• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Social Security's 2032 deadline puts a 22% cut on the table — but Washington has way less room to negotiate than 1983

2

CEO of $20 billion AI firm Perplexity says the secret to success is ‘sleeping with that fear’ that your competitor will steal your idea

3

Boomers actually do hold most of the wealth and power. So why do they call it 'whiny' to point that out?

1

Social Security's 2032 deadline puts a 22% cut on the table — but Washington has way less room to negotiate than 1983

2

CEO of $20 billion AI firm Perplexity says the secret to success is ‘sleeping with that fear’ that your competitor will steal your idea

3

Boomers actually do hold most of the wealth and power. So why do they call it 'whiny' to point that out?
TechCrime

Tech CEO tried for murder twice now faces life in jail after new evidence is found in unsolved 1992 case

By
Chloe Taylor
Chloe Taylor
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Chloe Taylor
Chloe Taylor
Down Arrow Button Icon
July 13, 2022, 7:35 AM ET
Laurie Houts was found dead in her car in September 1992 on Crittenden Lane in Mountain View—a location which is now in the midst of Google's global headquarters campus.
Laurie Houts was found dead in her car in September 1992 on Crittenden Lane in Mountain View—a location which is now in the midst of Google's global headquarters campus.Getty Images

A tech CEO is facing life in prison after being charged with the 1992 murder of his roommate’s girlfriend—a crime he has already been tried for twice.

John Kevin Woodward, president and CEO of online training company Readytech, was arrested at New York’s JFK airport on Saturday after traveling to the U.S. from Amsterdam.

In a news release Monday, the Santa Clara District Attorney’s Office said Woodward had been charged for a third time for the murder of Laurie Houts, a 25-year-old computer engineer.

Woodward was being held without bail in New York as he awaited extradition to California, the DA’s Office said.

He was previously tried twice for Houts’s killing in the 1990s, with the case against him dismissed by a judge for insufficient evidence after a jury could not reach a verdict in the second trial.

Following the dismissal of the second case, he moved to the Netherlands.

If convicted for the current charge against him, Woodward could be imprisoned for life, the DA’s office said.

Houts was found dead in her car in September 1992 with the rope used to kill her still around her neck, according to the DA’s Office.

Her body was discovered by a passerby around a mile from her workplace, outside a building on Crittenden Lane in Mountain View—a location which is now in the midst of Google’s global headquarters campus.

Detectives at the time identified Woodward as the prime suspect in Houts’s murder, with the DA’s office saying he was “openly jealous” about her relationship with his roommate, for whom Woodward had developed unrequited romantic feelings.

Woodward had no alibi for the time of the murder, according to officials, and when questioned by his roommate about Houts’s death he “asked what the investigators knew.”

Thirty years ago, investigators were unable to prove that Woodward had been inside Houts’s vehicle—despite his fingerprints being found on the outside of her car—but last year, the Santa Clara County Crime Lab and Mountain View Police Department detectives used new forensic technology to link him to the rope found around her neck.

Dutch authorities and the U.S. Department of Justice then obtained a search warrant and seized multiple computers and USB drives from Woodward’s home and business addresses in the Netherlands.

Sign up for the Fortune Features email list so you don’t miss our biggest features, exclusive interviews, and investigations.

About the Author
By Chloe Taylor
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

Dario Amodei, Anthropic CEO
AIAnthropic
A warning from Amazon led the White House to shut down Anthropic’s Mythos model
By Beatrice NolanJune 14, 2026
7 hours ago
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney warns U.S. restrictions on new Anthropic AI models show danger of relying too much on American providers
AICanada
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney warns U.S. restrictions on new Anthropic AI models show danger of relying too much on American providers
By Rob Gillies, Jason Ma and The Associated PressJune 14, 2026
9 hours ago
SpaceX surge further boosts Saudi billionaire prince’s fortune
InvestingSaudi Arabia
SpaceX surge further boosts Saudi billionaire prince’s fortune
By Adveith Nair and BloombergJune 14, 2026
13 hours ago
Wall Street is gaining access to new catastrophe models to help predict wars
BankingWar
Wall Street is gaining access to new catastrophe models to help predict wars
By Gautam Naik and BloombergJune 14, 2026
13 hours ago
People wait outside a building
AIJobs
AI job disruption is here. The problem may be compounded because nearly 75% of people don’t apply for unemployment benefits
By Jacqueline MunisJune 14, 2026
13 hours ago
Just months after Trump warned states not to regulate AI, Republican and Democratic lawmakers are doing it anyway
Politicsregulation
Just months after Trump warned states not to regulate AI, Republican and Democratic lawmakers are doing it anyway
By Marc Levy and The Associated PressJune 14, 2026
13 hours ago

Most Popular

Social Security's 2032 deadline puts a 22% cut on the table — but Washington has way less room to negotiate than 1983
Personal Finance
Social Security's 2032 deadline puts a 22% cut on the table — but Washington has way less room to negotiate than 1983
By John W. Diamond and The ConversationJune 12, 2026
2 days ago
CEO of $20 billion AI firm Perplexity says the secret to success is ‘sleeping with that fear’ that your competitor will steal your idea
Success
CEO of $20 billion AI firm Perplexity says the secret to success is ‘sleeping with that fear’ that your competitor will steal your idea
By Preston ForeJune 13, 2026
2 days ago
Boomers actually do hold most of the wealth and power. So why do they call it 'whiny' to point that out?
Economy
Boomers actually do hold most of the wealth and power. So why do they call it 'whiny' to point that out?
By Nick LichtenbergJune 14, 2026
17 hours ago
Iran proved it can close the Strait of Hormuz, but the U.S. is advertising very loudly that the world's top superpower can at least punch open a hole
Energy
Iran proved it can close the Strait of Hormuz, but the U.S. is advertising very loudly that the world's top superpower can at least punch open a hole
By Jason MaJune 14, 2026
10 hours ago
The Gen Z cofounder of $1.6 billion Whop says his platform has minted over 650 millionaires—he wants to make work fun and money worries obsolete
Success
The Gen Z cofounder of $1.6 billion Whop says his platform has minted over 650 millionaires—he wants to make work fun and money worries obsolete
By Emma BurleighJune 14, 2026
18 hours ago
Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
Real Estate
Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
By Sydney LakeJune 13, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.