Disappearance of Martha Jean Lambert

Martha Jean Lambert was born on March 26, 1973, and was a 12-year-old seventh grader at Ketterlinus Junior High School in St. Augustine, Florida, at the time of her disappearance. She was described by family as kind, shy, and strong-willed, close to her mother, and enjoyed church, school, fried potatoes, spaghetti, country music, and soccer. Her home life was reportedly difficult; her father, Howard Lambert (1913–1995), was described as an alcoholic with a temper, and Martha and her brother David reportedly spent time in foster care during their childhood, for reasons that remain unclear.

On the evening of November 27, 1985 — the night before Thanksgiving — Martha attended school, went to a friend's house afterward, and returned toward her home on Kerri Lynn Road in St. Augustine around 7:30 p.m. What happened after that is not definitively known, as family members gave inconsistent accounts of the evening. She was reported missing at 3:00 a.m. on November 28, 1985. Neighbors reported seeing her walking on Kerri Lynn Road that night, and some reported a green van in the area that was not typical to the neighborhood. Martha's brother, David Lambert, who was fourteen at the time, gave multiple differing accounts to investigators, including one in which he said he saw Martha get into a black vehicle — a story authorities said did not hold up — and another in which he said Martha left after dinner without telling him where she was going.

The case was initially treated as a possible runaway but authorities came to suspect foul play. Martha's mother, Margaret (later Margaret Pichon), has long believed her daughter was abducted by someone outside the family. In 2000, while in custody for passing a bad check, David Lambert told authorities he was responsible for Martha's death and said he had buried her in a coquina mine called "The Pitts." That location was searched, but no remains were found, and he could not be charged due to lack of evidence. In 2009 he gave a more detailed confession, describing an argument with Martha at the site of the former Florida Memorial College that ended when he pushed her and she struck her head on metal; he said he then buried her body using a broken road sign. Authorities largely believed this account, but David was not charged, citing the accidental nature of the death, his age at the time, and an expired statute of limitations for manslaughter. In January 2010, David recanted the confession, saying he did not know what happened to Martha and citing longstanding emotional and mental health problems; he raised the possibility that she could still be alive.

Martha's remains have never been recovered despite searches of the former college grounds. Her DNA and dental records have been entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs). The case remains officially unsolved, and no one has ever been arrested or charged in connection with Martha's disappearance.