NIGHT ENDS THE SEARCH FOR MISSING 9-YEAR-OLD GIRL WAS LAST SEEN IN THE YARD OF HER SPOKANE VALLEY HOME The search for a missing 9-year-old girl was called off as dark settled Monday on her Spokane Valley neighborhood.Six Spokane County sheriff's detectives, about 30 volunteers and three trained dogs had combed a 24-square-block area near Pines Road, plastering grocery stores with pictures of a smiling, red-headed Valiree Jackson.The Sheriff's Department plans to renew the search today.Jackson disappeared from her grandparents' home in the 13300 block of Blossey Street
NO LEADS IN CASE OF MISSING GIRL DETECTIVES UNCOVER ATTEMPTED CHILD ABDUCTION IN THEIR SEARCH Detectives investigating the disappearance of a 9-year-old Spokane Valley girl are looking for a man wanted for an earlier attempted child abduction.They're also seeking Valiree Jackson's mother, who has had no contact with her daughter since losing custody in 1992.Neither are suspects in Valiree's disappearance, but might have information that helps authorities, Spokane County Sheriff's spokesman Dave Reagan said.There are no persons of interest in the case,
DETECTIVES SIFT TIPS ON MISSING GIRL MOTHER LAST SEEN IN 1992 A third day passed Wednesday with no sign of a missing 9-year-old Spokane Valley girl.Valiree Jackson disappeared from her grandparents' home on East Blossey Road on Monday morning while waiting for her father to walk her to school.A search by volunteers and an investigation by sheriff's detectives have turned up no trace of the girl, a student at McDonald Elementary School.Detectives pursued several leads Wednesday, including tips about a flatbed truck reportedly involved
INVESTIGATORS RETURN TO GIRL'S NEIGHBORHOOD Sheriff's detectives began interviewing local sex offenders Thursday in an effort to find clues about a missing 9-year-old Spokane Valley girl.Investigators also returned to Valiree Jackson's neighborhood to continue questioning residents there about the girl's disappearance.Valiree disappeared from her yard in the 13300 block of East Blossey on Monday morning while waiting for her father to walk her to school.Her father, William ``Brad'' Jackson, reported
DETECTIVES TO QUESTION PREDATORS< INVESTIGATORS TO TRACK DOWN AREA SEX OFFENDERS< IN HOPES OF FINDING A LEAD TO GIRL'S DISAPPEARANCE Sheriff's detectives will be probing the sinister side of the Spokane Valley today, looking for clues in the disappearance of a 9-year-old girl.Investigators are tracking down as many as 80 sex offenders who live near Valiree Jackson's neighborhood or are known to have committed crimes there, officials said Friday.``Today and tomorrow, we'll be working pretty hard at that,'' said sheriff's Lt. Doug Silver, who pulled six detectives from a disaster-training
DETECTIVES SEARCH HOUSE OF MISSING GIRL'S GRANDPARENTS Sheriff's detectives served a search warrant Saturday on the house where a missing Spokane Valley girl was last seen.Investigators also seized two vehicles parked outside the house at 13319 E. Blossey, the home of Valiree Jackson's grandparents.Sheriff's officials said they were looking for clues to what happened to the girl, who was reported missing by her father, Monday morning. Valiree and her father, William ``Brad'' Jackson, live at the Bloss
GIRL'S DAD WILLING TO TAKE LIE-DETECTOR TEST JACKSON SAYS TEST WOULD SHIFT FOCUS OF OFFICERS BACK TO MISSING DAUGHTER The father of a missing Spokane Valley girl said Monday he is ready to take a lie-detector test to eliminate himself as a potential suspect in his daughter's disappearance.William ``Brad'' Jackson, 33, said he told sheriff's detectives who served a search warrant at his parents' house Saturday night that he is willing to submit to a polygraph examination.``They're supposed to call me,'' Jackson said during a brief interview Monday evening.
POLYGRAPH PLANNED FOR FATHER OF GIRL< VALIREE JACKSON'S FATHER HAS SAID HE WOULD TAKE TEST Sheriff's detectives plan to give the father of a missing Spokane Valley girl a lie-detector test as soon as they can schedule a time, officials said Tuesday.Investigators want William ``Brad'' Jackson to take a polygraph examination so they know whether to consider him a potential suspect in his daughter's disappearance.Nine-year-old Valiree Jackson vanished from her grandparents' home at 13319 E. Blossey on Oct. 18 and hasn't been seen since.Jackson,
MISSING GIRL INVESTIGATION HAS FEW LEADS SHERIFF'S DETECTIVES WILL MEET TO DISCUSS VALIREE JACKSON CASE Sheriff's detectives will meet later this week to decide what to do next in the case of a missing Spokane Valley girl.So far, investigators have developed no solid leads in the disappearance of 9-year-old Valiree Jackson.The girl was reported missing by her father, William ``Brad'' Jackson, the morning of Oct. 18. She hasn't been seen since.Jackson told authorities his daughter was waiting for him to walk her to school about 8:30 a.m. when she vanished. He and
VALLEY HOLDS VIGIL FOR MISSING GIRL< ABOUT 100 PEOPLE GATHER TO PRAY FOR VALIREE JACKSON Little voices spoke loudly Thursday night as people gathered to pray for Valiree Jackson and her family.``Valiree was my best friend. I miss her. ... Please come home soon, Valiree,'' Amber Van Haitsma, 8, said softly during a candlelight prayer vigil at Terrace View Park in the Spokane Valley.Amber and Valiree, schoolmates at McDonald Elementary, played together the day before Valiree disappeared on Oct. 18.Valiree, 9, last was seen in her yard in the 13300 block of East
GIRL'S FATHER INVESTIGATED< NAMED `PERSON OF INTEREST' IN JACKSON CASE The father of a 9-year-old girl missing since Oct. 18 was named a ``person of interest'' in the case as the Spokane County Sheriff's Department searched a popular hunting area in Stevens County Sunday afternoon.Valiree Jackson disappeared from her grandparents' home on East Blossey in the Spokane Valley, where she lived with her father, William ``Brad'' Jackson, 33.Though the Sheriff's Department wouldn't say what evidence it had found over the
DETECTIVES TRAIL DAD TO GRAVE JACKSON ARRESTED AFTER VALIREE'S BODY WAS MOVED The monthlong search for Valiree Jackson ended on Monday at a shallow grave off a remote logging road in Stevens County.Hours after discovering the freshly dug earth, Spokane County sheriff's detectives arrested her father, William ``Brad'' Jackson, for second-degree murder.The 33-year-old truck driver, who previously was on a suicide watch at a Spokane psychiatric hospital, is expected in court this afternoon for a probable cause hearing.The grave was discovered
DAD CHARGED WITH MURDER AUTOPSY REVEALS BODY IS VALIREE JACKSON Murder charges were filed against William ``Brad'' Jackson on Tuesday after an autopsy found that his daughter died of ``homicidal violence.''Jackson's bail was set at $1 million during an afternoon court hearing. Prosecutors argued that the 33-year-old truck driver posed a serious community risk, in part because of falsely reporting his daughter, Valiree Jackson, as a missing person four weeks ago.Spokane County Medical Examiner George Lindholm said the
JACKSON PROBE NOW INCLUDES CHILD, MOTHER VALIREE'S FATHER WAS LAST TO SEE EITHER ALIVE The murder investigation of Valiree Jackson widened Wednesday to include the 1992 disappearance of her mother.William ``Brad'' Jackson, the 33-year-old truck driver charged with Valiree's killing, is believed to be the last person to see the 9-year-old and her mother, Roseann Pleasant, alive, Sheriff's spokesman Dave Reagan said.Sheriff's detectives leading the murder investigation will be pooling information with Spokane police investigators looking into
PROSECUTORS STIFFEN CHARGES AGAINST JACKSON SUSPECT CHARGED WITH FIRST-DEGREE MURDER William ``Brad'' Jackson planned to kill his daughter, prosecutors decided Thursday as they upgraded charges to first-degree murder.Bail remains at $1 million. Jackson is being held in a cell in the Spokane County Jail on a suicide watch.Sheriff's spokesman Dave Reagan said prosecutors upgraded charges from second-degree to first-degree murder about 4 p.m. after reviewing reports from detectives.Prosecutors felt they had met the requirements for establishing
COMMUNITY DEALING WITH LOSS OF ANOTHER OF ITS CHILDREN When the neighbor's third grader came home from school, she asked if mommy or daddy was going to kill her.Shocked parents tried to assure her that would never, ever happen, that they would lay down their own lives to protect her.``That's probably what Valiree's father said,'' the girl replied.The only answer to that is tears.That's the kind of shock that hit home for my family and hundreds of our neighbors this week.Valiree Jackson's school
MOURNERS SAY GOODBYE TO VALIREE FAMILY, FRIENDS REMEMBER THE GIRL WITH THE GREAT SMILE She and grandma loved to sing ``You Are My Sunshine'' and ``Jesus Loves Me.''She loved to dress up like a cowgirl: White frilly shirt. Red Jeans.White straw hat. And a broad smile.Or serve high tea. Play with a puppy. Throw an arm around a pal.Also with a broad smile.Valiree Jackson's mother vanished about the time of the girl's second birthday. Valiree disappeared days after her ninth birthday.Police believe her father suffocated her,
DREAM BECAME NIGHTMARE CERTAIN SHE IS DEAD, FAMILY REMEMBERS VALIREE'S MOTHER Several months before Valiree Jackson's murder, her uncle and other family members started having nightmares.They dreamed the girl's mother, Roseann Stone Pleasant, was telling them ``find my baby.'' The Rev. John W. Stone awoke panicked, night after night. His face hurt to the point that he sought help from a doctor.``This was before Valiree was taken,'' he said Saturday afternoon during a memorial for both mother and daughter. ``Then when we got the call
THREE SEARCHES FIND NO SIGN OF MISSING WOMAN JACKSON'S FATHER INVESTIGATED IN MOTHER'S DISAPPEARANCE Investigators looking for slaying victim Valiree Jackson's missing mother have used cadaver-finding dogs to search the woods of Stevens County three times in the past week, officials said.But the searches have turned up no sign of Roseann Pleasant, who disappeared in 1992, Lt. Gene Ziegler of the Spokane Police Department said Monday.Detectives spent part of Friday and Sunday scouring the area where Valiree's body was discovered Nov. 15, Ziegler said.Sheriff's
THREE CHEERS FOR RESULT DESPITE QUESTIONABLE METHOD Sure, there are questions surrounding the use of the Global Positioning Systems device to find Valiree Jackson's body. But let's let the courts work on those. Meanwhile, no one can object to the results produced by the satellite spy system. Or the fine work performed by Spokane County sheriff's deputies to find the unfortunate 9-year-old's body and to arrest her father as a murder suspect. Equally impressive, sheriff's deputies dug through falling snow Sunday in hopes
SEARCHES TAKE TOLL ON VOLUNTEERS< BETRAYAL, DISGUST FELT WHEN DADS CHARGED WITH KILLING CHILDREN Twice this year, Spokane Valley fathers reported their children missing and asked for the public's help in finding them.The community responded by praying, volunteering for searches and posting pictures of the missing kids across the area.Both times, residents felt disgusted and hurt when the very men who asked for their help were charged with killing their missing kids - 11-year-old Christopher Wood and 9-year-old Valiree Jackson.``That's who we're out there for:
DETECTIVES SEEK CLUES IN DIARY VALIREE JACKSON WROTE DAD `WON'T LEAVE ME ALONE' A Spokane Valley man may have killed his 9-year-old daughter to cover up an inappropriate relationship he had with the girl, sheriff's detectives said in court documents released Wednesday.Brad Jackson ``repeatedly and inappropriately violated'' the personal boundaries of his daughter, Valiree, in the months leading up to her murder, sheriff's Sgt. Jim Goodwin wrote in an affidavit of probable cause.``At worst her father's actions were a display of power and
ALONG WITH SORROW A REASON TO REJOICE It's the eyes that get you. The young eyes, looking out into the world. Valiree Jackson had beautiful eyes. Christopher Wood did, too. How well parents know the bright eyes of children of a certain age, eyes captured in school and sports pictures.But eyes in photographs don't tell half the story of being a 9-year-old, Valiree's age when she was murdered. They don't hint at the complexity of 11, Christopher's age when he was murdered. In unrelated incidents, both
ACCUSED KILLER WON'T FACE DEATH PENALTY AUTHORITIES LACK EVIDENCE OF AGGRAVATING FACTOR IN THE VALIREE JACKSON MURDER CASE
Spokane prosecutors say they've found no evidence that justifies seeking the death penalty against accused murderer William "Brad" Jackson.
The Spokane man is accused of killing his daughter, 9-year-old Valiree Jackson, then burying her body in a remote part of Stevens County.
Chief Deputy Prosecutor Jack Driscoll said Friday the 1st-degree murder charge against Jackson won't be amended to add the death penalty.
The death penalty option was possible if the murder occurred in connection with the rape of a child. Driscoll said lab tests to establish whether Jackson sexually assaulted his daughter were "not conclusive."
Jackson, 33, has insisted he is innocent. He remains in jail under tight supervision with bail set at $1 million. His defense attorney, David Hearrean, was unavailable for comment.
Detectives have suggested that Jackson sexually assaulted his daughter, then strangled her to prevent her from telling authorities about that abuse.
Valiree Jackson vanished the morning of Oct. 18 from her grandparents' home. Valiree's grandmother, Karen Jackson, had left the home about 4:30 a.m. Brad Jackson reported Valiree missing at 8:45 a.m.
He was arrested last month after police officers tracked him by a satellite signaling device hidden on his truck while he was driving toward Stevens County.
Investigators said they believed Jackson, who had a shovel in the truck at the time, planned to rebury Valiree's body.
Prosecutors must establish at least one aggravating factor to seek the death penalty.
Driscoll said there's no evidence in Jackson's case that the child was murdered to conceal another crime. That fact would qualify as an aggravating factor, he said.
Investigators also tried and failed to find that aggravating factor when charging Robert Wood earlier this year. Wood, who killed himself in the Spokane County Jail, had been charged with the 1st-degree murder of his son Christopher, 11.
No conclusive evidence was found that Wood strangled his son to hide the arson of his burned-out Newman Lake home. Prosecutors theorize Wood burned the house to collect insurance money to pay off debts.
Test results are continuing to establish the source of blood found on Valiree Jackson's pillow. Another test has been submitted on a blood stain found on a car used by Jackson, said Driscoll.
State law allows prosecutors the option of later asking a judge to amend the 1st-degree murder charge against Jackson.
If that takes place, prosecutors would then have 30 days in which to
decide whether they'd seek the death penalty against Jackson. POLICE ASK WOMAN WHO LEFT TIP TO CALL BACK
Secret Witness is hoping for contact from a woman who used a name that begins with the letter ``J.''She had called Secret Witness in mid-November with information on the Valiree Jackson killing. Among other things, she mentioned a shoe Valiree wore and a backpack that had belonged to the 9-year-old victim.Secret Witness is asking the female caller to call again and leave a contact telephone number.This person will be called by a detective, but the caller's name and POLICE LOOK FOR BODY AT OLD JACKSON HOME RESIDENTS TELL OFFICIALS ABOUT BONE IN YARD, PROMPTING SEARCH
Spokane detectives used a cadaver-finding dog Thursday to search a Valley yard for the body of a murdered girl's missing mother.They found nothing.Investigators combed the back yard of a house at 7002 E. 6th Ave. for 30 minutes looking for the body of Roseann Pleasant.Relatives and friends haven't heard from Pleasant in seven years. Family members believe she's dead.Pleasant is the mother of 9-year-old Valiree Jackson, whose body was discovered in a shallow grave JUDGE OKS JACKSON EVIDENCE DEFENSE ATTORNEYS HOPED COURT WOULD SUPPRESS INFORMATION GAINED FROM GPS TRACKING
A judge on Tuesday rejected an attempt to throw out key evidence against Brad Jackson, who is accused of killing his 9-year-old daughter.Defense attorney Jim Kane wanted to suppress evidence that came from a satellite tracking system detectives used to track Jackson to Valiree Jackson's body.Jackson's attorneys said a judge approved a search warrant allowing the use of the tracking device based on a faulty polygraph test and incomplete information provided by WEST'S BILL TARGETS MURDERERS OF CHILDREN
State Sen. Jim West has drafted legislation that would create a new crime of first-degree murder of children, punishable by the death penalty.West named the measure the ``Valiree Jackson Act,'' for the 9-year-old girl whose body was found near Springdale on Nov. 15 last year.Spokane County sheriff's deputies say her father, William ``Brad'' Jackson, strangled her and buried her body in a shallow grave. He is in the Spokane County Jail on $1 million bond and is JACKSON SUBMITS PLEA OFFER TO PROSECUTOR
Attorneys for William ``Brad'' Jackson have submitted a plea to Spokane County prosecutors which, if agreed to, would keep their client from going to trial Sept. 5 on charges he killed his daughter.Public defender Jim Kane would not publicly disclose the specifics of the proposal he submitted last week, but said he was hopeful prosecutors would find favor with it.``At this particular time, we don't want to jeopardize any potential agreement,'' Kane said. The BRAD JACKSON PLEA BARGAIN REJECTED TRIAL OF MAN ACCUSED OF KILLING HIS 9-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER SLATED TO START SEPT. 5
Spokane County prosecutors rejected a plea offer Wednesday from the attorneys of a man accused of killing his 9-year-old daughter.That means the trial of William ``Brad'' Jackson, 33, likely will proceed as planned. Jury selection is scheduled to begin Sept. 5, with testimony set to start Sept. 18.Deputy Prosecutor Jack Driscoll could not be reached for comment Wednesday, but the rejection of the plea suggests that prosecutors believe they have a solid case against JACKSON LAWYERS WANT TRIAL MOVED
Citing excessive pretrial publicity, attorneys for William Brad Jackson said Wednesday they will ask a Superior Court judge to move the trial from Spokane County.Defense attorney Richard Fasy said it became clear to him that Jackson's trial needs to be moved after discovering that most of the 60 potential jurors for the recent murder trial of Stanley Pietrzak said they were more familiar with details of the Jackson case than Pietrzak's.Jackson is accused of suffocat ing his LAWYERS WANT TRIAL MOVED< ATTORNEYS CITE PRETRIAL PUBLICITY OF VALIREE JACKSON'S DEATH
Citing excessive pretrial publicity, attorneys for William Brad Jackson said Wednesday they will ask a Superior Court judge to move the trial from Spokane County.Defense attorney Richard Fasy said it became clear to him that Jackson's trial needs to be moved after discovering that most of the 60 potential jurors for the recent murder trial of Stanley Pietrzak said they were more familiar with details of the Jackson case than Pietrzak's.``Those jurors had much more pointed BENCHES TO HIGHLIGHT MISSING PEOPLE
Pictures of missing children and adults are usually associated with milk cartons and the walls of post offices.Advertising businessman John Stone - the uncle of Valiree Jackson - says they can be more effective on bus benches.On Friday, Stone discussed his plan to create a network of benches around Spokane County to feature photographs of missing people. The first is already inside the Rosauers on Sprague Avenue in the Spokane Valley.Stone said the benches will cost between $600 and JACKSON PROSECUTOR SUGGESTS MOTIVE HE SAYS FATHER KILLED GIRL BECAUSE SHE STOOD IN WAY OF MARRIAGE
William Bradley Jackson murdered his daughter because the woman he wanted to marry did not get along with the 9-year-old girl, according to a deputy prosecutor at a pretrial hearing Friday.But defense attorneys argued - unsuccessfully - that a judge should prevent jurors from hearing that ``unfounded'' theory.Superior Court Judge James Murphy ruled the state can introduce testimony about Jackson's dating history before and after Valiree Jackson's death.Murphy WOULD FATHER KILL DAUGHTER FOR LOVE? CRIES OF ANGUISH LAUNCH A WRENCHING INVESTIGATION THAT LEADS BACK TO THE FATHER OF A DEAD LITTLE GIRL
The clean-cut, red-headed man sprinted across the manicured lawns in a state of panic. His cries broke the morning calm.``By God, by God, I can't find Valiree!'' he shouted.Neighbors left their coffee and newspapers to check on the fuss. The retirees and dog walkers in the Spokane Valley neighborhood had not been aware of any trouble on that morning of Oct. 18, 1999.The man sprinting through their yards, Brad Jackson, was known to friends, neighbors and co-workers as One by one they came, those who loved Valiree Jackson.At the red-leafed plum tree on the grounds of McDonald Elementary School on Friday, students, parents and teachers tied birthday balloons on the branches or nestled bouquets at the trunk. Friday was Valiree's 10th birthday. It was also a day of healing for this emotionally exhausted school community.``What the tree is saying to me is, `Valiree, we love you and we know you're OK,''' said former McDonald