A married couple accused of trying to “frame an elementary school parent volunteer by planting marijuana and pills in her car” has been indicted by a grand jury in California, NBC Los Angeles reports. Kent Wycliffe Easter, 38, and his 39-year-old wife, Jill, of Orange County were indicted last week on charges of “conspiracy to procure false arrest, false imprisonment and conspiracy to falsely report a crime.” If convicted, the couple faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison each, according to the Orange County Register. In June, the Los Angeles Times explained the Easters’ “bizarre” case: Investigators say the couple hatched a plan to frame Kelli Peters — a well-known Plaza Vista School volunteer who would go on to become the school’s PTA president — for what the Easters alleged was her ill treatment of their young son at school. Kent Easter is accused of putting drugs in Peters’ unlocked car and falsely reporting to police he saw her drive erratically to the school and stash the drugs in the back seat of her car. Investigators eventually determined the drugs didn’t belong to Peters, and they traced the call and the drugs to Kent Easter, authorities said.
According to NBC, the couple allegedly planted “a bag of Vicodin, Percocet, marijuana, and a used marijuana pipe” in the woman’s car. Peters is reportedly suing the Easters for “allegedly bringing fear, panic and anxiety to her and her family,” the OC Weekly reports. In a strange twist to an already strange story, news agencies have also learned that Jill Easter is an author of a crime novel.
Her first and only published work, “Holding House” (published under the name Ava Bjork), is about “a rising star in mixed-martial arts with gambling debts and a plan to strike it rich with a kidnapping,” according to the Los Angeles Times.
“Ever dream about the perfect crime? Sean Howser and his friends have discovered it,” boasts the book’s promotional materials. According to the OC Register, the Easters are out of custody on $20,000 bail and are scheduled to be arraigned on Nov. 9. The Easters have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
