Detectives named Welch a person of interest last year, which resulted in several trips by Richard and his wife, Patricia Welch, to tracts of land near Virginia’s Taylors Mountain, Virginia, according to the Washington Post.
Oh my....perhaps that is what Patricia Welch was lying about.....
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/cri...5-cold-case-missing-sisters-article-1.2124268
Here are the relevant paragraphs from the Washington Post:
"Relatives of the couple in Bedford County later told detectives that after the news conference, Richard and his wife, Patricia, made several unannounced trips to the area. “Richard and Patricia Welch have also been extremely interested in whether these relatives were contacted by investigators,” detectives wrote, “and what information they provided to the investigators.”
On Dec. 5, Patricia Welch testified before the Bedford grand jury. What she said remains confidential. But afterward, she was charged with perjury.
Her attorney, Emmette Pilgreen of Roanoke, declined to comment on that charge. But he said his client wants to help: “She absolutely feels bad about the situation with these kids. It’s a horrible situation.” "
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I think it's poorly worded, and I may have at first read it wrong because decent circumstantial evidence, which I assume the police made every effort to find, would be:
- In 1975, days or weeks after the disappearance, a person of interest (and/or wife) showed up unexpectedly to visit Taylor's Mountain, presumably to bury bodies, which the police may or may not have found.
But the newspaper article, I think, means that in 2014, after the news conference and grand jury, Richard and his wife dropped by unexpectedly to visit relatives.
Showing up at friends or relatives unexpectedly might be rude, but not illegal.
Asking about confidential grand jury investigations or police investigations could be illegal. Trying to intimidate witnesses by saying thing like, "Don't share dirty laundry," would be illegal. If this is all they have on Patricia Welch, it's nothing directly to do with the disappearance of the Lyon sisters. It's an angry old lady not making the best judgement.
With spousal privilege, I don't see how Patrica could be made to testify against her husband Richard? She could be made to testify against her nephew, Lloyd.
If one of Lloyd's stories, the most unbelievable one in my opinion, Lloyd walked in on Richard abusing one of the Lyon sisters at the house he shared with Patricia. If the police think this story is true, Patricia could not be compelled to testify against herself or her husband, so what is she doing at the grand jury?
I can only see a legal reason for making Patricia testify is if she and her husband are given immunity or not considered suspects? The remaining suspect would be Lloyd.
I