Convicted killer of 4 found dead in his home

PORTLAND, Ore. (KPTV/Gray News) - A serial killer who got time-served in a plea deal last year was found dead in his Portland home last month.

Portland police say Homer Lee Jackson III was found dead by his sister on July 18 at his home on North Emerald Avenue. Police noted that he had recently been ill and weighed between 75 to 80 pounds.

Police do not suspect foul play.

Last January, Jackson pleaded guilty to killing three women and one teenager - Tonya Harry, Angela Anderson, Latanga Watts and Lawauna Triplet - in the 80s and 90s. Jackson, who was in jail for six and a half years awaiting trial, was sentenced to time served and three years probation.

The killings that Jackson was convicted of were:

• Tonya Harry, 19, was found dead on July 9, 1983, in the slough that bordered West Delta Park between the Portland International Raceway and the Heron Lakes Golf Club. She died from traumatic asphyxia.
• Angela Anderson, 14, was found dead on Sept. 22, 1983, in the 400 block of Northeast Going Street. She died of ligature asphyxiation.
• Latanga Watts, 27, was found dead on March 18, 1987, in an empty lot at North Concord Avenue and North Going Court near the pedestrian overpass. She was killed by manual strangulation.
• Lawauna Triplet, 29, was found dead on June 15, 1993, near the intersection of North Going and North Concord near the pedestrian overpass. She died of abdominal injuries and strangulation.

All women were victims of sex trafficking, according to the Portland Police Bureau.

Jackson was accused of killing Essie Jackson, who was found dead on March 23, 1983, but those charges were dismissed. However, the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office said, in 2019, that Jackson continued to be a suspect in her death.

Copyright 2023 KPTV via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.