SALEM, Ore. – A former death row inmate behind bars for crimes in Jackson County has died in prison.
In December of 1995, 53-year-old Roxanne Ellis drove her pickup truck laden with Christmas presents for her 2-year-old granddaughter to a Medford neighborhood one evening. She was supposed to show a house for rent to a man from California. What happened after that made headline news for days to come.
Roxanne and her partner, 42-year-old Michelle Abdill, mysteriously disappeared. Friends and family posted missing persons fliers, praying for the couple’s safe return.
Three days after they went missing, Roxanne and Michelle were found dead in the back of a pickup truck, bound and gagged with duct tape. They had both been shot, execution style, in the head.
An investigation revealed Robert James Acremant, then 29 years old, was the man Ellis was supposed to meet at the rental home. He cornered Ellis when she refused to write him a check, then lured Abdill to the home as well. Acrement apparently wanted money to help him win back a former girlfriend.
Acremant was eventually charged with the murders and found guilty. He was sentenced to death.
According to court records, Acrament also admitted to the unrelated killing of Scott George of Visalia, California after he was caught for the Jackson County murders.
In 2011, Acrament was subjected to a review from doctors and other experts. They determined he was delusional and heard voices that weren’t really there. Federal law prevents those who are mentally ill from being executed. Therefore, Acemant would simply spend the rest of his life behind bars.
On the morning of October 26, 2018, Acremant’s sentence effectively ended. He died while incarcerated at the Oregon State Penitentiary. He was 50 years old.
A cause of death has not yet been determined.
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