Oregon man freed after more than two decades on death row
Eric Mason • July 2, 2025
Jesse Lee Johnson spent over two decades on death row for the 1998 murder of a Salem woman, despite his claims of innocence.
SALEM, Ore. — Jesse Lee Johnson walked out of the Marion County Jail Tuesday evening. The 62-year-old had been behind bars for 25 years for a murder he denied committing. He was convicted and sentenced to death in 2004.
"It was emotional to see on his face, just this feeling of freedom," said Eric Mason.
Mason is a private investigator who spent years working with the Oregon Innocence Project to free Johnson, who was charged in 1998 with killing Harriet Thompson in her Salem apartment. In 2004, despite his claims of innocence, Johnson was convicted and sentenced to death for killing the mother of five.