Oregon murder suspect now charged in death of 4th woman: DA

Yahoo

a day ago

An Oregon man previously charged in connection with the deaths of three women has been newly charged in the murder of a fourth, officials announced Tuesday.
A Multnomah County grand jury indicted Jesse Lee Calhoun in the 2022 murder of 22-year-old Kristin Smith, the local prosecutor's office said.
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He has been charged with second-degree murder and second-degree abuse of a corpse in connection with her death, according to Multnomah County District Attorney Nathan Vasquez.
Calhoun faces the same charges in connection with the deaths of Charity Lynn Perry, 24, Bridget Leanne Webster, 31, and Joanna Speaks, 32. He pleaded not guilty to those charges last year.
Smith's murder was initially believed to have been linked to those three killings at the time Calhoun was initially indicted in May 2024, though he hadn't been charged with her death until now.
The bodies of three of the victims were found in 2023 in northwest Oregon, including the Portland area. Speaks' body was found in Washington that year, though police in Portland have said the homicide was believed to have happened in the Oregon city.
The murders occurred over five months, with Smith's occurring first in November 2022, according to Vasquez.
Smith was reported missing in December 2022, and her body was found in a wooded area in Portland two months later, police said.
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The murders of the three other victims occurred between March and April of 2023, according to Vasquez. Their bodies were all discovered in April 2023, according to authorities.
Multnomah County prosecutors have released few details about the case, including what led them to the suspect and how the women died, citing the ongoing investigation.
"This remains a very active investigation, and unfortunately, we're not going to be discussing the evidence underlying the charges today," Vasquez said during a press briefing on Tuesday.
The trial is expected to occur in 2027, the prosecutor's office said.
Calhoun's defense attorneys told ABC News on Tuesday that they have no comment at this time.
Kristin Smith's mother said she was "overwhelmed with emotion" following the new charges.
"I stayed strong, doing all I could, trying to save my daughter. And it was just unbearable to find out when I was too late and needed help finding her," her mother, Melissa Smith, said during Tuesday's press briefing. "I did everything I could to try to get answers and fight and search."
Wearing a shirt with the words "Justice for Kristin Smith," the mother said she experienced "agonizing pain" after Calhoun was not initially charged last year in her daughter's death -- and prayed every day that this day would come.
"I've always stayed hopeful that I would get justice for Kristin," she said. "I never gave up."
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The death of a fifth woman -- 22-year-old Ashley Real -- initially believed to have been linked to the other killings, remains under investigation, Vasquez said, calling it an "extremely important case to us."
Real's body was found in a wooded area in Clackamas County in Oregon in May 2023, a month after she was reported missing to Portland police, authorities said.
Vasquez said they continue to work with authorities in Clackamas County on that investigation.
The multiple deaths sparked online speculation about a possible serial killer in the Pacific Northwest, with prosecutors subsequently announcing in July 2023 that they had found links between four of the victims.