1997 Mercury Cougar door latch wont catch

Interior problem
1997 Mercury Cougar V8 112000 miles

HELP I have a Cougar 97, my problem started a little while back where the passenager door would not close, latch. You would have to slam the door several times before the latch would catch. Now it has stopped working what so ever. The latching system is like 2 jaws that hook on the door bolt. The top latch will not drop down to secure the door. I have sprayed the latching mechanism, tried using the key from the outside to see if it needed to reset. I have tried what seems like everything to get the top latch to drop. I am female been trying to pop door panel off but having a very difficult time getting that off. HELP