Jesse Lee Calhoun: Potential 'serial killer' charged with murder in 2023 deaths of three Oregon women

PORTLAND, OREGON: The Multnomah County District Attorney's Office noted Jesse Lee Calhoun has been charged for the deaths of three Portland area women.

A grand jury handed down the indictment on Thursday, May 16, accusing the 39-year-old of three counts of second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree abuse of a corpse in relation to the deaths of Charity Lynn Perry, 24, Bridget Leanne Webster, 31, and Joanna Speaks, 32.

Jesse Lee Calhoun was detained in June 2023 for parole violation in an unrelated case

All three women were discovered deceased under suspicious circumstances in 2023, along with two others, Kristin Smith and Ashley Real. 

The District Attorney's Office later disclosed that a person of interest was associated with at least four victims, Perry, Webster, Smith, and Real. Although authorities did not publicly identify the individual, multiple media outlets reported it to be Calhoun.

Law enforcement officials held a news conference on Friday to discuss the indictment. Thursday's indictment marks the first time Calhoun has been officially charged in any of the deaths. 

He was apprehended in June 2023 on unrelated parole board warrants and is currently detained at the Snake River Correctional Institution in eastern Oregon.

According to public records, he was initially set to be released from prison on June 7, as reported by KGW. Prosecutors sought an indictment before Calhoun's scheduled release from prison.

Jesse Calhoun was identified as the potential 'serial killer' as he was linked to the deaths of four women

Apart from Perry, Webster, and Speaks, whose bodies were discovered in April 2023, the corpses of three additional individuals, Smith, Real, and an unidentified woman, were found in the Portland area between February and May 2023. 

Police later clarified that the unidentified woman seemed to have no connection to the other five cases.

The timing of these deaths raised suspicions of potential connections.

In June 2023, Portland police issued a statement stating they had no evidence linking the cases.  However, about a month later, the District Attorney's Office revealed that investigators had uncovered connections between the deaths of Smith, Perry, Webster, and Real.

On the same day, Calhoun was identified as the potential "serial killer" associated with these four cases which sparked anxiety in the area.

As of now, he has only been charged in connection with the deaths of Perry, Webster, and Speaks. 

However, officials mentioned on Friday that investigations into the deaths of Smith and Real are ongoing. They also reiterated that the death of the unidentified sixth woman is unrelated to the others.

Charity Lynn Perry's mother thanks detectives for their relentless work

Diane Allen, Perry's mother, addressed reporters alongside law enforcement officials at a news conference held in downtown Portland on Friday, as per OPB.

She said, "It’s been very, very frustrating for us families to not have answers, I’ve also had to put back in my mind that these people cared more about justice for Charity than they did for my feelings. I have to have a level of respect for that, I do." 

"A lot of the public has felt that nothing has been happening this whole time. And I want to tell you that these detectives have worked so hard," added Allen. 

Jesse Calhoun was granted clemency by former Oregon Governor Kate Brown for his 2019 conviction

Calhoun had previously gone to prison for burglary, car theft, and assaulting a public safety officer.

The 39-year-old, incarcerated for a conviction in 2019, was granted an early release, about 11 months ahead of schedule after then-Oregon Governor Kate Brown commuted his sentence in 2021. 

He was among a group of inmates whose sentences were shortened for assisting in battling wildfires the previous year.

However, Calhoun's commutation was rescinded a month after his arrest in June 2023.