Latest news with #abuseofcorpse
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Accused serial killer Jesse Lee Calhoun enters plea for fourth murder charge
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Alleged serial killer Jesse Lee Calhoun entered another plea in Multnomah County on Monday after being indicted for a fourth murder charge last week. Following his indictment for the November 20, 2022, murder of 22-year-old Kristin Smith, Calhoun pleaded not guilty on Monday to his fourth second-degree murder charge — he also pleaded not guilty to his fourth abuse of a corpse charge. Calhoun pleaded not guilty to the other murder and abuse of a corpse charges in 2024. Calhoun was previously accused of murdering three women, Charity Lynn Perry, Joanna Speaks and Bridget Leanne Webster, after their bodies were discovered in Oregon and Washington two years ago. SE Portland standoff suspect now facing murder charge In April 2023, Speaks' body was found at an abandoned barn in Ridgefield, Washington. A few weeks later, Perry's body was found near Ainsworth State Park in East Multnomah County, and days after that, Webster's body was discovered near Mill Creek in Polk County. In May of 2024, Calhoun was indicted for the murders, as he was already in custody at the time for parole violations. Oregon man fatally shot after attacking family member with knife, deputies say Previously, Calhoun had been in prison after he was charged with three counts of unauthorized use of a vehicle, assaulting a public safety officer and first-degree burglary. In 2021, then-Oregon Gov. Kate Brown signed a commutation to provide clemency for certain prisoners and Calhoun met the criteria, so he was released. The clemency was later revoked by Gov. Tina Kotek in 2023. Calhoun pleaded not guilty to the murders in June 2024. Calhoun has also been named as a person of interest in the death of Ashley Real, 22, though he has not been indicted in that case. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Associated Press
11-06-2025
- Associated Press
Colorado funeral homeowner who left corpse in hearse for a over a year sentenced to 18 months
DENVER (AP) — A Colorado funeral homeowner who pleaded guilty to leaving a woman's corpse in the back of a hearse for over a year and improperly stashing the cremated remains of at least 30 people has been sentenced to 18 months in prison, the Denver District Attorney's Office announced. Miles Harford, 34, pleaded guilty in April to one felony count of abuse of a corpse and one misdemeanor count of theft. He faced other counts, including forgery and theft, that were dismissed as part of his plea agreement. His 18-month sentence is the maximum sentence under Colorado law for the charges. 'Nothing will ever undo the terrible pain that Miles Harford caused so many families, but it is our hope that this sentence will provide the family and friends of the deceased with some measure of justice,' Denver District Attorney John Walsh said in a statement Monday. 'Harford systematically and shockingly violated his professional and moral obligations, and, for that, he is now being held accountable.' Harford was arrested last year after the body of a woman named Christina Rosales, who died of Alzheimer's at age 63, was found in the back of his hearse, covered in blankets. Her remains had been there for about 18 months. Authorities said he had provided the Rosales family with the cremated remains of a different person that he misrepresented as Rosales. Police also found the cremated remains of other people stashed in boxes throughout Harford's rental property, including in the crawlspace. Prosecutors said he treated the bodies and remains 'in a way that would outrage normal family sensibilities.' Harford's sentencing follows years of other gruesome funeral home cases in Colorado, including one where the owners were accused of storing nearly 200 bodies in a decrepit building and giving families fake cremated remains.
CBS News
09-06-2025
- CBS News
Judge sentences Colorado funeral home owner who kept woman's body inside a hearse for more than a year
The former owner of a Colorado funeral home was sentenced on Monday to 18 months in prison. In April, Miles Harford pleaded guilty to one felony count of abuse of a corpse and theft, a misdemeanor. Miles Harford Arapahoe County More than a year ago police found the remains of a 63-year-old woman in a hearse that had been sitting on a Denver street for about 18 months. Her name was Christina Rosales, and her family had thought they were provided with Rosales' cremated remains. They had actually been given the ashes of a different person who died. Boxes of cremated remains were also found in Harford's home on Quitman Street. Harford was being evicted from the home at the time. Eighteen months was the maximum sentence that Harford could have faced. The home on Quitman Street in Denver that Harford was evicted from CBS Denver District Attorney John Walsh said in a prepared statement that Harford caused "terrible pain" to many different families. "It is our hope that this sentence will provide the family and friends of the deceased with some measure of justice," Walsh said. "Harford systematically and shockingly violated his professional and moral obligations, and, for that, he is now being held accountable." Miles Harford LinkedIn Harford's funeral home closed about a year-and-a-half before he was arrested. Apollo Funeral and Cremation Services was located in Littleton.
