Kansas trial dates set for parents of bound children in Walmart parking lot

Federal, state leaders salute Joplin’s recovery

A deadly May twister may have punched a hole in Joplin and Duquesne two years ago, but the resolve to repair it will help other communities stand strong when they face similar disasters. That was the message of state and national diginitaries to a crowd of about 2,500 who observed the second anniversary of Joplin’s devastating May 22, 2011, storm during a ceremony Wednesday in Cunningham Park.

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October 25, 2012

Kansas trial dates set for parents of bound children in Walmart parking lot

Anonymous From The Associated Press The Joplin Globe Thu Oct 25, 2012, 04:45 PM CDT

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Trial dates have been set for the parents of two children found bound and blindfolded in a Walmart parking lot in eastern Kansas.

The Douglas County district attorney’s office says 52-year-old Adolfo Gomez will stand trial on Jan. 7. His wife, 44-year-old Deborah Gomez, is set for trial Feb. 4. The Gomezes, of Northlake, Ill., have pleaded not guilty to charges of child abuse and child endangerment.

They were arrested June 13 after Lawrence police found two children, ages 5 and 7, tied up outside the family’s vehicle. Three other older children were inside the SUV unrestrained.

The couple told police they were on their way to Arizona when their car broke down, and that they periodically restrained their children as part of their religion and to ward off demons.

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