Scott William Cox

Scott William Cox (born November 3, 1963) is a suspected American serial killer, convicted on two separate counts of homicide in 1993 in Portland, Oregon, and suspected of many more. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison but was granted parole in 2013, five years early. He currently is serving a post-prison supervision term of life. He is also the prime suspect in 20 unsolved murder cases throughout the United States and Canada, although charges were never brought against him.

Life before murder convictions Since 1975, Cox has been admitted to mental institutions 115 times. He was convicted of forgery and gun theft prior to his murder convictions. At the time of his arrest for murder, he was living under post-prison supervision for the crime of forgery. He worked as a long-haul truck driver, operating mainly within the Pacific Northwest, and traveling as far as Canada and Mexico, and as far east as Ohio.

On November 24, 1990, Rheena Ann Brunson, a 34-year-old woman, was found in front of a Portland, Oregon Safeway store. She had been severely beaten, had cuts on her chin, neck, and back, and had been handcuffed and stabbed in the heart. She was found alive but in critical condition. She was swiftly transported to the hospital, but was soon pronounced dead.

Attempted murder and investigation On May 30, 1991, a female victim of Cox was found alive in downtown Seattle. She had been beaten, bitten, raped, and left for dead. She had ligature marks around her neck and a wine bottle had been forced into her rectum. A witness reported seeing the victim thrown out of the cab of a truck. The victim lived, but required hospitalization. She was interviewed by a local detective, who advised her to prosecute. However, she didn't pursue charges and subsequently left the state.

Upon further investigation, it was revealed that Cutter had previously assaulted another woman on November 26, 1990. A witness reported seeing Cutter in a Mazda with Oregon license plates. Cutter revealed that he was a resident of Newberg, Oregon and lived in a motel in the town when he was not on the road. Fearing that he was a serial killer, police issued a bulletin for Oregon and Washington for Seth Scott Cutter.

Detectives in Newberg recognized Cutter but knew him as Scott William Cox, his real name. He was charged and convicted of forgery for creating fake identification under a pseudonym. Around the same time, he was also charged and convicted of gun theft in Medford, Oregon served a six-month jail sentence. Newberg detectives opened a murder investigation into Cox in 1991, and he ultimately confessed to the murder of Rheena Ann Brunson.

Cox claimed he was mad at his girlfriend and wanted to release his anger by beating a prostitute. After drinking whiskey and snorting cocaine, he picked up Brunson in his car and then began beating her. As she attempted to escape, Cox stabbed her once in the heart, left her for dead, and drove away. He also confessed to the murder of Victoria Rhone and to beating several other women, but denied killing anyone else.

Prior to his murder convictions, Cox had already gained the attention of detectives nationwide due to his job as a long-haul truck driver. His work took him to over 3000 different locations throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico, He was sentenced to two 150-month consecutive terms followed by lifetime post-prison supervision. In an interview with the local Fox affiliate in Portland, Oregon, a district attorney in the case against Cox explained that the case had been hurt due to police investigators improperly obtaining the confession. The judge had dismissed the confessions in court, and the prosecution relied solely on DNA evidence to prove the murders.

Had these confessions not been dismissed, Cox may have been charged with aggravated murder, which could have led to life in prison or even capital punishment.

Release from prison and parole violations After serving 20 years of his 25-year sentence, Scott William Cox was released on parole on February 22, 2013. He is required to wear a GPS tracking device, is geographically restricted to Yamhill County, cannot go to parks or bars, and is subject to a curfew every night, unless given permission. Because he was living in Yamhill County, Oregon at the time of his arrest, he was returned there upon his release. He was sent to live in subsidized Yamhill County jail housing. Yamhill County Corrections issued a community alert prior to his release, in order to warn the public of his danger and to advise the public not to attempt to apprehend him.

A sex offender package was added to Cox's parole, which required him to stay away from children and schools. On September 30, 2013, he was sentenced to 90 days in jail after surveillance video caught him smuggling chewing tobacco into the county jail. He was again arrested for parole violations on December 1, 2014, May 13, 2014, and January 7, 2016, although details of these have not been provided to the public. and Stephanie Douglas of McMinnville, Oregon, who went missing in November 1990. However, the identities of the majority of other possible victims have not been made public, and many investigations are ongoing.