[1] On the morning of June 8, Ruth visited the law offices of her brother and father in Portland, who later stated that she seemed "disturbed about something" which she never disclosed.

[1] At approximately 8:00 a.m. on June 9,[2] the wife of C. W. Matthews, a neighbor of the Hills', knocked on the front door of their home after her husband noticed that William had not left the residence as he normally did each morning to catch the interurban streetcar to his job at the Portland Natural Gas Company.

[3] Upon receiving no answer, Mrs. Matthews peeked into the front window of the home and saw the bloodied body of five-year-old Dorothy laid out on the floor.

[2][7] Though some jewelry was missing from the Hill residence, other valuables and money were left behind, leading Sheriff Mass to exclude robbery as a motive for the crime.

[4] In order to assist the investigation, Mass brought a bloodhound from Seattle to complete searches of the Hill property and surrounding area, but these efforts did not prove fruitful.

[2] Based on examination of Ruth's body, it was determined she had likely been raped after death,[9] while Dorothy had been sexually assaulted prior to her murder.

[10] On the morning of the Hill murders, a vagrant named Edward Ramsey was arrested at Oaks Bottom while attempting to float on a makeshift raft.

[9] After his arrest, it was believed by authorities that Ramsey had been the subject of a series of complaints—spanning several years—regarding an unknown man lurking in the communities east of Portland.

[11] On December 20, 1911, a 55-year-old nursery owner named Nathan Harvey, who lived 100 yards (91 m) from the Hill residence, was charged with the murders of all four victims.

"[16] While Mass was convinced that Harvey was behind the murders, the charges against him were ultimately dropped on December 27, 1911, pending further investigation,[17] and he was released during a preliminary hearing.

[22] Upon further questioning, Riggin changed his account of events, instead claiming in a formal statement (made July 21, 1917) to have participated in the robbery and murders with Ramsey, not the anonymous Brown and Flynn.