1989 buick lesabre LTD driver door jammed

My 89 Buick Lesabre's Driver Side Door Handle (from The Inside Of The Car)won't Open The Door When I Pull On It.(the lever on the inside connecting to the latch snapped of)any Ideas On How To Open The Door.also With The Door Closed It Makes It Really Difficult To Remove The Door Panel.
Somebody Told Me I Might Be Able To Open The Latch By Spreading The Top Of The Window Open Enough To Get A Tool Of Sorts In There To Pull On The Latch.any Thoughts On This Approach.
Any Help Would Be Appreciated!!!

My 87 did that on the passenger side. Luckily I could get to most of the screws and I forced the door panel off. I found the oil/grease/dirt had gunked up the mechanism. I found the seatbelts retracts had something to do with latching also. I would try to spray WD40 inside the door through the window opening and try work all the moving parts (locks, seatbelts, latches, handles etc)