News For those of you keeping track of convicted child murderer Diane Downs, she's up for another parole hearing Dec. 10. Downs, perhaps Oregon's most notorious female convict, shot her three young children on May 19, 1983 on a dirt road in Springfield in Lane County. She killed one of the children and wounded the two others, then claimed a "bushy-haired stranger" had pulled the trigger. One of Downs' ...   More

News KATU is reporting that the father of convicted child murderer Diane Downs, one of Oregon's most notorious killers, is offering a $50,000 reward for information that leads to the "real killer." "My name is Wesley Frederickson, I'm Diane Downs father," the website reads. "She is in prison for shooting her children. Diane did not shoot her children." Seems Mr. Frederickson is taking a page from ...   More

News There may be no more infamous criminal in recent Oregon history than Diane Downs. She was convicted in 1984 of shooting three of her children, killing one of them. Downs later escaped briefly from prison and was made (more) infamous by "Small Sacrifices" a 1987 best-seller written by Ann Rule and a 1989 TV movie starring Farrah Fawcett. After Downs' conviction but before her sentencing, Downs ...   More

News Veteran Oregonian reporter Lisa Grace Lednicer got fired today after more than 12 years at the daily. Lednicer recently co-wrote a story that was published in Glamour magazine about Diane Downs' mystery daughter — a puzzling decision given that the story would have had great interest among readers of The Oregonian. Downs is perhaps Oregon's most notorious criminal after fatally shooting ...   More

News In the process of reporting this week's story about the pace of the Kyron Horman investigation, more than one source drew parallels to Oregon's notorious Diane Downs case. To anyone hoping for a speedy resolution—including Multnomah County Chair Jeff Cogen—the example is not a heartening one. On May 19, 1983, Downs shot her three children in Springfield, Ore., and drove them to the ...   More