PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — An Oregon woman will spend the rest of her life behind bars for the murder of her ex.

A Coos County jury convicted 46-year-old Reina Jackson of second-degree murder this week following a three-week trial for the death of her former husband in 2021. 

“Dr. Craig Jackson served his country, built a career dedicated to caring for people, and was building a new life for himself and his daughter,” said Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield.

“What happened to him was brutal and calculated. His family deserved justice, and the sentence reflects the gravity of what was done.”

Dr. Craig Jackson, Reina’s ex-husband and a physician at Bay Clinic in Coos Bay, was shot and killed in his home in North Bend on Aug. 2, 2021. The couple recently had a contentious divorce and Dr. Jackson was granted full custody of their daughter. 

Evidence submitted by the state at trial suggested that Reina conspired with two others to carry out the attack. According to a memo from prosecutors, Reina broke into her ex’s home with two others in the middle of the night and fought with him in his bedroom. She shot him in his rectum and then through his head. 

His new wife, who had been lying in bed with him when Reina and the others entered, said she quickly rolled off the bed and hid underneath it. When she believed it was safe, she came and found her husband shot and lying in the hallway. 

Police later found a hand-drawn map of Dr. Jackson’s home in Reina’s vehicle and DNA evidence of two unknown men who are believed to have accompanied her. She was also on probation for previously breaking into his home and assaulting him.

Just before Reina was arrested, she withdrew her daughter from school and fled to Guatemala. She was later arrested in Atlanta after returning to the U.S. on June 10, 2023.

According to court documents obtained by KOIN 6 News, Dr. Jackson’s family believes Reina forged a check in his name for $40,000 and used the money to purchase land for herself in Guatemala. The check posted a few days after his death.

Reina was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for at least 25 years.

PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — Average gas prices have gone up nearly 20 cents a gallon in Oregon and Washington in the past week as tensions in the Middle East continue.

Washington state has the third most expensive gas in the country at an average of $5.57 a gallon for regular, followed by Oregon at fourth in the U.S. with roughly $5.15 per gallon for regular.

The average price for regular in the U.S. is $4.30 a gallon. AAA says the price of oil has surged to more than $100 a barrel, with no indication of when the Strait of Hormuz will be back open.

A poll found that half of all Americans expect gas prices to rise even higher in the next year.

That same poll from ABC and Ipsos said some Americans are changing their behaviors because of the higher gas prices.

About 4 in 10 people are driving less (44%) or have cut back on other household expenses (42%) to compensate.

More than a third have changed their travel or vacation plans, the poll said, and about 15% of people said they’ve considered buying an electric vehicle.

Pump prices are now the highest they’ve been during this time of year since 2022, when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine pushed crude oil prices above $100 per barrel.

The poll found that about a quarter (23%) of all Americans are falling behind financially, which is up from 17%in February, before gas prices started to spike.

About half of those who took the poll said they have just enough to maintain their standard of living, while 24% said they are getting ahead – down from 28% in February.