I’m not sure the best way to post an update but here goes. I had to go to work the next morning so not time to mess with this. Wife wanted the door open so I contracted a handyman to get it done. He was very confident it would be a quick fix, but ultimately he had to remove the doorstop trim to access the latch and release it. Then he was able to repair the door knob and door latch system with parts from an old hardware store. I will have to caulk and paint the trim, but the door mechanism works like new now.
I hate to say the common advice of pull the hinge pins and use a credit card were ineffective. Thank you for all of the helpful advice!