Compass Check: Am I on the right track?

I’ve spent the past couple of months compiling facts, trying to determine what they mean, examining maps and making a site survey in support of a search for Karen and Rodney’s remains. I’m at the point where the search is about to become time intensive and on the ground, so I am going to work through facts, assumptions and unknowns to ensure that I’m spending that time on the right piece of ground.

I’m want to lay out the facts, assumptions, and unknowns. Then I’m going to re-examine the assumptions to ensure they are still supported by the facts. I’m going to limit this to the facts and assumptions that have guided my search to the two locations to ensure that my on the ground time is well spent.

What We Know

• Rodney was last seen 24 May 1977 in Albany, OR
• Karen was last seen at 0830 26 May 1977 in Hillsboro or Cornelius, OR.
• Karen’s last contact was a phone call from a pay phone in Lebanon, OR that ended at 3:18pm on 26 May 1977.
• Karen’s clothing and belongings were found in the woods behind a landing within Section 19, Soda Fork Rd on 7 November 1977. Her worn clothing was recovered at this time and in this location.
• Rodney’s clothing and belongings were found 1/4 mile from Karen’s on 8 November 1982. His clothing was also found within Section 19, Soda Fork Rd.
• Both sets of clothing were found by Willamette Industries loggers.
• Rodney’s watch was stopped at 4:50 on the “27th”
• Karen’s luggage (blanket bundle) was recovered with her clothing from behind the landing.
• Rodney’s luggage (orange external frame backpack with “R. Grissom” written in ink on it) was traced to a pawnshop in Bend, and then to a garage sale in Redmond.

Open Questions and Unknowns

• Was Karen’s worn clothing packed into her blanket bundle or was it found in the area?
• What does imagery from the 1979 Linn County aerial survey revel about the area?
• What does John Ackroyd’s ODOT timecard record for his whereabouts for Monday 5/23 through Friday 6/10 1977. Did he take time off during the period when Karen and Rodney vanished? His work absences are correlated with his other crimes.

Assumptions Based on the Facts

• Karen and Rodney were killed between 3:18pm 26 May and 4:50AM 27 May.
  • Supported by:
  • time stamp on pen register for last phone call.
  • Weather data supports water intrusion stopping Rodney’s watch at 4:50am on 27 May 1977.
  • It is a 50 minute drive from Lebanon to Soda Fork Rd. They would have arrived no earlier than 4:10pm on 26 May 1977.
• Rodney was murdered first at the turn-out
  • Supported by:
  • The turn-out is the first location reached when driving from US 20 along Soda Fork Rd.
  • Rodney’s clothing recovered here.
  • Topography of turn-out and hillside would aid the crime and screen it from observation.
• Karen was murdered second at the Landing
  • Supported by:
  • location is second when driving from US 20 along Soda Fork Rd.
  • Karen’s clothing and belongings were recovered here.
  • Location is 1/4 mile from the turn-out, matching news reports about the distance between the two sites.
  • Topology of the landing would aid the crime and screen it from observation.
• John Arthur Ackroyd was the killer
  • Supported by:
  • LCSO attribution.
  • Victimology fits Ackroyd’s preference.
  • Location where clothing was found fits Ackroyd’s MO.
  • Disappearance occurred during Ackroyd’s 1976 to 1978 spree.
  • Not Supported by:
  • No direct evidence or confession.
  • Ackroyd not known to kill men
    • However, Ackroyd did have a later double homicide attributed to him.
    • Rodney was probably not the preferred victim, but an obstacle to remove.
• Karen and Rodney’s bodies were left where their clothing and belongings were found.
  • Supported by:
  • Karen and Rodney’s clothing were found 1/4 mile apart and based on reports, this was their worn clothing.
    • If worn clothing was separated from the bodies, why thoroughly divide Rodney’s from Karen’s and dump separately, but relatively close together?
  • Moving two bodies from Soda Fork to another location off US 20 is too high risk for the perpetrator.
    • There is no way to explain away two bodies dead from homicidal violence if seen by another driver.
    • There would be no real advantage to loading both bodies into a vehicle and then dumping them deeper into the forest along Soda Fork. Both sites are more than 1.5 miles from US 20 and not near the residences at the junction of Soda Fork and US 20.
      • Would require the murderer to load Karen’s remains, then drive back to the turn-out, leave Karen’s body unattended while retrieving Rodney, then turn around and head deeper into the forest. Based on the effort required, and the advantage gained, this is too much effort and too risky in terms of discovery.
      • John Ackroyd does not seem to be organized enough to pursue this degree of obscuring his crimes.
  • Not Supported by:
  • Searches of the locations in 1977, 1982 and 2012 found no remains in the area.

After re-examining the facts and assumptions, I am positive that I am in the right location where their clothing and belongings were found. I am also still confident that these were the locations where Karen and Rodneys’ remains were left. Whether they still can be found is the open question. Let the ground search begin.