Community in shock over another Condon death
DOUGLAS COUNTY, Ore. -- Douglas County residents are in shock, as the Condon family is thrust into the spotlight yet again. After first losing their teen daughter Stephanie Condon in 1998, her father Marty is gone now too.
The Douglas County Sheriff's office confirmed Friday morning that Martin Condon died late Wednesday night from a gunshot wound.
Marty's wife Christine called 911 Wednesday night and told dispatchers that her husband had shot himself and needed help. Deputies responded to the home on Canyonville-Riddle road, and tried to save Marty, performing CPR and other life-saving measures.
Martin Condon was pronounced dead at the scene.
The investigation into the incident is still ongoing, and residents told KPIC News that the whole thing is like a bad dream.
One Riddle resident, Clarice Larison, said it was a tragedy linked to his daughter's death. "I guess he just, I guess he just might want to be with his daughter," she said.
Although questions remain about what exactly happened in the Condon home one thing is for sure: the entire community is showing their support for the Condon family.
Dorene McKissack says, "I just can't imagine. I can't imagine what they must be going through. But my prayers are with them."
Not only the community is mourning the loss of Marty Condon. Douglas County Sheriff's deputy Dwes Hutson says that even though the department has worked with the Condons for years, they still have a job to do. "We obviously know the Condon family very well," Hutson said. "I mean, we went through a 10-plus year investigation with that family, so we're very familiar with them. But that, in one sense, doesn't really have anything to do with the work we're performing now."
Hutson went on to speak about what happens now. "It's a death investigation, investigators are going to do the same work that they'd do at someone's house that they didn't know. They want to do a thorough and complete investigation and make sure we cover all the bases so that we can do the best job for citizens of Douglas County and for the Condon family."
The Condon family has been in the news for years, first when their teen daughter Stephanie went missing from a Myrtle Creek home where she was babysitting. On October 30, 1998, Cheryl Ritchey returned home at about 1:30 a.m., finding her twins asleep and her cousin, Stephanie Condon, gone. Stephanie, a 14-year-old honor student, was babysitting Ritchey's twins at their home south of Myrtle Creek when she vanished wearing only a t-shirt and pajama bottoms. Her shoes, backpack and purse were found at the house.
Investigators immediately suspected foul play. Helicopters, ground crews and dogs combed the woods of Douglas County.
Investigators focused in on Dale Wayne Hill, a man who stopped by the trailer the night Stephanie disappeared. A month after Condon vanished, Hill was arrested and charged with burglary for breaking into a Myrtle Creek home and stealing a pair of women's panties.
From behind bars, Dale Hill said he didn't take Stephanie in an interview with KPIC News. "The people
who know what happened are out there," he said, "and there is an innocent man behind bars."
Over the years, Stephanie's parents kept the search alive. National TV shows like "Without a Trace" featured the case. The family launched a website and posted billboards along roadways soliciting information.
A hiker found skeletal remains near an abandoned logging road on Friday, March 13, 2009. Police announced about a week later that the remains were those of Stephanie Condon.
Dale Wayne Hill was taken into custody in Nevada the same day on an unrelated charge.
>>> See all stories on the Condon Case
In March of 2011, his trial for the kidnapping and murder started in a Douglas County courtroom.
Marty Condon, alongside his wife Christine, spoke about the case for the first time on April 6, 2011 at the KPIC studios.Condon said that while they disagree with the verdict, they weren't surprised.
"Obviously we're very disappointed in that verdict. I don't blame the jury, they had a tough job," Marty said. "They didn't make the leap in their thought process, but I don't blame them. Under the rules, I probably would have voted not guilty myself."
"I have a very strong dislike for the tactics that the defense attorney's used," said Condon. "Maybe [they're] borderline legal, but tasteless."
Condon said he's not happy with the outcome, but doesn't believe there was anything else the prosecution could have done to get a different verdict.
"There wasn't a single person involved with this investigation that didn't do their best," Condon said. "Their hearts were always in the right place. Christine and I were painfully aware of all the legal limitations, as the detectives were very concerned with Hill's rights, and they wanted to do it right. We just came up short."
Their main frustration lays in a pile of legal limitations.
"We can't say Hill was convicted of robbery in 1998, but more specifically we can't say that all he stole was women panties and lingerie, constituting a sexually oriented crime," Condon said. "There's lots of rules for victims. There's lots of things we couldn't say, there's lots of things we couldn't do. A lot of it had to do with rights."
They told KPIC News that the next step for them could be a civil trial. "A civil suit isn't out of the question," he said.
"He killed our daughter, no doubt in our minds," said Condon. "He temporarily got away with it. I believe that we can prove that by a preponderance of evidence in a civil court."
"I didn't know how the system was supposed to work and now I have a taste for it," he said. "I'm not particularly fond of it."
Marty and Christine Condon said any civil suit would not be about the money, but a way to provide some justice.
Sadly, Martin won't be able to see that happen. He was 53-years-old.
