A violent offender granted clemency by then-Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) during the COVID-19 pandemic has been identified as a “person of interest” in the serial killings of multiple women in the Portland metropolitan area.
At this time, law enforcement officials in Multnomah County believe Jesse Lee Calhoun, one of the convicts to whom Brown granted mass commutations during the pandemic, is their man in four of the six slayings involving female victims that have occurred this year in Portland and the surrounding area. (RELATED: Legendary Serial Killer Finally Caught?)
Portland's Willamette Week has the latest developments involving the 6'4″, 266-pound man:
Serial killers are unusual, but Calhoun's case, according to people familiar with it, may be one of a kind.
That's because Calhoun, 38, is among the more than 1,000 inmates whom former Gov. Kate Brown granted clemency, allowing them to leave prison early. Of those Brown released early, officials believe Calhoun is the only one whose clemency has since been revoked.
Records show that Calhoun is currently in custody at Snake River Correctional Institution in Ontario, where he was lodged July 6 on charges apparently unrelated to the murders. (The charges on which he is being held do not show up in online court records, which is unusual.) He has not yet been charged in any of the women's deaths, although officials expect that will change.
Calhoun, reportedly a talented artist who told booking officials he earned his living painting designs on vehicles, has a long record of felony convictions dating to 2004. After arresting him in 2018 with meth, several guns, and more than 500 rounds of ammunition, the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office called him a “prolific thief and career criminal.” Calhoun's most recent convictions came in November 2019, when he pleaded guilty in separate cases to a raft of felonies, including burglary, unauthorized possession of a stolen vehicle, and injuring a police officer and a police dog when they attempted to arrest him.
In Oregon, the governor has wide latitude to issue conditional clemency or outright pardons. Pardons there effectively scrub the conviction by sealing them in court records within eight weeks. (RELATED: Supreme Court To Hand Surprising Victory To These J6 Defendants?)
Brown's commitment to criminal justice reform received widespread recognition and accolades during her tenure as governor, including a panel appearance at Princeton University where she discussed a more emphatic approach to criminal justice.
Portland's leading daily, The Oregonian, reported on the discovery of missing women's bodies as they accumulated during the first half of 2023, starting with Kristin Smith, found Feb. 19; Joanna Speaks, found April 11; Charity Perry, found April 24; an unidentified woman, also found April 24; Bridget Webster, found April 30 and Ashley Real, found May 7.
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