Ackroyd was jailed in 1993 for a 1978 . John Ackroyd - Historical records and family trees - MyHeritage Historical Person Search Search Search Results Results John Arthur Ackroyd (1902 - 1997) Try FREE for 14 days Try FREE for 14 days. I asked my colleagues if they thought readers would know about Fireballs and the consensus was yes. No, what do you think I am? Ackroyd said, his voice rising in rare agitation. Ackroyds name emerged early on. I knew those important voices would have their say in the video so it liberated me to write with more authority. When it snapped, he smacked her repeatedly with his open hand. I wanted to show that at this point Ackroyd was a very sick man. He was convicted of a sex crime in Minnesota, served seven months in prison, and moved to California. I never got a clear answer about why it was sealed or who made that request. John Ackroyd had an unusual arrangement with Rachandas mother, Linda. Its damning circumstantial evidence linking Ackroyd to the deaths of these two women, Melissa and Sheila. He has won the Whitbread Biography Award, the Royal . Biography . Your lead is a classic roundup that focuses on several people or events. At first, shes just taking the info from Linda Ackroyd. In the end, they identified four victims who investigators believe died by Ackroyds hands, and documented a history of police and prosecutorial incompetence that allowed Ackroyd to go on a killing spree for two decades. I knew I wanted to use this somewhere in this series. Its damning circumstantial evidence linking Ackroyd to the deaths of these two women, Melissa and Sheila. I like how direct, clean and certain Hanlons quote is here. Why did you decide to tell it in the omniscient third person as you do so much of the story? How did you find out she tied her hair back and that the couple couldnt afford the buckskin boots she wore, and what she told her daughter? Margaret (Haberman) agreed and suggested that we pare them down to a manageable number for publication. Before she left, she had slipped into her fathers workshop in the garage, writing Hi Dad, I love you, Kaye in neat cursive on a yellow legal pad for him to find later. Later that night, Marlene and her husband argued when he said he wanted to head off with a couple of friends. It made sense to strip it down. This time, the DA says come on down and I met with him and his chief deputy and they basically walked me through the grand jury presentation. What lay behind that decision? Now we knew that he was definitively linked to this little girls case. Months later, I wrote him another letter. He mentioned it only after a pair of state police troopers approached him a couple of weeks later. Date of Interment 21/Jan/1929, Temuka Cemetery, Section B, Block 5, Plot 335 MI. We had multiple victims across a large swath of rural Oregon and crimes that covered a long period of time. Murderer John Arthur Ackroyd - YouTube Her husband was abusive and she drifted from Ackroyd. He stuffed his cell with food from the prison commissary dozens of packages of processed meats and cheese, candy bars and beans. She cried as she told one of them that she was terrified of returning to the junction alone. He drove another 12 miles down the road and stopped in front of her mother-in-laws house in Lebanon, where shed asked him to drop her off. Their connections to Ackroyd were never made public. Of course they remembered. My goal all along was to limit reader confusion. But none of these seemed to work. For now, I just want the reader to know something triggered their interest in what happened to Marlene and leave it at that. Kaye headed out alone, her feet pounding a two-lane camp road tinged red from volcanic ash. This is a messy story that jumps around in time. This is also the story of John Ackroyd, also know as The Highway 20 Killer. The shopkeeper, Christine Weston, recognized him. "I remember it was beautiful because it was all green and little flowers blooming, little tiny ones. . Ages 3-5 Ages 6-8 Ages 9-12 See All. John Arthur Ackroyd - 1 proven victims 3 potential victims - Wickedness Due to his connection with Rachanda's disappearance, many women at Santiam Junction were uncomfortable with his behavior and he began to work out of Corvallis.[2]. A report from the trial in the Bend (OR) Bulletin. Actually, the beginning and the ending were the most rewritten parts of the series, as we knew they would be. For years, only those in the room would know what had happened. I put them in binders and then entered them in a spreadsheet. Again, the investigator playing Ackroyd tried to grab the woman, only this time she wrestled the gun from his grip and pretended to fire a single fatal shot to his heart. The freelancers anniversary story, she realized, opened the door to more; he agreed to take a substantial kill fee so The Oregonian could pursue that more complicated piece. How did it affect you? You were here with her.. John Arthur Ackroyd Free Company Director Check The Turner case file filed a metal file cabinet and was a reporters dream as far as narrative details. This post is a long one, everyone. does apple allow gambling apps. It moved around a bit until it landed here. Read John Arthur Ackroyd, Serial Killer by Ruth Canton with a free trial. When he got home, I explained the purpose of our visit, what the series would report and how it would include details about his wifes killing that would be upsetting. No evidence, physical or otherwise, ever linked Ackroyd to any of them, but their timing and proximity to Highway 20 prompted investigators to wonder if the mechanic had a hand in them. Anyone who is reporter, you said, knows that a good editor is hard to come by. Two more teens disappeared but their bodies never turned up. Looking for John Ackroyd online? But they knew Ackroyd was a killer. On Christmas Eve morning, Ackroyd showed up at the house. This section could perhaps have served as a nut graf, placed much higher in the story. If you had to characterize the way the system worked in the Rachanda Pickle case, what words would you use? Our ride is here, Karen told her friend. Kayes husband Noel remarried. Her calendar at work noted recent liaisons with the men. He eluded police even as their suspicions about him deepened. I made paper copies of everything. But detectives long suspected Ackroyd preyed on women who disappeared along or around Highway 20 from the late 1970s through the early 1990s. The girl, 13 years old, had never been found. One of those visits stood out: Shed discovered him fondling himself while looking at Oui, an explicit mens magazine sold at the store. She asked if she could sleep over. He recalled the blood, Ackroyds unlikely story and the odd timing. The time and date stood still: 9:27 a.m. on Dec. 24. Then he left for home. Most of what I came up with centered on Ackroyd. One of the victims, Terri Jentz, wrote a book about what happened and her search for her assailant. How did it affect you and your colleagues? By then, The Oregonian/OregonLive also was investigating Ackroyd. John Arthur Ackroyd (October 3, 1949 - December 30, 2016) was an American murderer and suspected serial killer. She gasped. They were investigating the killing of a young woman on an isolated stretch of road outside Sisters. Why? For a long time, the lead was a scene from his cell immediately after his death. Hes a grandfather now. The story reaches its powerful chronological conclusion. Seemed like the most hopeful note on which to end a series that didnt offer much light. I wanted to absorb all of the material I had collected and then tell the story with authority. There was so much information to move through. The teens had managed to build a sordid social circle in their young lives, so investigators had plenty of violent men to consider. Why did you open the series this way? She hadnt been out long when a state highway worker named Thomas Hanna spotted her, running south, alone. Beck left Oregon. The conference room where we met to discuss this story features a wall-sized whiteboard. John Arthur Ackroyd, Serial Killer | Ruth Canton Book | Buy Now | at Her case remained unsolved. What had the original investigators overlooked? Why the shift? Its not a transcript. This is a crucial moment where Ackroyd is confronted with one of these crimes, in this case Rachandas disappearance. Constant references make Highway 20 a character in its own right? He had already raped a young mother by the time he happened upon Kaye the day before Christmas in 1978. Still, police seemed skeptical. We encourage you to research and examine . She once showed up at Sheilas with bruises on her face and asked if she could stay. John Arthur Ackroyd (October 3, 1949 - December 30, 2016) . He announced that hed found Kayes remains in the nearby woods while hunting rabbits with his dog, though as a seasoned hunter, he must have known the area was an unlikely choice for spotting rabbits. Acclaimed biographer Peter Ackroyd vibrantly resurrects the legendary epic of Camelot in this modern adaptation The names of Arthur, Merlin, Lancelot, Guinevere, Galahad, the sword of Excalibur, and the court of Camelot are as recognizable as any from the world of myth. I asked her about his clothing. If a jury acquitted Ackroyd, it could clear the way for him to seek parole. He said very little that day but thanked us for making the trip. Covering thought leadership in journalism, 2023 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College, It was pure serendipity. We spent countless hours together on this project. I did not have any models in mind. I asked him for an interview. On one of our reporting trips along Highway 20, I spent the ride focused on the road, what he would have seen from his truck. During the course of my reporting, I heard several references to this infamous Cline Falls attack, which took place around the time of Marlenes rape and Kayes murder. Marlene Gabrielsen was John Ackroyd's first known victim, and the one who survived. He showed signs of a disturbed mind. Then it was time to go. We collect and match historical records that Ancestry users have contributed to their family trees to create each person's profile. Even with the verdict, investigators would never really know what unfolded the morning Kaye died. Over two decades, four women disappeared and one was raped off this same stretch of lonely road in rural Oregon, which winds through some of the Northwest's most spectacular scenery. It took a lot of force to break them. I found her through Nexis, I think. John Arthur Ackroyd - Wikipedia The girl who was good about leaving notes if she headed out to play Nintendo at a neighbors house hadnt left one. He runs in Kayes memory every Christmas Eve. I wanted the story to be easy on the reader. I know from watching Dave Killens powerful documentary that much of what you summarize in the story, especially peoples voices, appears there instead of the print narrative. It made sense to make Highway 20 a central theme and to tell the story chronologically, using the highway as a guide. The aging killer headed to the door and returned to his cell. He thought she was pretty, he said, and noticed that shed begun to develop. Published March 23, 2020. Mother Rachanda Pickle [1G5FJL] Yes, youre right. What was your source and why did you use it when so many other times you chose to paraphrase speech? How did you decide on these and did they form part of the narrative strategy? Somebody could have just come in, he said, knocked her over the head, throw her over the shoulders and just walk out without anybody seeing her. So Dave and I drove a couple hours south to the Turner home Noel had remarried in the years after Kayes death and knocked on the door. Marlene Gabrielsen was raped by John Ackroyd in 1978. Both reports are attached to this post. It was as close to a breakthrough as theyd get. Google says its about a half-hour to Sisters, the nearest town where the family would have bought groceries. She said no and he left. I listened to them all, some multiple times. If I put 50 dollars on a gamble that there wasnt punishment in a week I would lose that 50 dollars. When John snapped, it was scary. Their cases lingered in the communitys collective memory, and the local district attorney decided to reopen them in 2012, eager to identify potential suspects. Why was it important to do so? Do you consider this your nut graph? It now appears their killer was the same man. It is a very convoluted story with a blizzard of facts, dates, people, incidents, etc. I was taken aback by how much emotion and support there was for Marlene in the room. And this guy basically got away with it.. I wanted him to know that the reporting was continuing and that a story would likely appear sometime in the coming months. An ominous lead. I relied on interviews with a detective and the woman deputy to reconstruct this scene. To do that in a way that was going to keep a readers interest through five installments was herculean. Rachanda was so uneasy living at Santiam Junction that she routinely brought a change of clothes to school hoping to stay with friends. The time had stopped. Later, the men told her that theyd mistaken Kaye for a deer and fatally shot her. A few months later, in 2013, the Linn County district attorney took Rachanda's case to grand jurors. Shed hung onto the damaged boots and showed them to the men. In a 7,000-word series, its important at the start to clearly establish who and what readers will encounter as they stay with an unfolding narrative. Just as before, police turned up no physical evidence linking him to Melissa and Sheila. If you change your mind and want to show me, Harmon called out, let me know.. I had to rely on their description of what he said. A lawyer from central Oregon heard the cases had been reopened and called with a suggestion: Take a look at an old highway worker named John Ackroyd. Thats when it got broken, over her rear. I wanted to show that at this point Ackroyd was a very sick man. is there quicksand in hawaii. It started when a supervisor in the Linn County Sheriffs Office assigned McAnulty to organize press clippings from the early days of the investigation. The rest haunted investigators who had pursued him through the years. How can you say with certainty that he would have heard the river? Beck had bragged to family members about killing Kaye. Within weeks, Melissa and Sheila were dead. Christine and Kim discuss the excellent documenatry--"Ghosts of Highway 20" regarding John Arthur Ackroyd, a state highway worker who had access to roam the state. There were days when we were depleted after doing interviews or looking at these files and crime scene photos. I wanted the reader to grasp the precarious position these women were at the time they disappeared. I wasnt sure what to call it. Shes an extremely meticulous editor who was always pushing me for the extra detail, to make the extra call. The district attorney delivered his decision on whether to prosecute. But none of these seemed to work. Later, Karens jeans, pages of her journal and the blouse shed sewn for a school project were found off a logging road. Noelle Crombie knows that. He was responsible for clearing wrecks, helping people whose cars broke down on the highway, and maintenance. Ackroyd was raised in the small logging town of Sweet Home, Oregon. I moved my desk next to Daves. Laront didnt think of it again until that fall when he heard the news on the radio. I wanted the reader to hear Ackroyds reaction when confronted with the detectives suspicions. Something, likely a struggle, had knocked out the stem, stopping the watch. John Arthur Ackroyd (died December 30, 2016) was an American murderer and may have been a serial killer. She was at turns enraged and guilt-stricken. John Arthur Ackroyd was a longtime state highway mechanic whose route along U.S. 20 wound through some of Oregon's . Why did choose to organize by chronologically, by victim? Im not sure what the reader gains from reading a detailed description of a rape. The breadth of his crimes has never been revealed until now. Prosecutors didn't have a body. John Arthur Ackroyd (died December 30, 2016 at age 67) was an American murderer and a serial killer. Extraordinary because the court sealed the plea and effectively silenced Rachandas brother. Those footnotes helped me sleep at night. But as we approached publication, Therese (Bottomly) said I needed to connect with Noel. The judge didnt remember the circumstances and the lawyers for each side pointed fingers at one another. She invited us in and we waited for Noel to return from running an errand. His wife, Pam, said the two men were around the trailer for most of the morning, which helped give Ackroyd an alibi. The process compounded his grief. When I outlined each days story, I focused on cliffhangers, kickers and which scenes could propel the narrative. It meant losing me in the rotation. A state police sergeant and a lieutenant from a local sheriffs office tracked down Marlene at home. He glanced skyward. Chasing ghosts that will forever haunt - Nieman Foundation It was moving and unexpected. Son: Donald Ackroyd was born on 06/25/1971. I spent considerable time trying to answer this very question. We interviewed key witnesses and reviewed thousands of pages of police and court records, some of them previously secret, to hold Ackroyd accountable and give some measure of justice to the women he attacked. Would is a conditional verb indicating the consequence of an imagined event or situation. Despite all the tantalizing coincidences and Ackroyds apparent eagerness to place himself at the scene of the crime, investigators could find no physical evidence definitively linking him to the killing. How come he had all this blood on his hands?. Once home from the Army, he got a state job, where he earned generally positive reviews, though supervisors noted his occasional laziness and frequent time off. He appeared to become sexually aroused when shown a pair of pants that police had found in the woods and initially suspected belonged to Rachanda. He claimed hed reached down to touch the slain womans arm and hair. During his school years, he was a loner who was bullied. That beating she got was over, over the top. If we said we really needed to go to California, she said yes. Plus, in an era of smartphones, a Timex wrist watch gives readers the sense that this crime happened in another era. She had been drinking and her husband was known to local cops in their small town. She had tried to warn police about Ackroyd. John Arthur Ackroyd - Wikipedia I understood how painful it could be to have us revisit this traumatic time in his life so I respected his decision. A sadistic killer goes around killing people, taking girls off somewhere? That late summer day, Ackroyd headed straight for Weston. Would he give up the body? They found her lower jawbone and yellow shorts. Ackroyd was in no mood to talk this time. The editing and revisions were often focused on fleshing out an idea and switching up styles so it wasnt all spare and lean if that makes sense. But as we approached publication, Therese (Bottomly) said I needed to connect with Noel. These particular details are important as circumstantial evidence. Word reached police in Lebanon, Sheilas hometown, that she, too, hadnt shown up. Marlene, dizzy from alcohol, watched as he reached through the open window to unlatch the door from the outside. I listened to them all, some multiple times. Read millions of eBooks and audiobooks on the web, iPad, iPhone and Android. John Arthur Ackroyd (1949-2016) - Find a Grave Memorial I knew all along I wanted to make a passing reference to this crime because it was such a horrible act that touched on some of the same themes as Ackroyds crimes. Mike Harmon, a longtime investigator with the Linn County Sheriffs Office, worried Ackroyd had a shot at parole. Months later, the highway worker led police to the wooded area where scraps of her clothing and her jawbone were found. A stranger had driven his pickup over two young women as they slept at Cline Falls State Park, less than an hour southeast of Camp Sherman. I can hear her bafflement on the 911 audio, which Ive listened to over and over. They wrote down his habit of taking time off around the disappearances, as hed done with Kaye and Rachanda. He and his wife walked out of the county courthouse, where he paced and wept. Maybe thats why these are the cases that stuck with investigators. Ghosts of Highway 20 Revisited: How Being a Self-educated Street The language of the story is spare and lean. The investigators sifted through the evidence collected from the woods where hunters came across Melissa and Sheilas bodies. Yes and it was something I struggled with. He seemed to relish gruesome speculation about what harm had come to her. John | Facts, Reign, Legacy, Family Tree, & Magna Carta What was your reaction when you discovered it? When he returned, she asked for his phone number to help identify him but also to make him think she liked him. Beth Nakamura/The Oregonian/OregonLive. I built this profile from those various sources. John Arthur Ackroyd was an American murderer and suspected serial killer. No one listened all those years ago. It was a sensational crime that remains unsolved. Was that a conscious decision? John Ackroyd - Address & Phone Number | Whitepages He worked overseas as a mechanic and was caught stealing equipment. This scene has a cinematic quality cops gathering on an empty road days before Christmas reenacting an abduction using a woman deputy and then deciding to give the story their own happy ending. [2], His life had changed by early 1992. Though investigators were certain he was behind her disappearance, they couldnt prove it. The project won the integrated storytelling award from the national Society of Features Journalism, while The National Womens Coalition Against Violence & Exploitation awarded it the National Journalism Impact Award. The investigators glanced at each other, stunned by the damning account all these years later. They mingled with another set that belonged to what appeared to be a large man. Once, he invited neighbors over to watch horror movies, becoming so animated over scenes of women being chopped up that hed hit rewind again and again. Reporting on this series was emotionally grueling. McAnulty, whod been promoted to detective just 10 days earlier, dutifully examined old newspaper articles and reports. How did you find out she tied her hair back and that the couple couldnt afford the buckskin boots she wore, and what she told her daughter? So Dave and I drove a couple hours south to the Turner home Noel had remarried in the years after Kayes death and knocked on the door. When the family returned to Sweet Home later that week, Melissa wasnt there. She was married to one suspect and romantically involved with the other. Beth Nakamura/ The Oregonian/OregonLive. Do you or any of the detectives have any suspicions why it was sealed? For now, I just want the reader to know something triggered their interest in what happened to Marlene and leave it at that. Police at one point speculated that Melissas alleged theft of glassware from a local meth cook might have gotten them killed. Beth Nakamura / The Oregonian/OregonLive. And Marlene was the victim of police malpractice, which had lethal consequences.