Monday, November 12, 2007

Prosecuting attorney needs to tell reason for dropping charges in McDonald County sex cult cases

Nearly a week has passed and McDonald County Prosecuting Attorney Janice Durbin has still not come clean with county residents or the media about why she dropped sex charges against Raymond Lambert, pastor of the Grand Valley Independent Baptist Church, his wife Patty Lambert, and sister-in-law Laura Epling.

The only reasons have come from the Lamberts and Eplings' (Mrs. Lambert is an Epling and was Raymond Lambert's stepsister before their marriage. Laura Epling is married to Patty Lambert's brother and Raymond Lambert's stepbrother, Tom Epling.) lawyer, Bob Evenson, who said the witnesses against his clients were no longer willing to testify.

That is not the case, the lawyer for one of the accusers told Associated Press. Though nothing has been heard from the McDonald County prosecutor, Newton County Assistant Prosecutor Bill Dobbs told the Joplin Globe he was continuing with a similar case of ritual sex involving children with Lambert's uncle, George Otis Johnston as the defendant.

If there is a good reason for dropping the cases, the person who dropped the case needs to be the one to reveal it and the media should keep on asking her the question until she does.

No comments: