Thursday marks the one year anniversary since 21 year old Jarred Houston and 41 year old Robert Calvin were reportedly hit and killed on Highway 199.
Oregon State Police are still searching for the suspect and vehicle involved. The suspect vehicle is described as light colored, possible beige or tan, 1980’s style single cab Toyota pickup with matching color canopy and front end damage.
A reward of up to $1,000 is being offered through the Crime Stoppers of Southern Oregon program for information that leads to an arrest. In addition, the families were offering a reward of up to $5,000 to help solve this case.
Anyone with information to help is asked to call OSP Southern Command Center dispatch at 541-776-6111.
Cave Junction, Ore. — It was just after midnight on October 30th of 2013, when 21 year old Jarred Houston and a friend were on the side of Highway 199, 2 miles south of cave junction when their vehicle broke down.
At the same time, 41-year-old Robert Calvin was walking in the area with his wife.
According to Oregon State Police, Houston and Calvin got into some sort of altercation that eventually led into the southbound lanes of Highway 199. The two were then struck and killed by a passing vehicle.
OSP Detective Jeff Fitzgerald is one of the lead investigators in the case.
“There’s been a lot of hours spent on this case. And it’s a case we want to get solved,” Fitzgerald said.
9 months have passed since that fatal night and no suspects or even person of interest has been named.But Fitzgerald says the case is far from cold.
“We still get tips, we still get things coming in.”
While Fitzgerald can’t reveal the nature of those leads and tips,he says it’s one of the most frustrating parts of the investigation.
“The problem is that a lot of the tips and information we get are 3rd and 4th hand information with no source from where the information has come from. Or it’s just information of rumors and theories.”
Those rumors haunt the family of Jarred Houston.
“We don’t know the full story so that’s been definitely a road block block in our healing process. I like to think we are slowly starting to get a little bit better but we are not going to completely be ok in our hearts accepting where jarred is until we know what really happened,” said Houston’s sister Sarah.
Over the past few months the Houston family has organized several marches through the city, on the same highway Houston and Calvin died, demanding answers.
“It’s really almost empowering in a sense. And it makes me feel like jarred won’t ever be forgotten and people do care,” Houston said.
And they say they will continue to fight to keep their loved one’s memory alive, for as long as it takes to get answers.
Houston says she is planning another march through Cave Junction in their efforts to keep the case alive.
Meanwhile, detective Fitzgerald says he is confident someone knows something about this case.
If you have any information you are asked to call OSP at 541-776-6111, your call can remain anonymous.
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