Offender Record · OFF-2026-150
Adolph James Rode (photo from the Radford University biography)
Adolph James Rode Jr.
Also known as Cesar Francesco Barone, Jimmy
Sex
Male
Race
White
Born
1960
Custody
Deceased
States
FL, GA, OR, WA, US
Custody
Deceased at Oregon State Penitentiary
Custody record at the facility
Died December 24, 2009 at Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem, Oregon of natural causes.
This record documents arrests, charges and convictions reported by courts, law enforcement agencies and news organizations. Every statement is tied to a cited source with an archived copy. A charge is an accusation, not proof of guilt; a person charged is presumed innocent unless convicted. Where a record says named by police, no charge was ever filed: the record rests on a law enforcement agency's public identification of the deceased person, cited below. Not guilty by reason of insanity means the court found the act proven but the person not criminally responsible. Solve the Case does not allege that this person committed any offense beyond what the cited records state, and this record is not a suggestion that the person is connected to any unsolved case. How records are built, corrected and removed.
Summary of the record
Adolph James Rode Jr., who legally changed his name to Cesar Francesco Barone in 1987, was convicted of four murders and multiple sexual assaults in Oregon. Between 1991 and 1993, Rode raped and murdered Margaret Schmidt, Martha Bryant, and Chantee Woodman in the Portland and Hillsboro areas, and was convicted in the death of Betty Williams during a sexual assault. He received three death sentences and an additional 89-year sentence. Rode died of natural causes on December 24, 2009, while incarcerated on death row at Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem.
Documented Arrests, Charges and Convictions
Dispositions are shown exactly as the cited records report them. Pending charges are updated when a court acts; a record with no remaining conviction or pending charge is removed from the site.
Offense date Oct 05, 1976, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Attempted rape and sexual assault of elderly neighbor
Broward County Sheriff's Office, Florida · Sentence: Two months in juvenile detention facility
At age 15, Rode broke into the home of Alice Stock, age 71, and attempted rape at knifepoint. He was later suspected in her murder.
SourcesSerial Murderer? Florida Police Track Convicted Killer In Oregon; Cesar Barone
Offense date 1977, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Assault of school teacher
Broward County Sheriff's Office, Florida
Rode was arrested for assaulting a school teacher.
SourcesRadford University serial killer biography: Rode, Adolph James
Offense date 1977, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Rape and sexual assault of stepmother
Broward County Sheriff's Office, Florida
Rode attempted to rape and slash his stepmother, who managed to escape.
SourcesRadford University serial killer biography: Rode, Adolph James; Cesar Barone
Offense date 1980, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Attempted rape of grandmother
Broward County Sheriff's Office, Florida
Rode was charged with and tried for the attempted murder and assault of his 70-year-old grandmother, Mattie Marino, but was acquitted due to lack of evidence despite her testimony that he choked her, beat her with a rolling pin, and robbed her.
SourcesRadford University serial killer biography: Rode, Adolph James; Cesar Barone
Offense date Aug 1983, Cross City, Florida
Battery on female corrections officer; attempted rape
Florida Department of Corrections · Florida courts · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: 3 years added to existing prison sentence
While incarcerated at Cross City Correctional Institution, Rode assaulted female prison officer Gladys Dean, age 59, and attempted to rape her. He was convicted of battery and received an additional 3 years.
SourcesRadford University serial killer biography: Rode, Adolph James; Cesar Francesco Barone
Offense date Apr 1991, Hillsboro, Oregon
Rape and murder of Margaret Schmidt
Washington County District Attorney, Oregon · Washington County Circuit Court, Oregon · ORS 163.095 · Arrested Feb 27, 1993 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: Death; two counts of aggravated felony murder
Rode broke into 61-year-old Margaret Helen Schmidt's home in Hillsboro on April 19, 1991, raped and strangled her to death, then stole money and left. Her body was discovered by a social worker.
SourcesRadford University serial killer biography: Rode, Adolph James; Cesar Barone; State v. Barone
Offense date Sep 23, 1992, Hillsboro, Oregon
Murder of Elizabeth Wasson
Washington County District Attorney, Oregon · Named by police; died before charges Named by police; died before charges
DNA evidence collected in the 1990s but not tested until 2023 linked Rode to the September 23, 1992 murder of 82-year-old Elizabeth Wasson in her Hillsboro home. He was suspected for decades but never charged before his death.
SourcesDNA Ties 1992 Murder to Serial Killer
Offense date Oct 09, 1992, Hillsboro, Oregon
Rape and murder of Martha Bryant
Washington County District Attorney, Oregon · Washington County Circuit Court, Oregon · ORS 163.095 · Arrested Feb 27, 1993 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: Death; four counts of aggravated murder
On October 9, 1992, Rode shot 41-year-old nurse-midwife Martha Browning Bryant while she drove home from work on Cornell Road near Hillsboro. He shot her car, forced her onto the sidewalk, dragged her into his vehicle, drove approximately one-third mile, shot her in the head at close range, and left her body in the middle of Northeast 231st Avenue.
SourcesRadford University serial killer biography: Rode, Adolph James; Cesar Barone; State v. Barone
Offense date Dec 30, 1992, Portland, Oregon
Rape and murder of Chantee Woodman
Washington County District Attorney, Oregon · Washington County Circuit Court, Oregon · ORS 163.095 · Arrested Feb 27, 1993 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: Death; four counts of aggravated felony murder and attempted rape
On December 30, 1992, Rode picked up 23-year-old Chantee Elise Woodman at the Satyricon nightclub in downtown Portland, possibly with an accomplice. She was raped, shot in the head, and her body left along U.S. Highway 26 near Vernonia.
SourcesRadford University serial killer biography: Rode, Adolph James; Cesar Barone; State v. Barone
Offense date Jan 06, 1993, Portland, Oregon
Sexual assault and murder of Betty Williams
Washington County District Attorney, Oregon · Washington County Circuit Court, Oregon · ORS 163.115 · Arrested Feb 27, 1993 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: 89 years; two counts of felony murder
On January 6, 1993, Rode broke into 51-year-old Betty Lou Williams' Portland apartment and sexually assaulted her. She died of a natural heart attack during the assault.
SourcesRadford University serial killer biography: Rode, Adolph James; Cesar Barone; State v. Barone
Pattern and Background
Victim counts and the pattern of the offenses as stated by courts, agencies and the cited reporting. Suspected counts are what officials have said publicly, not a finding of this site.
4
Victims convicted
0
Victims confessed
2
Victims suspected
Active years
1991–1993
Stated motive
Sexual
Range from home
regional
Accomplice
Yes
Education
high school
Marital history
Married, Divorced
Children
1
Military discharge
general
Died
2009-12-24 · natural
Agencies
Law enforcement, prosecutors and corrections agencies the records show dealing with this person. An investigator working a case with a possible connection can start here.
Washington County District Attorney's Office · OR
Prosecuted murders of Margaret Schmidt (1991), Martha Bryant (1992), Chantee Woodman (1992), Betty Williams (1993), Elizabeth Wasson (1992 cold case solved 2026)
Source: Oregon Supreme Court, Oregon Supreme Court, Crime Online
Broward County Sheriff's Office · FL
Handled 1976-1977 rape/assault charges and 1980 attempted rape of grandmother (acquitted); 1983 battery on corrections officer
Source: Radford University Department of Psychology, Seattle Times
Oregon Department of Corrections · OR
Held Rode/Barone on death row at Oregon State Penitentiary, Salem until his death in 2009
Hillsboro Police Department · OR
Reopened and solved 1992 Elizabeth Wasson murder via DNA in 2023-2026
Washington County Sheriff's Office · OR
Investigated Oregon murders; involved in cold case unit solving Wasson murder (2026)
Florida Department of Corrections · FL
Held Rode during 1983 battery on female corrections officer incident
Oregon State Police Forensic Laboratory · OR
Conducted DNA testing that linked Barone to Wasson murder cold case (2023-2026)
Places Lived, Worked and Frequented
Each place and date range comes from a cited record. Dates marked approximate are as reported. Know a place that is missing? Use Edit record under the photo; a moderator reviews it before it appears.
FL
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
approx. 1960 – 1977 · Southwest Fort Lauderdale, modest home with father and stepmother Stella Hall
Florida
approx. 1977 – 1979 · Juvenile detention home; Baker Correctional Institution
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
approx. 1979 – 1980 · Released from detention; returned to father's home
Florida
approx. 1980 – 1987 · Sumpter Correctional Institute (August 1981); Marion Correctional Institute (December 10, 1981); Cross City Correctional Institution (October 6, 1982); Florida State Prison (October 26, 1983)
GA
Fort Benning, Georgia
approx. 1989 – 1989 · Basic training · army
OR
Hillsboro, Oregon
approx. 1988 – 1993 · Married to Kathi Scarbrough; moved to Oregon in 1988
Hillsboro, Oregon
approx. 1990 – Feb 1993 · After Army discharge; nursing home work
Washington, Oregon
Feb 27, 1993 · Arrested on February 27, 1993 for attempted rape, sodomy, menacing, and burglary against Matilda Gardner; held for later charges
Washington, Oregon
approx. Feb 27, 1993 – Jan 1995 · Washington County jail; awaiting trial for Martha Bryant murder
Salem, Oregon
Jan 31, 1995 – Dec 24, 2009 · Oregon State Penitentiary; death row
US
Washington, Columbia
approx. 1987 – 1988 · Moved to Washington state after release with no parole requirements
WA
Fort Lewis, Washington
Jun 22, 1989 – Sep 1990 · 75th Ranger Regiment, 2nd Battalion, B Company; Operation Just Cause (December 1989, Panama) · army
Known Vehicles
Vehicles and approximate dates of ownership or use, as reported in the cited records. A photo next to a vehicle is the vehicle itself as published.
1968 Oldsmobile 442 or Chevrolet Chevelle (damaged from ramming Bryant's car); police were initially searching for one of these two vehicles in Martha Bryant murder
approx. 1992 – 1992
Used in Martha Bryant murder on October 9, 1992
Timeline
Dec 04, 1960
Adolph James Rode Jr. born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
1965
Rode's mother left the family; Rode's father married Stella Hall.
Oct 05, 1975
At age 15, Rode broke into neighbor Alice Stock's home and attempted rape at knifepoint; received two months in juvenile detention.
1977
Rode placed into juvenile detention home for burglary and soon arrested for assaulting a school teacher; charged with rape and assault of stepmother; attempted rape of stepmother (she escaped).
1980
Rode attempted to brutally beat his 70-year-old grandmother; tried for attempted murder but acquitted; charged with murder of 71-year-old neighbor Alice Stock but later released from two years juvenile detention for attacking her.
Jul 1981
Rode escaped from maximum security in Florida and was recaptured.
Aug 1981
Rode transferred to Sumpter Correctional Institute; convicted of attempting escape.
Dec 10, 1981
Rode transferred to Marion Correctional Institute.
Oct 06, 1982
Rode transferred to Cross City Correctional Institution for maximum-security inmates.
Aug 1983
Rode assaulted female corrections officer Gladys Dean, age 59, and attempted to rape her at Cross City Correctional Institution.
Oct 26, 1983
Rode transferred to Florida State Prison.
Jan 1984
Rode convicted of battery on Gladys Dean; sentenced to 3 years added to prison sentence.
Dec 1985
Rode met and communicated with Ted Bundy on several occasions while incarcerated at Florida State Prison.
Jul 07, 1986
Rode began writing and answering personal ads from Washington newspaper given by Ted Bundy; began correspondence with Kathi Scarbrough.
1987
Rode released from Florida prison with no parole requirements; moved to Washington state.
Sep 22, 1987
Rode legally changed his name to Cesar Francesco Barone.
Oct 1988
Barone married Kathi Scarbrough and moved to Hillsboro, Oregon; held six different jobs during first year of marriage.
Jan 1989
Barone enlisted in U.S. Army under new name and lied about felony criminal convictions.
Jun 22, 1989
Barone transferred to Fort Lewis, Washington and assigned to 75th Ranger Regiment, 2nd Battalion; received sharpshooter qualification with M-16, parachute badge, and EMT training.
Dec 1989
Barone participated in Operation Just Cause in Panama to capture Manuel Noriega.
Sep 1990
Barone received general discharge from Army after police told Army officials about his birth name and prior criminal history.
Sep 23, 1990
Barone visited 80-year-old Evelyn Hall on several occasions and fondled her.
Jan 1991
Barone and Kathi had a son.
Apr 1991
Barone raped and strangled to death 61-year-old Margaret Schmidt inside her home in Hillsboro, Oregon.
Sep 23, 1992
Barone murdered 82-year-old Elizabeth Wasson in her Hillsboro home (confirmed by DNA in 2026, posthumously).
Oct 09, 1992
Barone shot and wounded 41-year-old nurse-midwife Martha Bryant on Cornell Road in Hillsboro as she drove home from work; sexually assaulted her and shot her in the head, killing her.
Dec 30, 1992
Barone picked up 23-year-old Chantee Woodman at the Satyricon nightclub in Portland; raped and shot her to death; left her body along U.S. Highway 26 near Vernonia.
Jan 06, 1993
Barone broke into 51-year-old Betty Williams' Portland apartment and sexually assaulted her; she died of a heart attack during the assault.
Feb 27, 1993
Barone arrested on suspicion of attempted rape, sodomy, menacing, and burglary against Matilda Gardner; held pending other charges.
Apr 29, 1993
Barone charged with aggravated murder of Martha Browning Bryant.
May 11, 1993
Barone indicted with first degree murder charge for Chantee Woodman.
Jun 10, 1993
Barone indicted for felony murder of Betty Williams.
Feb 1994
Barone convicted of 14 charges including burglary, theft, attempted sodomy, and rape; sentenced to 44 years in prison.
Jan 30, 1995
Barone convicted of aggravated murder, kidnapping, attempted rape, and trying to conceal crimes in Martha Bryant case; sentenced to death.
Nov 1995
Barone convicted of 5 counts of aggravated murder and 3 counts of felony murder; sentenced to 89 years for felony death of Betty Williams and to 2 death sentences for Chantee Woodman and Margaret Schmidt.
Jan 08, 1996
Barone extradited to Florida to face charges for murder of Alice Stock.
Dec 10, 1998
Oregon Supreme Court affirmed Barone's conviction and death sentence in Bryant case (State v. Barone, 328 Or. 68).
Jul 29, 1999
Oregon Supreme Court affirmed Barone's convictions and death sentences in Woodman, Williams, and Schmidt cases (State v. Barone, 329 Or. 210).
Jan 10, 2000
U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear Barone's appeal while on death row.
Jul 21, 2000
First degree murder charge dropped in Alice Stock case.
Dec 24, 2009
Barone died of natural causes at Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem at age 49.
Sources
Solve the Case is never the original source. Each item below is the public record a statement on this page rests on, with an archived copy where one exists.
Other · Radford University Department of Psychology ·
Radford University serial killer biography: Rode, Adolph James“Adolph James Rode born December 4, 1960 at Broward General Hospital in Fort Lauderdale, Florida; legally changed his name to Cesar Francesco Barone on September 22, 1987.”
News report · Wikipedia ·
Cesar Barone“Cesar Francesco Barone (born Adolph James Rode Jr.; December 4, 1960 – December 24, 2009) was an American serial killer and rapist who was sentenced to death in 1995 for assaulting and killing four women in the Portland metropolitan area between 1991 and 1993.”
News report · Killer.Cloud ·
Killer: Cesar Barone - Adolph James Rode profiled on Killer.Cloud“He was arrested on February 27th 1993, convicted on December 6th 1995, sentenced to death at Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem, Oregon. Cesar Barone died on December 24th 2009 of natural causes.”
Offender registry · Find a Grave ·
Cesar Francesco Barone“American serial killer, Born: Adolph James Rode December 4, 1960. Died: December 24, 2009 of natural cause.”
News report · Crime Online ·
DNA Ties 1992 Murder to Serial Killer“The Washington County District Attorney's Office made the announcement Tuesday that Cesar Barone, whose real name was Adolph James Rode Jr., murdered Elizabeth Wasson in her home on September 23, 1992.”
News report · Grokipedia ·
Cesar Barone“At age 15, he broke into a neighbor's home and attempted rape, resulting in a two-month sentence in a juvenile facility. Rode completed twelfth grade and obtained a GED.”
News report · Bend Bulletin ·
Death row inmate Barone dies at state penitentiary“Death row inmate Cesar Barone, who killed four Oregon women in the early 1990s, died Thursday afternoon at the Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem.”
News report · The Columbian ·
Ore. death row inmate Barone dead at 49“Department of Corrections spokeswoman Michelle Whitney Dodson says the 49-year-old serial killer died of natural causes Thursday afternoon in the Oregon State Penitentiary infirmary in Salem.”
Court record · Oregon Supreme Court ·
State v. Barone“We affirm the judgments of conviction and sentences of death. Defendant ultimately was charged with four counts of aggravated felony murder in the Woodman case, two counts of aggravated felony murder in the Schmidt case, and two counts of felony murder in the Williams case.”
Court record · Oregon Supreme Court ·
State v. Barone“This capital case is before this court on automatic and direct review. Defendant seeks reversal of a judgment of conviction on four counts of aggravated murder. The judgment of conviction and the sentence of death are affirmed.”
News report · Seattle Times ·
Serial Murderer? Florida Police Track Convicted Killer In Oregon“When he was just a boy, Adolph James Rode began showing signs of the kind of man he would become. He stole toys from nursery school. He was expelled from kindergarten.”
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