Oregon Man Indicted in Deaths of 2 Girls Buried at His Home

A grand jury indicted an Oregon man Friday on charges of murdering two girls whose bodies were found buried at his home in August, just yards from their own homes.

Ward Weaver, a 39-year-old toolmaker with a history of violence against women, was already in jail on charges of raping his son’s girlfriend. The son had called police on Aug. 13 and said his father had admitted killing Ashley Pond, 12, and Miranda Gaddis, 13.

Weaver pleaded not guilty to the new charges and showed no emotion as court officials read out the 17 counts, ranging from rape and aggravated murder to sexual abuse and abuse of a corpse. The charges including new allegations that he raped a 15-year-old girl in July.

After the hearing, which followed a week of grand jury testimony, Clackamas County Dist. Atty. John Foote told reporters he would seek the death penalty if Weaver is convicted.

“This kind of crime is terrible and it can scare all of us,” Foote said.