He almost wasn't released due to an incident with a toy telephone. The victim's family remains disappointed, stating he was supposed to serve at least 40 years as stated by his plea deal.

After more than three decades behind bars, Mark Wilson, 55, has been released from an Oregon prison. His freedom came Thursday morning after serving just over 35 years for his role in a highly publicized double murder in Terrebonne back in 1987, but he almost wasn't released due to a children's toy found in his workspace at the prison.

A 1987 Murder Scene Staged To Look Like A Cult Killing

At 18, Wilson was involved in the brutal killing of Rod and Lois Houser. He shot Rod Houser 20 times with a .22-caliber rifle on the couple’s front porch. His co-defendant, Randy Guzek, fatally shot Lois Houser inside the home, leaving her with multiple gunshot wounds. The two ransacked the house, staged the scene to resemble a cult killing, and fled. Wilson later confessed and pleaded guilty to aggravated murder and felony murder, leading to two life sentences with the possibility of parole.

A Children's Toy Almost Kept Mark Wilson In Prison For Another 10 Years After The Parole Board Scheduled His Release

While in prison, Mark Wilson completed drug treatment, earned his GED, associate's, and bachelor's degrees, and raised funds for a murder victim's children. He volunteered in the prison hospice, facilitated victim empathy groups, became a certified yoga instructor, and joined an Oregon state legislature working group. In 2019, after attending parole hearings for 10 years and being denied parole, he was found to be 'rehabilitated' and was scheduled for release by 2027 with possible release as early as 2022. He was on track to be released until 2021 when he was found with contraband and put in solitary confinement for four months. The contraband? A children's toy telephone brought into his workspace in the prison law library by his boss.

It seems like a wild story. It's crazy to think that someone scheduled for release could be held for another 10 years (or thrown into solitary confinement for months) due to a children's toy, but that's what happened. Why? Mark Wilson claims it's retaliation against him for his time spent as a legal assistant, helping other prisoners navigate the system.

Wilson's Time As A Legal Assistant

While incarcerated, Wilson spent much of his time working as a legal assistant, assisting both inmates and attorneys. Since 2018, he has served as a special advisor to the OJRC, focusing on youth justice, sentencing policies, and prison education. Wilson lead the way in a class-action lawsuit against the Department of Corrections in 2001 on behalf of prisoners that were being denied medical treatment for hepatitis C. The Department of Corrections eventually had to provide medication to the affected prisoners. Not long after a settlement was reached in that 2001 lawsuit, Wilson was transferred to a more dangerous prison and was no longer allowed to work as a legal assistant. Believing he was being retaliated against for his work as a legal assistant, Wilson sued in 2006 and was allowed to move back to the Oregon State Correctional Institution in Salem and work as a legal assistant again.

Having already reached a settlement in his favor in the retaliation lawsuit in 2006, Wilson sued again in 2021 due to the incident with the toy telephone. He claimed he was placed in solitary confinement for four months as retaliation for his advocacy work on behalf of other inmates. Wilson reached a $50,000 settlement with the Oregon Department of Corrections, and it resulted in the toy phone incident being cleared off of his record, paving the way for his parole once again. In the settlement, the state admitted no wrongdoing.

Mark Wilson Prison Release Timeline

• 2006 - Wilson's first lawsuit claiming he was retaliated against.
• 2009 - Wilson's first parole hearing. Parole denied.
• 2017 - Wilson's second parole hearing. Parole denied.
• 2019 - Wilson's third parole hearing. There was a finding of rehabilitation, and he was scheduled to be released between August 2022 and January 2027.
• 2021 - Wilson's second lawsuit claiming he was retaliated against after his boss at the prison law library brought a toy telephone into the office as a joke, where it sat on a shelf for a year without issue. A year after the toy made it into the law library, Wilson was found guilty of violating prison rules due to the toy. He underwent a disciplinary hearing, was found guilty of misconduct, and was sentenced to four months in solitary confinement. This finding of misconduct was grounds for him to potentially spend another ten years in prison.
• 2024 - Wilson settles with the Department Of Corrections for $50,000, and the disciplinary findings due to the toy phone incident are vacated.
• 2025 - January 9th, Wilson released from prison.

Mark Wilson's Release From Prison

Now under supervision in Multnomah County, Wilson is set to continue working with the Oregon Justice Resource Center (OJRC) as a legal assistant and policy associate.

The victims’ family, however, remains vocal about their disappointment. Their lawyer argued Wilson should have served at least 40 years, citing the terms of his plea deal. Guzek, Wilson’s co-defendant, continues to serve his life sentence with no scheduled release.

Wilson’s story continues to stir debate on justice for the victims of his crime, prisoner rehabilitation, and the complexities of the parole system.