Frank Melanowski would become a cross-country event, tracking aliases and

addresses at West until finally, a dedicated detective and a new state's attorney saw

eye-to-eye and what needed to be done in the case, what needed to be done for Judy and

her family.

If you haven't listened to the first episode in this two-part series, start there with

the disappearance of Judith Leoconey's.

It's linked in the show notes for you.

I'm Kylie Lowe, and Judith Leoconey's story continues on Dark Town East.

Judith Leoconey's last-known destination on November 5, 1979 was to pick up some of

her belongings at the home of her ex-boyfriend, Francis Melanowski.

Francis, called Frank, didn't have much of an alibi for that morning.

He never showed up for work at the Burlington School System, and when asked, he told police

he spent the day walking around the woods and shooting birds.

Frank's movements on that day put him in the same town where Judy's red Volkswagen

...