A one-man grand jury investigation into the disappearance and presumed murder of Mary Badaracco has ended without resolving the mystery that has surrounded the case since the 38-year-old mother of two vanished in 1984.

The unnamed Superior Court judge who spent nearly 18 months conducting the inquiry filed his report and at the prosecutor's request, ordered it sealed without recommending criminal charges against either of the men state police previously identified as suspects -- the missing woman's husband, Dominic Badaracco Sr., and his son, Joseph.

"The judge couldn't find probable cause to issue an arrest warrant," the younger Badaracco's attorney, Ralph Crozier said. "We're happy to see (Joseph Badaracco) had no charges filed, as we believe him to be innocent of any and all involvement in this tragic disappearance."

Dominic Badaracco's lawyer, Richard Meehan of Bridgeport, declined comment.

The case is now back in the hands of the Connecticut State Police, who continue to actively investigate it, said Assistant State's Attorney Christopher Alexy, the prosecutor during the grand jury hearings.

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Timeline Aug. 20, 1984: Mary Badaracco disappears. May 1985: Dominic Badaracco divorces her. August 1986: A former Hells Angel in the federal witness protection program tells authorities gang members killed Mary Badaracco. 1990: State police reclassify Badaracco's disappearance as a homicide; $20,000 reward posted. October 1999: Reward raised to $50,000. April 2008: Ernie Dachenhausen charged with interfering with investigation. May 2009: Jury acquits Dachenhausen. Late 2010: Grand jury investigation begins. December 2011: Grand jury hearings end. Feb. 8, 2012: State police return to Badaracco's Sherman home and search, unsuccessfully, for her body.

The grand juror's refusal to charge anyone was a bitter blow to Mary Badaracco's daughters, Beth Profeta, of Torrington, and Sherrie Passaro, of Danbury, who have spent much of the past 27 years keeping the case in the public eye and pressing law enforcement to find their mother's killer.

The lack of an arrest was doubly disappointing, the sisters said, because as recently as a month ago, they said Alexy indicated to them that some kind of criminal charges would be forthcoming.

"He didn't say specifically there would be an arrest, but he said, `You'll be hearing his (Badaracco's) name in the papers soon,' " Passaro said. "We wouldn't be so mad if he didn't tell us that."

The prosecutor also raised the possibility that at least one of the witnesses had committed perjury when testifying, Passaro said.

"Who do we go to now to get justice for our mother?" Profeta said. "The state of Connecticut needs to step up."

"I can't comment on anything they said," Alexy responded when the daughters' statements about an arrest were relayed to him. "The grand jury has been completed, a report has been filed and sealed by order of the judge."

Neither Joseph Badaracco nor his father testified during the grand jury proceedings, which began in late 2010 and concluded in December. The hearings were held in state Superior Court in New Britain, but the name of judge who presided over them hasn't been identified. Several people who testified said the judge is a man.

Joseph Badaracco was subpoenaed to appear, but Crozier said the appearance was put off because of Badaracco's illness, and no second attempt was made to call him to testify.

Meehan said Dominic Badaracco Sr. was never subpoenaed.

Mary Badaracco was last seen in August 1984, and was reported missing by her daughters just before Labor Day. For years, state police believed she had run away to escape a troubled marriage, but in 1990 they reclassified the case as a homicide.

The senior Badaracco, who owned a bar and a home siding business in Danbury, told the Superior Court judge who granted his divorce in May 1985 that he'd come home from work the previous August to find his wife of nearly 15 years gone, along with more than $100,000 in cash and jewelry he kept in their Wakeman Hill Road home.

Over the years, investigators explored a number of leads, digging up backyards of homes in several area communities in search of evidence or her body. Twice in the past year, they conducted digs at the Sherman property, most recently in February, after the grand jury hearings concluded.

In the end, Crozier said, the grand jury never developed enough evidence to charge anyone with a crime.

"If they had anything -- a smoking gun, a letter in a safe deposit box, anything -- there would have been an arrest," he said.

"They don't have a body or any physical evidence," Crozier said. "They don't even have a (crime) scene, Unless they have a halfway decent case, they aren't going to throw a bunch of garbage and see what sticks to the wall."

jpirro@newstimes.com; 203-731-3342