A fifth woman's death is now part of the case against accused serial killer Jesse Calhoun. The 39-year-old pleaded not guilty Wednesday to another count of second-degree murder, this one tied to 22-year-old Ashley Real, whose body was found in a pond near Portland, Oregon, in May 2023, per KATU. Calhoun already faced four second-degree murder charges in the deaths of Charity Perry, 24; Joanna Speaks, 32; Bridget Webster, 31; and Kristin Smith, 22, along with four counts of abusing a corpse. All five women were found dead in early 2023 in a roughly 100-mile radius, per the AP.
Calhoun was charged with three murders in 2024, and with Smith's in 2025. He had only been identified as a person of interest in Real's killing up until last week. The two reportedly had a prior sexual relationship, and Real had told police Calhoun tried to strangle her in November 2022, per the Oregonian. Calhoun's attorneys asked to scrap his current 2027 trial date to adjust for the new charge, as prosecutors want a single trial covering all five homicides. A status conference is set for August to hash out scheduling.
Calhoun, held at the Multnomah County Detention Center, has pleaded not guilty across the board. He remained silent during Wednesday's hearing, attended by victims' family members. "Do you have any idea as a parent what it is not to fly across that room and show him what a woman can do? That's pretty hard," Perry's mother, Diana Allen, told KGW. Smith's mother, Melissa, said it was "incredibly hard" to see another family have to face "the worst thing that could ever happen to you." "He can't imagine what he took from me," added Jose Real, noting his daughter "had a heart of gold."
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