***UPDATE***
HILLSBORO, Ore- On November 14, 2019, Judge Eric Butterfield sentenced Mr. Johnson to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The Washington County District Attorney's Office would like to thank the Washington County Sheriff's Office, those involved in the trial and especially the victim’s family for their courage in testifying in court.
***END OF UPDATE***
HILLSBORO, Ore.- On November 8, 2019, a Washington County jury found Martin Allen Johnson guilty of eight counts of first-degree murder in the 1998 rape and murder of 15-year-old Heather Fraser. The jury delivered a unanimous decision after less than three hours of deliberations. Chief Deputy District Attorney Bracken McKey and Senior Deputy District Attorney Jeff MacLean prosecuted Mr. Johnson in Judge Eric Butterfield’s courtroom.
Mr. Johnson was convicted of aggravated murder in 2001. In 2017, the Oregon Supreme Court upheld a decision made by the Oregon Court of Appeals to overturn the conviction, citing inadequate representation on behalf of Mr. Johnson’s defense team during the original trial.
Mr. Johnson was charged with eight counts of first-degree murder in this new case due to new guidelines established by Senate Bill 1013. Those guidelines also barred prosecutors from seeking the death penalty once again.
During the course of the two-week trial, Mr. McKey and Mr. MacLean proved to the jury that Mr. Martin drugged, raped and killed Ms. Fraser. The defendant then drove the victim to Astoria, Oregon where he threw her body off a bridge and into the Columbia River.
Mr. Martin was quickly identified as a suspect by authorities. He then fled the state and was apprehended in Florida more than a year later.
A sentencing hearing will be held on November 13, 2019 at 9 a.m. in Judge Butterfield’s courtroom.