A young deputy played Kaye. She answered right away and was willing to tell me about her experience so the three of us headed to Salem to interview her. The young mother managed to survive. Most of what I came up with centered on Ackroyd. Harmon thought back to the handful of cases from the 1970s that remained unsolved: the bodies or clothes of women and one young man found in the isolated wilderness of Linn County, not far from Highway 20, the route Ackroyd spent years traveling for the state. But those relationships shifted over time. The investigators sifted through the evidence collected from the woods where hunters came across Melissa and Sheilas bodies. Looking for John Ackroyd online? The three of us had a favorite restaurant on the road. Structurally, why did you decide to break here for a biography of Ackroyd? This story is complicated and confusing. Marlene put them on, holding tight to the waist to keep them from slipping off. Kelley Benham French read one of those footnoted drafts and suggested that we publish them all. He got creative: What if cops and prison officials arranged for Ackroyd to share a Christmas or Thanksgiving meal with his family on the outside? I wanted the story to be easy on the reader. Christmas presents Noel bought for his wife were wrapped and in the car. Rachanda and Byron Pickle in an undated photograph. I thought about it, but I never done it.. She recalled how Marlene had arrived at her house, sobbing, saying something terrible had happened. And a seat cover, they said, could have been in Ackroyds state rig. They climbed back into the truck and continued west on Highway 20. Police and court records. John Arthur Ackroyd was a longtime state highway mechanic whose route along U.S. 20 wound through some of Oregon's . Her description provided a distinct sense of place. Its not a transcript. The friends shared a meal the night before, then sang carols. Who was this guy and what made him tick? At other times, friends saw her with a black eye and a wound from where hed ripped out a patch of her hair. My footnotes for this passage: Oregonian interview with Byron Pickle: They had paddles. Later that night, Marlene and her husband argued when he said he wanted to head off with a couple of friends. More than two years later, another set of investigators went looking for the police report detailing Marlenes account. Later, the men told her that theyd mistaken Kaye for a deer and fatally shot her. Im not sure what the reader gains from reading a detailed description of a rape. We encourage you to research and examine . John Arthur Ackroyd was a longtime state highway mechanic whose route along U.S. 20 wound through some of Oregons most spectacular scenery from the Cascade foothills to the coast. They were thin slats of wood. There was a tremendous amount of secrecy. Where is she? Linda asked Ackroyd as darkness enveloped the highway compound. Armed with an ax or hatchet, he attacked the women, both students at Yale University. She clung to her boots, which shed grabbed from the clearing. 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. Benson and Snow set out to find the men who had the strange encounter with Ackroyd. She was 20 at the time. John Arthur Ackroyd, 1902 - 1997. I would describe it as unsatisfying and extraordinary. Guilty. The reports dont shed light on why they doubted her. Rachandas mother, Linda, didnt make the trip and the girls father wasnt around. Great verb choice! Its definitely hard to read but written, I hope its seen, with deliberation and circumspection. Is this the theme of the story? The men spent hours talking to Ackroyd. Your lead is a classic roundup that focuses on several people or events. This story is complicated and confusing. I asked Marlene to describe what she saw and smelled when Ackroyd yanked her from the truck. At the beginning of my reporting, I wrote a letter to Noel Turner, the husband of Kaye Turner who had disappeared on the Christmastime run. What sources did you rely on to reconstruct the events of your trial? He runs in Kayes memory every Christmas Eve. It was the first time shed seen him since that summer morning. www.opendialoguemediations.com. Ackroyd was incarcerated in Oregon State Penitentiary. Rachanda disappeared on July 10, 1990. The familys kittens were curled up on the girls lap, he said. 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. Sense of smell is so evocative, yet writers rarely take advantage of its power. United States. Showing : Public Libraries K-12 Schools Library Name Distance. The story also features an annotated version using footnotes identifying all your sources? Actually, the beginning and the ending were the most rewritten parts of the series, as we knew they would be. How did you reconstruct the details included in this long section about Marlenes rape and the aftermath? Her jeans appeared to have been cut. It was great, Ackroyd would later tell detectives. Click here to find personal data about John Ackroyd including phone numbers, addresses, directorships, electoral roll information, related property prices and other useful information. Even today parts of the road are so narrow and quiet the highway has the feel of a country lane. It wasnt long before teenagers Melissa Sanders and Sheila Swanson disappeared from a camping trip to the coast. This is the story of, Rachanda Pickle, Kaye Turner, Marlene Gabrielson, Melissa Sanders, Shiela Swan, and potentially many others. I like how direct, clean and certain Hanlons quote is here. Historical Person Search Search Search Results Results John Arthur Ackroyd (1903 - 1914) Try FREE for 14 days Try FREE for 14 days. You dont describe the rape, instead skipping over graphic details. I can hear her bafflement on the 911 audio, which Ive listened to over and over. The trial came to a close and Ackroyd, dressed in cowboy boots, jeans and a studded belt with John in silver letters, We gobbled up newsroom resources and space online and in the paper, but theres a limit and thats the reality of the job and format. The lead prosecutor has a formidable memory and kept meticulous notes that were part of the case file. This is a crucial moment where Ackroyd is confronted with one of these crimes, in this case Rachandas disappearance. Country. They were thin slats of wood. John Arthur Ackroyd was an American murderer and may have been a serial killer. Marlene glimpsed a .22-caliber rifle on a rack in the cab and a hunting knife stuck in the lid of an old coffee can near the drivers seat. The story reaches its powerful chronological conclusion. I am totally innocent, he said, his breathing labored, and Ill say that until the day I die. We went back in our clips. We were in the car a lot, a lot of very long road trips. Kaye and husband, Noel, had joined friends on a holiday getaway at Camp Sherman, a vacation and fly-fishing retreat along the pristine Metolius River off Highway 20 with a two-room school, country store and 200 year-round residents. [1] He married Linda Pickle in the mid-1980s. Over two decades, four women disappeared and one was raped on the same stretch of road in rural Oregon. He told Linda to wait until the next day to call police. I knew this would be an essential scene. Sheila, then 19, was the older of the two but seemed younger. There were no somber words from the bench about justice served, no deathbed confessions. This is a dramatic scene Ackroyd walks into the Sweet Home shop spattered with blood and offers a strange explanation. He drove off as she banged frantically on the door. Mystery still shrouds much of what happened during Ackroyds final encounters with his victims, and thats not likely to change. She vanished on July 10, while Linda was at work; Ackroyd took the day off, and was the last person to see the teen alive. It was moving and unexpected. Investigators believe he killed an unknown number of other victims whose remains are scattered off Highway 20, a two-lane road that crosses central Oregon west-to-east, often disappearing into the shadowy maw of dense evergreen forests. Thats when it got broken, over her rear. Rachanda declined, citing the chores her mother expected her to finish, he said. She said he threatened to do to me exactly what they did to Kaye Turner.. 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. 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. In fifth grade, something shifted. Dave Killen was the video editor and genius behind the documentary series that accompanied the stories and Beth Nakamura was the gifted photojournalist whose work captured the subjects and remote landscape where these crimes took place. In scene after scene, over a couple of long days as the Christmas holiday approached, the investigators playing Ackroyd and Beck would snatch her off the road. By then, Ackroyd was a suspected killer who had frustrated police for more than a decade. In 1992, he was sentenced to five life terms in prison for the abduction and murder of Kaye Turner. For now, I just want the reader to know something triggered their interest in what happened to Marlene and leave it at that. It was a real weight. At this point in the story, I didnt want to reveal too much about why the cops were taking another look at Marlenes rape. He said he came home during a break from work and asked Rachanda if she wanted to go for a ride with him. Now and then, like here, you use complex sentences. The unglamorous task fell to Ron Benson, an investigator for the district attorney, and Linda Snow, a retired legal assistant. How do we create a person's profile? So instead of hundreds of footnotes, we ran about 150 in a separate version of the story that also links to original source material. Ackroyd was spotted there at least three times after they went missing. What lay behind that decision? Beck left Oregon. Why did you decide to tell it in the omniscient third person as you do so much of the story? This is another of the few times when we read extended dialogue, a hallmark of classic narrative. It took 14 years to . For a long time, the lead was a scene from his cell immediately after his death. A report from the trial in the Bend (OR) Bulletin. It was my way of acknowledging to the reader that this has been an epic tale that wont have a Hollywood ending. That friend was Roger Dale Beck. janne. Yet Ackroyd went on working for the state, responding to broken down cars, clearing wrecks and fixing state rigs along the highway, alone. Its amazing how much serendipity plays a role in this story, isnt it? Sense of smell is so evocative, yet writers rarely take advantage of its power. John Ackroyd killed Kaye Turner, he replied. Investigators Ron Benson and Linda Snow, with the Lincoln County District Attorney's Office were preparing to present the evidence against Ackroyd for the murders of Swanson and Sanders to the grand jury when Ackroyd passed away. He was based in Santiam Junction, about 25 miles from Camp Sherman, and said hed gotten off work at 6:30 a.m. A while later, he drove through the camp, planning to hunt coyotes. To some, she seemed lost, almost invisible. Interviews with Rachanda Pickles brother, Byron, and one of her childhood friends. Several parts conclude with a cliffhanger, effectively designed to keep the reader reading. I wanted him to know that the reporting was continuing and that a story would likely appear sometime in the coming months. 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. 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. For a man suspected of murder, Ackroyd was impassive under intense grilling by Salsbery and McAnulty. The family lived at the state highway division compound at Santiam Junction, where U.S. 20 and Oregon 22 meet. By this point, it was time to flesh him out. Its also a testament to the human need to find answers and how these disappearances and Ackroyd himself affected people who knew there had to be a connection. The clue bore a chilling similarity to two of Ackroyds earlier assaults: Rape victim Marlene Gabrielsens boots and underwear were sliced and so was the waistband on Kaye Turners yellow jogging shorts. This week is the origins of Northern Soul and Disco. Ages 3-5 Ages 6-8 Ages 9-12 See All. These are key characters in this story. It was on one of them that hed raped Marlene Gabrielsen a year before Kaye Turner disappeared. He married a local woman named Linda and they lived with her young kids, Byron and Rachanda. I dont know that its the theme. Sandy Turner, Noels wife, answered and greeted us warmly. She was alone with Ackroyd, a big man who reeked of sweat and freshly cut wood. Their bodies were found off a logging spur. The district attorney delivered his decision on whether to prosecute. Crombie was just wrapping up a four-year stint on the cannabis beat she had created when Bottomly called her into her office and told her about the case. John Arthur Ackroyd was a state highway mechanic whose route took him along Route 20 from the Cascade Foothills to the Pacific Ocean's coast. Take hot dogs out of the freezer. Faryion Wardrip born March 6, 1959, was an American murderer who raped and killed a total of five . There was nothing in the record that showed where this request came from or why it had been sought. I knew from his coworkers that his truck likely didnt have AC. They assumed the two had gotten a ride from friends. Beth Nakamura/ The Oregonian/OregonLive. It took weeks the woman had changed her name since the early 1990s but she remembered the men and their names. 2-7+. Its definitely hard to read but written, I hope its seen, with deliberation and circumspection. Initially, he told police hed passed Kaye without stopping. She admitted it could have been her. Great details, especially the belt. His partner, Detective Will McAnulty, sat nearby. Ackroyd obviously is the catalyst of destruction. To promote and elevate the standards of journalism, An old logging road just off Highway 20 on the Oregon coast near where Melissa Sanders and Sheila Swanson's bodies were discovered in 1992 by local hunters. Bottomly teamed up Crombie with Killen and Nakamura to run the mystery to ground. You end this section by withholding what happened with the grand jury. I used a massive spreadsheet for reference. Date of Interment 21/Jan/1929, Temuka Cemetery, Section B, Block 5, Plot 335 MI. What lay behind this approach? Ackroyd, going to Newport for work that day, encountered the teenagers somewhere along the highway and offered them a lift, just as he had in the past. The area was about a half-hour drive from where Marlene was raped. John Arthur. In other scenes, Beck grabbed her as Ackroyd looked on. The hearing lasted about seven minutes. Biography Current Affairs & Politics General Nonfiction History Music, Film & Performing Arts Religion Social Sciences. Rachanda's stepfather, John Arthur Ackroyd, is the last person Escucha y descarga los episodios de Unresolved gratis Now, two years after Rachanda went missing without a trace from the family home, the young women who left a camping trip were dead Blogolitical Sean: November 2010 Rachanda Pickle's mother and stepfather waited 24 hours to report the girl's disappearance to 911 Rachanda . For instance, Ackroyd told police he drove to his mothers house after raping Marlene. What the heck happened to you? Laront asked. In class, she counted down the minutes, a sense of dread rising as the end of the school day approached. I wanted the reader to feel rooted in that time and place. The girl who was good about leaving notes if she headed out to play Nintendo at a neighbors house hadnt left one. My editor tells me I usually write with economy and directness, so it was also more of my natural style to hone and hone some more. Beck and his wife lived in a trailer not far from Camp Sherman, where Kaye had disappeared. Structurally, what was your intention? It was earlier in the year, though he couldnt recall the date. When I outlined each days story, I focused on cliffhangers, kickers and which scenes could propel the narrative. Shed need evidence so police could find him later. Plus reading it aloud again and again and producing a condensed online timeline helped uncover themes and discrepancies. Was there ever a concern about libeling Ackroyd before he died and rendered the question moot? It was a sensational crime that remains unsolved. His wife, Pam, said the two men were around the trailer for most of the morning, which helped give Ackroyd an alibi. She read some drafts early on. She got this sustained ovation from the audience. She invited us in and we waited for Noel to return from running an errand. Melissa and Sheila joined a list of girls last heard from or seen late at night in coastal Lincoln County. Had police believed her, none of the subsequent murders committed by Ackroyd would likely have occurred. Pretty much all the details of the attacks and deaths are sickening in the series. Over two decades, four women disappeared and one was raped along the same stretch of road in rural Oregon. Old coworkers told Benson and Snow how theyd seen Ackroyd around a highway project near a gravel logging road off Highway 20. She once showed up at Sheilas with bruises on her face and asked if she could stay. I produced a separate online version of the story with more than 150 footnotes showing the interviews and records that supported crucial passages. 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. Ackroyds explanations of his encounter with her never added up, but detectives found no physical evidence directly tying him to the killing. I tried to picture this scene. They show similarities with the other attacks off the highway in the woods, restraints or some sort of overpowering, abuse and then stashing the womens bodies out of the way, leaving them for the elements and animals to destroy. In 1992, he was sentenced to five life terms in prison for the abduction and murder of Kaye Turner. John Arthur Ackroyd was an American murderer, rapist and most likely a serial killer. We bounced ideas off each other and checked facts. When he returned to the house at approximately 12:45 p.m., Rachanda had vanished. Why did you choose to end the narrative with Marlene Gabrielson? . For more than a month in late 1993, Ackroyd sat impassively in a courtroom at the historic Jefferson County Courthouse in downtown Madras, about an hours drive across the high desert from where Kaye had disappeared. Early on in the project videographer Dave Killen and photographer Beth Nakamura were riding together on Highway 20 on one of our many reporting trips. He claimed she turned down his invite . John Arthur Ackroyd (died December 30, 2016 at age 67) was an American murderer and a serial killer. I relied on interviews with a detective and the woman deputy to reconstruct this scene. She understood how ambitious we were trying to be and was really supportive of that. A cop once mentioned to me that Ackroyd always had a bunch of these candies in his pocket and would pop them into his mouth during interrogations. I had his work, schooling and military records. He seemed to relish gruesome speculation about what harm had come to her. Enough time had passed to conclude Rachanda was dead. I relied on hundreds of pages of transcripts from police interviews with Ackroyd for some of these details. Linda and John Ackroyd left for work, she as a housekeeper at Black Butte Ranch, a resort community about 30 minutes away, and he as a highway mechanic. She also knew he was from Sweet Home, not far from where Karen had used the pay phone to call a friend in the Midwest, just one year before Kaye Turner died. They found the other sneaker, mostly intact. There were 300 people there and Marlene Gabrielsen came. Though investigators were certain he was behind her disappearance, they couldnt prove it. And Bill Hanlon, the prosecutor who helped put Ackroyd away. Then a confession by a convicted murderer sidetracked detectives before they determined he was lying. Plus, in an era of smartphones, a Timex wrist watch gives readers the sense that this crime happened in another era. [5] Resources and contacts also are listed at the end of the story. Dried blood covered his arms and hands. In 1992, he was sentenced to five life terms in prison for the abduction and murder of Kaye Turner. Over two decades, four women disappeared and one was raped along the same stretch of road in rural Oregon. Why? Why did you decide to use Benson and Snow as a vehicle to transmit all this background? He was willing to talk. Linda Monville left Oregon twenty-six years ago and now lives in San Bernardino, California, where she remarried and built a new life after her daughter, Rachanda Pickle, disappeared from the Department of Transportation compound where they lived together with Linda's third husband, John Ackroyd. He said her body was lying in the same wooded area where scraps of her clothing and bits of bone were found. A spare style is my natural tendency. He was painting the tailgate. It was late spring. We collect and match historical records that Ancestry users have contributed to their family trees to create each person's profile. Ackroyd's step-daughter Rachanda Pickle went missing in 1990. Source? The state had continued to pay out Ackroyds $3,624 monthly public employee pension even while he was in prison. He was convicted in the 1978 murder of a woman who never returned from a holiday jog and the prime suspect in the 1990 disappearance . Sheilas parents had died, leaving her younger brother to carry on alone with his grief. Their clothes were spattered with so much blood that she got rid of Becks jeans and shirt. Ackroyd earned low grades in school; his high school diploma was marked special education. He was a loner, bullied and beaten by classmates. Ghosts of Highway 20, Episode 5 - ACKROYD. Constant references make Highway 20 a character in its own right? I work for Channy, he told Ackroyd. Kaye Turner was killed in 1978, followed by Ackroyds stepdaughter, Rachanda, in 1990. Did you have to listen to them to be able to write that sentence? Their cases lingered in the communitys collective memory, and the local district attorney decided to reopen them in 2012, eager to identify potential suspects. For years, only those in the room would know what had happened. Ackroyd was raised in the small logging town of Sweet Home, Oregon.
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