I must say that I am not shocked at all over Mark Lunsford's behavior. As a Citrus County resident, I have seen first hand how this man has relished in the "celebrity" the death of his daughter has made of him. Who is truly responsible for this besides the obvious John Couey?? My opinion, Lunsford himself. Why wasn't he at home the night of his daughters kidnapping?? Maybe because he was out partying and drinking it up until 5 am, leaving his daughter in the care of his parents. Anyone who has lived here long enough knows that Mark Lunsford is a drinking, drug abusing low life. It is disgusting that he is suing the County over this. Just another way to suck more money out of the people of this county. What's the matter Mark? Funds running low from the foundation you set up so you don't have to work a real job like the rest of us???

I agree with M W.  When I heard this story tonight my first thought was that Mark Lunsford needs to do some real deep soul searching and ask himself what part did HE have in his daughter's abduction.  He needs to place blame where it belongs and it normally starts with the parent(s) or parent.  Had he been a good father and been at home would the abduction ever taken place?  If he had been at home would he have heard the intruder?  How much time did John Couey have with Jessica before dad decided to come home?  And now he wants to sue the Sheriff's dept for negligence?  It's not the sheriff's department's fault that he chose to go party instead of being home with his daughter.  During all of the tv coverage the sheriff showed more anguish than Mark did and it was obvious that he was enjoying the camera attention.  His action to sue tells me that my first impression of him was accurate.  If he wants to be a respectable spokesperson for Jessica then he needs to act like one and be a contributor to society.  I wouldn't donate a dime to him because I don't respect him and I would have to doubt if the "fund" is actually receiving the money.  Is the "fund" supporting Mark and his partying?  

How much money if any does Mark receive from the "fund"?  Also I am curious, did Mark approach the attorney or did the attorney approach Mark?  Either way, they both stand to gain a substantial amount of money if they win the case.  I am sure the attorney has taken this case on a contingency basis which means if he wins the attorney will get a percentage of the money.  It sounds to me this is all about the money for the attorney and Mark.

Sheriff Dawsy put his heart and soul into finding Jessica. It appears that Mark is try to get money from his daughters' death. What a slap in the face to the Citrus County Sheriff's Department and all the citizens of Citrus County who supported him.

I am so glad that somebody else has finally come forth and stated what I have said for a long time.  Mark Lunsford has used the people for too long.  He needs to get a job and support himself.  Who is he kidding?  The monies are drying up from his "foundation" and he doesn't want to work like everybody else does.  The law enforcement of this county went over and above what was required of them.  Shame on you Mark Lunsford.  

So this death of his little girl is all Marks fault? His only fault was not standing at his daughters bed side, while she slept, with a shotgun at the ready to blow this piece of S#)t away the second he crossed onto their property.  I know we can't expect the police to stop any crimes, That would be asking to much. All we can expect them to do is investigate after the fact. They missed this one BIG TIME! Jessica was, or may have been, alive in time for the cops to locate her. Heck, they arrest people every day, all day, for crimes they may or may not have committed. They MAY have been able to find Jessica before she died, but they didn't. Fix the problem, and if it takes a law suite to do that so be it. This isn't about Mark. It's about a piece of s#)t you all as residents of the county allowed to wallow in your midst - now fix the problem.

A few questions that should be explored and answered:
1)  Why did the CCSO refuse the assistance of outside law enforcement's use of
            sniffing dogs, within the first 48 hours of Jessica's 'disappearance"
2)  Why did the CCSO not list and photo ALL those participating in the search?
        many know that the perpetrators often return to the crime scene
3)  The CC SO spent hours attempting to entrap Jessica's grandfather into being
        "the one"..
4)  Why were the areas that the "volunteer searchers" not secured?
5)  Why was there NOT surveillance of the "Couey trailer" during the first days
         after her disappearance?  possibly perhaps they would have seen Couey
         and witnessed his actions....digging the hole, burying Jessica, leaving with
         his family etc.
Was it botched.???   yes, possibly had the CC SO done their job correctly she might be alive today....this does not mean that Mr Couey is not responsible just that the CCSO needs to accept a part of the responsibility for her death

Once a scumbag still a scumbag......
Someone needs to look into his and the mothers past,,,its court record...and find out the great parents they are.  Also lets find out what happened to Marks porn laden computer the the sheriffs ofice took.

Who left their house unlocked so that their daughter can get kidnapped?

We, in Citrus County, cried with the family and the deputies when Jessica was not found alive.  For us there was closure; for so many families there is no closure when the children are never found.  We were beginning to heal, not to forget, but to heal.  Even after the letter of intent to sue, Sheriff Dawsy rode for Jessie with the other motorcyclists and stood on the stage next to Mr. Lunsford.  What a class act our Sheriff is.  So here it is an election year.  Is that the reason for attacking at this time?  And after Sheriff Dawsy and his department pour their hearts into the search.  They were diligent enough to assure closure for the Lunsford family; that was of utmost importance, to find her, to know where she was.  We all wanted the outcome to be different, we wanted her to be alive.  Like some of the other posts have indicated, I, too wonder if Mark is so used to the attention that he has to stir things up again or if it is about the money.  This isn't a rich county.  People would have gladly helped the family move.  The home makeover program (I've heard) would have given them a home somewhere so they didn't have to look at the place where Jessie died, but they didn't want it.  Maybe it's guilt (not that Mark could have prevented it), but perhaps it's closing in on him now that time has passed.  Perhaps he is second guessing his actions the night she went missing.  

Whatever the reason, it needs to stop.  Mark, the Sheriffs Office, and the residents of Citrus County need to heal and get on with their lives.  I cannot help but remember what Jessie's Sunday School teacher said during the search.  She told of Jessie saying, "Pray for my Daddy."  It seems we really need to be praying for Jessie's daddy.

I believe that the father is guilty on negligence. He should have been at home instead of being out all hours of the night. I think others will agree with me its time for Mark to get a real job and stop looking for handouts from the community. Its time to let Jessie rest in peace. Mark cannot spend the rest of his life blameing others

I have felt right from the beginning when there was a suspision concerning  John Coulee and that when they suspected him of this horrendous murder of that little girl, Jessica that they should have immediately gone into that trailer and checked it.  If they had probably would have found that poor little girl hovering in a closet where he was keeping her.  Shame on the sheriff and all others involved.  This is America where were her rights.  She had none.  A monster buried her alive.  Mr. Lunsford should be compesated for this huge ugly mistake.

First off, no one making comments on this board or any other has all the facts unless you were involved with the case. We don't know anything for sure and can only guess from what we've read in the media. I don't know much, but I'll add my two cents here. As for not accepting help from non-law enforcement tracking dogs, the reason I suspect there is because the more people/dogs you have trampling over an area, the more it degrades the track. It's not a good idea to have a dozen dogs and handlers at once all over the area. And most people are having a hard time understanding that the police just can't jackboot their way into someone's home without a warrant or permission. Most people are frustrated that they didn't search the trailer, well they can't just do that due to a little document called the Constitution. Unfortunately, though made to protect innocent people, it also protects people like Couey. From what I understand, they had no idea that Couey was even living there since he was registered as living somewhere else, at least initially. As for her being kept alive for days, you're operating under the assumption that what this scumbag says is true. I highly doubt he would kidnap her and then keep her for a whole week before raping her. Not likely. If he felt the urge that night, then he did it that night. I also read that autopsy reports showed no food in her stomach, when he claimed to have fed her, and and supported the belief that she died within a couple hours of her rape, which I think happened the night she was taken. Then again, I don't know any more than the rest of you as I'm not involved with the case. I do feel that the men & women in law enforcement who worked this case truly cared about finding Jessie and were devastated at how things turned out. I get the impression that they did all they legally could, and if any mistakes were made, it didn't make any difference in whether Jessie was found alive or not, and Couey was still convicted. I have no idea the reason for the lawsuit--maybe anger or misplaced grief, but I don't believe there was any negligence on the part of anyone involved.

I think Mark needs to get on with his life and stop blaming others for his own mistakes. I think Couey knew Mark had a habit of being out all night and his parents probably left the door unlocked for to get in when he did come home. I think Couey had been watching thier house and Jessica for a while.  Mark be a man and take responsibility for not being a good parent and quit blaming others.  I have lived in Citrus County for 20 years and Sheriff Dawsey and his department are the Best  Unfortunately we can't pick and chose who lives in our county.  It's very obvious that Mark has enjoyed the limelight and will do anything to stay in it. His lawsuit is just another way of doing this and making money at the same time. No....it's not about the money it's about Mark not having to get a REAL job.