Elijah Logan, the Council Bluffs, Iowa, man accused of entering a home in the 1000 block of Park Street in Blair in May of last year and killing Jordan Ely and injuring Samantha Ely, was found guilty by a jury on all counts Friday afternoon.
The jury found Logan guilty of first-degree murder, first-degree domestic assault and child abuse. He was also found guilty of burglary, possession of a deadly weapon in commission of a felony, and three counts of using a deadly weapon to commit a felony.
Jordan was pronounced dead at the scene of the May 12, 2023, attack, and Samantha sustained several injuries to her legs.
She is the mother of Logan’s child and was holding the baby at the time of the attack. But the baby was reportedly uninjured.
Logan was on the loose for four days following the murder, but he finally turned himself in to the Metro Fugitive Task Force in Omaha.
During prior court proceedings, it was revealed that Logan and Samantha Ely began dating in 2021.
Following a series of escalating incidents that scared Samantha, she decided to move her and her child to Blair around April of last year, at which time they started living with Samantha’s father.
After the verdicts were read, Washington County Attorney Scott Vander Schaaf said in a statement: “Although nothing can bring back Jordan Ely or the damage done to Jordan’s sister, it is our hope that holding Mr. Logan accountable for all his horrific actions will help the family, relatives, loved ones and friends heal.”
A large gathering of those friends and family stayed outside the Washington County Courthouse for a few minutes on Friday afternoon to console each other before one by one the parking lot surrounding the courthouse began to empty.
