Lisa was last seen in Vernon, Connecticut on November 1, 1974. The night before her disappearance, she'd been arrested for underage drinking and her parents grounded her. After her mother went to work at 4:30 p.m., she sneaked out to visit a friend on Prospect Street in Rockville, Connecticut, two miles away. Following her visit, at 7:30 p.m., Lisa began walking home. She never arrived and has never been heard from again.

Lisa left a note for her mother saying she was in love with an older boy and "you think I'm a little girl, but I'm not." According to her sister, she associated with older boys and some men. The police initially believed she'd run away from home, but foul play is now suspected in her case.

Lisa's disappearance was one of five in a ten-year period in the Vernon area, including Janice Pockett. All of the missing were female; they ranged in age from 7 to 20 years old. Two of them were found deceased years after their disappearances but the other three, including Lisa, remain missing. It is not clear whether the cases are related. Lisa's disappearance remains unsolved. Her mother died in July 2012.