PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — In 1976, George William Nulph kidnapped and murdered a woman in Cannon Beach. He was let out of prison about 10 years later and then raped women in Portland.
Now Nulph, who has spent the last 30 years in prison, is set for a parole hearing Tuesday.
The 64-year-old convict argues he’s no longer a threat to the community and should be released. But district attorneys representing Clatsop and Multnomah counties are fighting to keep him locked up.
The first case
In 1976, Frances Christians — the mother of 2 young children – was on her way home from work in Cannon Beach when Nulph kidnapped her, then sexually assaulted her and shot her to death execution-style.
The Daily Astorian, April 8, 1976:George William Nulph, a 24-year-old ex-Marine arrested for murder and kidnapping charges Wednesday morning was arraigned on the charges in Clatsop District Courty Wednesday afternoon. He entered no plea. …Nulph was arrested at his residence at 165 SW Cedar, Warrenton, accused of abducting 51-year-old Frances Ann Christians April 2 from Silver Point and taking her to a logging road and shooting her.Ms. Christians died of three gunshot wounds in the chest by a .22 caliber weapon after being sexually assaulted. Police say they haven’t determined the motive in the slaying. …”
Nulph was given a “life” sentence for the crimes that shocked Clatsop County.
“Less than 10 years later, the Department of Corrections gave him a, quote, temporary leave and simply let him out of prison,” said Josh Marquis, the current Clatsop County DA.
The second case
Weeks after he was let out of prison on a “temporary leave” in 1986, he raped women in Multnomah County. Nulph went to prison in 1987 for the sex crimes and was sentenced as a dangerous offender.
“The reason Measure 11 passed, the reason we developed even moderately tough-on-crime laws in the 1990s was because of cases like Nulph’s,” Marquis told KOIN 6 News.
“One could make the argument, I suppose, that the man has done 30 years in prison for the rapes, which was the minimum he was sentenced,” Marquis said. “Why not give him a chance, you know, to show that he’s, in fact, rehabilitated himself.”
The parole fight
George Nulph was sentenced for the sex crimes as a dangerous offender. Judge Stephen Herrell sentenced him to a minimum of 80 years. After 80 years, he could be considered for parole.
Later that year, the parole board reviewed his sentence, deemed it excessive and reduced it, making him eligible for parole now.
According to court documents, part of Nulph’s fight to get a parole hearing is his claim the anti-social personality disorder that made him dangerous is in remission.
Clatsop County DA Josh Marquis, January 5, 2017 (KOIN)
Marquis doesn’t believe that.
“I can’t at this point share the psychological reports but I can say that they are among the scariest I’ve ever read and I’ve handled over two dozen murder cases,” he said.
Nulph’s good behavior, Marquis said is “because he’s in a facility (prison.) It’s sort of a Catch-22.”
Marquis argues that not only is Nulph still dangerous, he was never held accountable for committing the sex crimes during his murder release “because it (the murder) was lost by the institutional memory of the state of Oregon.”
Marquis admitted, though, Nulph was punished for the sex crimes in 1986.
“In fairness, he was punished for the crimes of rape and sodomy by Multnomah County and the judges that had authority over that. And in fairness the parole board that exists today bears no relationship either to the institution or the people that existed back in the ’70s and ’80s.”
But his concern is based on the law.
“As bizarre as this sounds,” Marquis said, “the parole board is obligated to impose the rule of law that existed when he committed the crime, which is essentially 1976.”
If his full sentence had remained in place, he would not have been eligible for parole until around 2062. But now, for the first time, George Nulph gets a parole hearing.
Nulph’s parole hearing is Tuesday morning at the Oregon State Correctional Institution in Salem. A decision could take several weeks.
KOIN 6 News will continue to follow this story.