ROBERT LEE CAMPBELL, d/o/b 7-09-1944, of Willard, Missouri, was found guilty of two (2) counts of murder in the second degree on Wednesday, July 13, 2016, in the Circuit Court of Jasper County, in Joplin. The six-man, six-woman jury deliberated for approximately ten (10) hours from July 12th through July 13th before arriving at the verdicts. Following a brief sentencing hearing, the same jury returned a recommendation of life sentences on both counts. Jasper County Circuit Court Judge Gayle Crane, scheduled formal sentencing for September 12, 2016.

Campbell was indicted by a Taney County grand jury in December of 2012 on two (2) counts of murder in the first degree, stemming from allegations that he had arranged for his brother-in-law, Tony Friend, to kidnap and murder Russell and Rebecca Porter on April 18, 2011, while Campbell was out-of-town. Tony Friend pleaded guilty in 2013, and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.