Jesse Calhoun Charged in Death of Sixth Woman Elizabeth Gibson

Jesse Lee Calhoun has been indicted in the death of Elizabeth “Libby” Gibson, making her the sixth woman whose death prosecutors have tied to the Oregon man who faces five second-degree murder charges.

A Multnomah County grand jury indicted Calhoun on Sept. 16 for first-degree manslaughter, claiming he unlawfully and recklessly caused the death of the 32-year-old Portland resident under circumstances that showed extreme indifference to human life.

Prosecutors believe she died on or around Nov. 18, 2022, but her body has never been found, and authorities have not said publicly how she was killed. She was not reported missing until March 2023 and the DA’s office has withheld evidence from the indictment for the investigation into links between her and Calhoun.

Gibson’s family described her as being kind, creative and “silly” in a statement following the indictment, saying she was a positive person who treated others with “love and acceptance” and that her life was cut short by her death. Her siblings thanked law enforcement authorities and the Multnomah County DA’s office for the work and said they would be available to give more information when convenient, but asked people to respect their privacy.

Prosecutors believe Gibson’s death preceded the five killings Calhoun is accused of committing already, although they have yet to say publicly how they linked the two incidents or what his connection to her was. Senior Deputy District Attorney Melissa Marrero credited the case with the tips of the public but did not identify them.

The new charge of manslaughter adds to five second-degree murder counts against Calhoun, involving Charity Lynn Perry, 24; Bridget Leanne Webster, 31; Joanna Speaks, 32; Kristin Smith, 22; and Ashley Real, 22. The DA’s office initially charged him in May 2024 over the deaths of Perry, Webster and Speaks, then added Smith in August 2025 and Real in May 2026.

All of the women’s bodies were found in different places in Oregon and southwest Washington in 2023, but detectives connected the deaths as they looked into cross-jurisdictional evidence. Calhoun was identified as a person of interest in 2023, before authorities opened murder investigations into his alleged victims’ disappearances and deaths, and the DA’s office did not report a public reason at the time for the association.

Smith was reported missing in Dec. 2022, and her body was found in a Portland woodland area in February 2023, and Perry was found dead in Apr. 2023, and Webster’s body was discovered later that same month in Polk County. Speaks was found in Ridgefield, Washington, also in Apr. 2023, and Real was reported missing in Apr. 2023 and found in Clackamas County in the following month. Calhoun pleaded not guilty to five counts of second-degree murder and prosecutors have urged that the cases together.

Getting the case of Gibson’s death added to the docket now could delay proceedings further, since a jury trial was set to begin in Sept. 2027, but was called off by OPB.

Calhoun was in prison serving a sentence for burglary, unauthorized use of a vehicle and assaulting a public safety officer when investigators linked him to the women’s deaths. Then-Gov. Kate Brown commuted his sentence and those of other inmates serving sentences in the state penal system in 2021, after they participated in prison firefighting crews during the 2020 wildfire season and released him roughly a year early. Prosecutors sought to have his commutation revoked when he became a person of interest in the killings, but Gov. Tina Kotek reversed the order and he resumed his incarceration in July 2023 and has remained in custody ever since for the investigations into the deaths of all six women.

The early release has raised questions, but prior reporting noted his sentence would have finished roughly at the time the women began vanishing anyway. This would not constitute proof of guilt but rather circumstantial evidence since Calhoun is still in prison and he is being tried for all of these deaths.

Calhoun is set to be arraigned on the new case of Gibson’s manslaughter at 1:30 p.m. on Sept. 21 in the Multnomah County Circuit Court, and this could further affect the scheduling for the other five murder cases. District Attorney Nathan Vasquez stated that his office remains committed to prosecuting both the manslaughter and the five second-degree murders and that detectives are still urging people to provide information to Portland police regarding the search for Gibson.

The DA’s office has stressed that the investigation is ongoing, and, as with all indictments, Calhoun is presumed innocent and a jury will have to find him guilty before that can happen.