Tortured by the Sadist in the Press Box

The evening of December 27, 1979 was a cold one. The sky was free from clouds, and the light of the moon and stars was shining brightly off the snow which had made itself a temporary home in the hills surrounding Ashland. The effect made the night seem colder than it actually was and it gave the small southern Oregon tourist com­munity a peaceful quality with a bril­liance all its own.

Then, suddenly, the tranquility of the evening was harshly broken by the loud, terrifying screams coming from the press box which overlooks Southern Oregon State College's football field.

"Rachel! Oh, Rachel, how could some­one do something like this?" the terror-stricken man cried out. He had disco­vered the cold, mutilated body of 11-year-old Rachel Isser, one of two young girls who had disappeared earlier in the day. The girl who was still missing was Deanna Jackman - the distraught man's daughter!

Rachel's body was nude; it was evi­dent that she had been dead for several hours. Numerous lacerations were visi­ble on her body, inflicted by some sharp instrument which accounted for the massive amount of blood on the floor. The girl's face was swollen and blue, and a white cord was wrapped tightly around her slender neck.

Although Rachel Isser and Deanna Jackman attended separate elementary schools, they became close friends after meeting each other at a Jewish Sabbath school. They regarded their friendship very highly and always looked forward to spending their free time together.

Early on the afternoon of December 27 they decided to play tennis at nearby Hunter Park, where they had played many times before. The two sixth graders left Rachel's home shortly after 2 p.m., and Rachel told her mother that they would be back in a couple of hours.

About an hour after the girls had left, Mrs. Isser noticed that Rachel had not worn her coat to the park. Since it was a cold afternoon she decided to take the coat to her daughter. Upon arriving at the park, she discovered that Rachel and Deanna were not there. Somewhat worried, she started towards home, her concern growing. It was not like the girls to say they were going somewhere and then not do so, she thought to her­self.

When Rachel and Deanna did not re­turn home for dinner, the parents of both girls became worried. They decided to search the neighborhood, fanning out and taking the most direct route to the park. But there was no sign — of the two children, and their efforts seemed to be in vain. Shortly after 5 p.m. they called the Ashland Police Department and asked for assistance.

Hours passed, and the parents be­came frantic in their efforts to find their daughters. Suddenly Deanna's father stopped in front of the bleachers at the college stadium. There, lying on the ground in front of him, were two tennis rackets and a can of tennis balls. A sud­den feeling of panic overwhelmed him. As he searched the area of the bleachers thoroughly, he noticed that the door of the press box was slightly ajar. He opened the door and — much to his horror — saw Rachel's naked body sprawled on the floor. That is when he began to scream.

Police were nearby, aiding in the search, when they heard the frenzied man's shrieks. When they arrived at the press box. the distraught father was kneeling over Rachel's body, sobbing. Police found several pieces of Deanna's clothing there, identified by her father, but Rachel's clothing was missing.

The search for Deanna continued into the long hours of Thursday night and Friday, but the outlook appeared bleak. Still, nobody had given up hope. Ash­land and nearby Medford Police, Ore­gon State Police. Jackson County Sheriffs Office, and the southern Ore­gon State College campus security police all played a major role in the search for Deanna. More than 50 people participated, and a trained police dog was brought in by Jackson County offic­ers to aid the searchers.

Then, at 3:45 Friday afternoon, the search for Deanna Jackman ended. Her body - completely naked - had been spotted from a helicopter by state police. It was lying in a clearing across from gravel pits on Dead Indian Road, east of Ashland in a lonely, secluded area about six miles from the site where Rachel's body had been found. From the marks on her body, it appeared to police that she may have been thrown out of a moving car.

"This is the first time in Ashland that we've ever had a case like this," said Police Chief Vic Lively. "We've had murders here before, but never child­ren. It's got us very upset."