Dayton Leroy Rogers (born September 30, 1953) is an American
serial killer
A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A
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* with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...
who has been tied to the murders of seven women. He preferred "street" women, usually addicts, sex workers, and runaways. The bodies of six of the women were found at a dump site located on privately owned forest lands outside Molalla, Oregon, and thus he was dubbed the "Molalla Forest Murderer".
Crimes
Rogers was convicted in 1988 for the murder of his last victim, Jennifer Lisa Smith, whom he killed on August 7, 1987, and in 1989 for a further six murders for which he was sentenced to death.
Jennifer Lisa Smith was a convicted sex worker and drug addict. She was in Rogers' truck parked in a lot located off of SE McLoughlin Blvd in Oak Grove in unincorporated
Clackamas County
Clackamas County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the population was 421,401, making it Oregon's third-most populous county. Its county seat is Oregon City. The county was named after the Native ...
when he stabbed her 11 times in the breasts, abdomen, and back. She fell out of the truck and was attended to by witnesses from a nearby Denny's restaurant, later dying at the hospital. One witness stood by a window relaying the action to another patron who could not see the parking lot; that patron called the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office.
When the victim fell to the ground, several witnesses ran to their cars in an attempt to block Rogers' car in the parking lot. However, he drove over the landscaping and headed south on SE McLoughlin. One witness followed Rogers through Milwaukie,
Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-conse ...
, Oregon City, and
Canby Canby may refer to:
People
* Canby (surname)
Places
;In the United States
* Canby, California
* Canby, Iowa
* Canby, Minnesota
* Canby, Oregon
* Canby Creek, a stream in Minnesota
* Canby Mountains, Oregon
{{disambiguation, geo ...
at speeds up to 100 mph. When the suspect's car pulled into a driveway, the following driver took the address, went to a phone, and reported the information.
Rogers' ''
modus operandi
A ''modus operandi'' (often shortened to M.O.) is someone's habits of working, particularly in the context of business or criminal investigations, but also more generally. It is a Latin phrase, approximately translated as "mode (or manner) of op ...
'' was to pick up prostitutes and take them to secluded areas. He took at least six of them into the forest, tied them up, and killed them.
He was married and had a child. He was a small engine mechanic by trade and deeply in debt. He was connected to the bodies through his habit of pouring a mini-bottle of vodka into an orange juice bottle to make himself a
screwdriver
A screwdriver is a tool, manual or powered, used for turning screws. A typical simple screwdriver has a handle and a shaft, ending in a tip the user puts into the screw head before turning the handle. This form of the screwdriver has been repla ...
. Rogers was convicted in May 1989 for the murders of 23-year-old Lisa Marie Mock, 26-year-old Maureen Ann Hodges, 35-year-old Christine Lotus Adams, 20-year-old Cynthia De Vore, 26-year-old Nondace "Noni" Cervantes, and 16-year-old Riatha Gyles. The seventh body was identified in August 2013.
Rogers was sentenced to death three times, and three times the
Oregon Supreme Court
The Oregon Supreme Court (OSC) is the highest state court in the U.S. state of Oregon. The only court that may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court is the Supreme Court of the United States.Kate Brown, which limited the amount of aggravating factors required for seeking the death penalty. On December 13, 2022, Governor Kate Brown commuted the death sentences of everyone on Oregon's death row to life without parole.
See also
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List of serial killers in the United States
A serial killer is typically a person who kills three or more people, with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) defines serial murder a ...