Crimes & Justice

Coquille, Ore., Oct. 27, 2009 – Cory Courtright continues her quest for justice in the murder of her daughter, Leah Freeman, even as she faces another painful anniversary on Thursday, Oct. 29 – the day that would have been Leah’s 25th birthday. Freeman’s life was cut tragically short when, at fifteen years old, she disappeared while walking home in Coquille, Ore. the night of June 29, 2000. Her body was discovered in Fairview, a wooded town eight miles outside of Coquille, more than a month later on Aug. 3, 2000. After an autopsy was performed, it was determined that Freeman died from homicidal violence.

Nearly a decade after her death, the murder remains unsolved and Courtright is making a plea to local law enforcement, “I am simply asking Coos County District Attorney Paul Frasier to dedicate a cold case team to re-investigate Leah’s murder. I don’t feel like the agencies handling the case have ever been in sync and with all of the personnel changes at the Coquille Police Department I fear that crucial details of the investigation could very well have fallen through the cracks.”

Courtright says she was aware of an active investigation before her daughter’s body was found, but has heard very little about other developments in the case since that point in time. Legal documents that were released to the public several years ago detail the initial investigation. Search warrants were executed on Nicholas McGuffin, Freeman’s boyfriend at the time of her death, and his friend Brent Bartley, two of the last people known to have had contact with her before she disappeared. Additionally, both McGuffin and Bartley submitted to polygraph examinations and failed. McGuffin failed the polygraph when asked key questions in regards to Freeman’s disappearance and Bartley partially failed the polygraph when asked if he had knowledge of what happened to her. A grand jury was scheduled for August 2000, but called off following the discovery of Freeman’s body. No suspects have been named in the case.

In June, Coos County District Attorney Paul Frasier explained to local media that while the case is considered “cold,” investigators remain active following any and all tips they receive. In regards to the search warrant affidavits for McGuffin and Bartley and other legal documents released in regards to the case, Frasier told local media that “the persons named have not been excluded as potential suspects.” Those legal documents are available to download and view at http://leahfreeman.com/documents.htm.

Courtright doesn’t feel like this is enough, “They need to do more than follow-up on tips, they need to have a dedicated team go back and look through all of the files again, re-interview everyone involved and re-examine all of the evidence.”

Anyone with information regarding Leah’s murder is encouraged to contact the Coquille Police Department at (541) 396-2114, or Coos Stop Crime at (541) 267-6666. Courtright’s family is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.

For more information please visit Justice for Leah on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/pages/Justice-for-Leah/143634984432, or at http://www.leahfreeman.com/.

To my other fellow bloggers please repost this story and lets put renewed interest in this story.

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