Trial Date Set In Gary McCullough Wrongful Death Lawsuit:

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Sandra Petersen-Chapin-McCullough-Klemp

A trial date has been set in the wrongful death lawsuit brought by the family of a man who has been missing for thirteen years.

A jury is scheduled to be selected in Stone County on July 15, 2013, where the trial of Sandra McCullough-Klemp, who was the wife of Gary McCullough when he went missing in May of 1999, and her current husband, Kristopher Klemp, was moved on a change of venue last year.

Barry County Sheriff Mick Epperly says it wasn't Sandra McCullough who reported her husband, Gary, 34, missing on May 13, 1999, it was co-workers of the man at George's processing who first alerted authorities.

Epperly says when investigator's went out to the McCullough farm on May 13th to investigate a cattle call Sandra said, "We probably need to report Gary missing." Sandra McCullough told detectives that her husband had left the farm in his truck about 6:30 p.m. on May 11th and was headed to Diamond to buy a white fighting rooster.

After several searches at the farm and other areas cops found McCullough's distinctive flat-bed truck abandoned on a dead end road in Pulaskifield. Family members told investigator's that McCullough was a creature of habit and always took the same northbound route because his truck wasn't licensed.

What authorities didn't know at the time of McCullough's disappearance was that his wife and Klemp were already lovers. Sandy McCullough moved Klemp into the McCullough's farmhouse within four days of her husband's vanishing.
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An acquaintance of Klemp's, Steven Turner, told deputies that Klemp attempted to hire him to, "kill Sandy's husband," according to court documents. Klemp allegedly told Turner that Sandy had been putting Drano into food and beverages that Gary McCullough had consumed.

During a search of the McCullough property on May 15th, detectives found a half used box of Drano and a checkbook belonging to Kristopher Klemp. Court documents reveal that within 24 hours of McCullough's presumed homicide Kristopher Klemp purchased an $18,000 truck for Turner.

But Gary McCullough isn't the only family member of Sandra Klemp's who is missing.  Her daughter, Leihnia (aka Lena) Chapin has been missing for six years.  Again, it wasn't Sandy who filed a missing person report on her daughter, even though she had been taking care of Lena's son for nearly two years following his mother's disappearance.

Gary McCullough and Lena Chapin are both missing

After Sheriff Epperly was contacted by family members of Lena's and told of her disappearnce he personally saw to it that Lena, who resided in Dent County and whom is a vital witness in the wrongful death lawsuit, was reported missing by her father after her mother refused to file a missing person's report. 

Sandra Klemp told Epperly that her daughter ran off to Florida with a new boyfriend and has not contacted anyone since she left.  Epperly says there has been no activity on Chapin's Social Security number, phone or any other accounts associated with her, and she has made no attempt to contact her son, whom Sandy and Kris have now adopted.

Judge Carr Woods moved the case to Stone County saying" due to the extraordinary nature and extent of the articles in local newspapers and social media, it would be difficult, if not impossible to select a fair and unbiased jury" in Barry County.