A murder trial was supposed to begin this week. Instead, the suspect was set free weeks before it ever began. The first degree murder charge against Brian C. Lamb was dropped. The victim's family says Lamb wasn't properly read his Miranda Warning. The family says the mistake unraveled the 2007 case.

In November, detectives arrested Lamb nearly three months after 73-year-old Richard Hatfield was strangled, smothered and set on fire. On August 19, 2007, Hatfield’s body was found badly burned in a ditch near the Polk and Dallas County lines. According to previously unsealed court documents, one day before Lamb was charged, he was questioned at the police department with his then-girlfriend.

"I feel like some people remember, but I think for the most part many people have forgotten,” says Richard Hatfield's daughter Chantel Carter. Carter won't forget the day her father was found. She says the family was relieved when Hatfield's 23-year-old neighbor was charged back in 2007. At the time, investigators say they found Lamb’s DNA on a phone charger. Officers believe the phone charger was used to strangle Hatfield. According to court documents, Lamb and his girlfriend made numerous contradicting statements when they were interviewed in November of that year. Then in June of this year, Lamb was released from jail. "He's still murdered. There's still a killer out there. This case should not be closed," says Richard Hatfield's son-in law Buster Carter.

With charges dropped, Lamb’s case file is closed to the media. Lamb's public defender Jill Porter confirms a judge ruled to suppress statements Lamb made to investigators before he was read the Miranda warning. Porter says she could not comment on whether that decision lead the state to drop the charges. She says the suppression ruling was based on the U.S. Supreme Court case Missouri v. Seibert and a Missouri Court of Appeals Southern District case Missouri v. Sardeson. Hatfield’s family says Lamb was questioned, read his rights and then questioned again. They say the case was centered on statements made before Lamb was Mirandized.

Nearly a month after the ruling the prosecutor dropped the charges. Hatfield’s family says because of the ruling 21 minutes worth of questioning couldn't be used in court. They say those minutes were the crux of the case. "I agreed not to go forward with the trial because he could be found not guilty and then we'd risk double jeopardy if more evidence was introduced at a later date," Carter says.

After nearly two years of devastating news, the family wonders if they'll ever see closure. Hatfield’s son-in-law doesn’t expect to see it in his lifetime. His wife is still hopeful. "We hope someone will come forward that saw anything that night," Carter says.

Former Buffalo Police Chief Aaron Walker, who helped question Lamb, resigned last year. A spokesperson for the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the Dallas County prosecutor did not return KSPR calls. The Dallas County sheriff says he can't comment on the case because he believes charges may be re-filed. Hatfield’s family says that will only happen if new evidence is found.