Tech CEO Released for Third Time in Connection With 1992 Murder

A tech executive was released after being detained in connection with a 30 year old murder — for the third time.

Authorities have long connected Oracle engineer John Kevin Woodward to the death of Laurie Houts, who was found dead in the passenger seat of her car back in 1992.

The 25-year-old's body was discovered at the time on Crittenden Lane in Mountain View, California, which is now the site of Google's main campus, SFGATE reported. She was reportedly strangled, with a nylon rope still wrapped around her neck.

Mountain View police named Woodward as a suspect at the time. Woodward was living with Hout's boyfriend when the murder occurred. He was arrested about a month after Houts’ death after police found three of his fingerprints on her car.

Woodward was tried twice in the 1990s. Both proceedings ended in hung juries. A judge told prosecutors that the case could not be tried again until new evidence was introduced.

In late 2020, Mountain View police said they found a match for Woodward’s DNA at the crime scene and discovered more of his fingerprints on the car, according to SFGATE.

Woodward moved to the Netherlands after his two trials. He later became the CEO and president of ReadyTech, an Oakland company that provides online training software. 

He returned to the US in July of last year. He was taken into custody at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York and extradited to California.

Santa Clara County Judge Shella Deen dismissed the new case against Woodward due to double jeopardy, since he had already been tried and released twice.

The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office told the outlet that they plan to appeal the decision.

Houts' family is continuing their fight for justice as well.

"The appeals process is how you actually change the system, and that’s really what needs to happen. So we’re going to fight with this appeals process and hopefully get some justice," Cindy Ivers, Houts' sister, told KTVU.

Marilyn Reiss, Houts' friend, told the station that the decision could have devastating consequences for cold cases where new DNA evidence has been introduced.

"If this judge can make this decision on our case, then all cold cases going forward where DNA evidence has been found later on, after decades of families waiting, then their cases are in jeopardy also," Reiss said.