The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1927-12-26
SON TOFACE
trial IN HILL
DEATH RIDDLE:
Pampered Youth Charged
With Killing Mother,
Hiding Body.
FATHER AIDS DEFENSE
Doctor Puts His Fortune at
Boys Disposal to Prove
Innocence.
BY BERT M. DEMBY
United Press STAFF CorrespOndent

NNeSS CtaH correspondent
OTTAWA, ILL.,, Dec. 26.-Harry A.
Hill, the INDUCED son of well-to-do
parents, will go on trial Tuesday
for the murder of his eccentric
mother.
At Harry's side as the lawyers
fight for his life will be DR.. H.
G. Hill, father of the accused youth.
and divorced husband of the wom-
an he is charged with killing. DR..
Hill has announced he believes his
son is innocent and he will use all
his considerable fortune, if neces-
Sary, to free him.
Mrs. Hills body was found buried
under a few inches of earth in
her old-fashioned, but imposing.
home in Streator, ILL.,, last Aug. %.
Harry had disappeared. He was
traced to Chicago and detectives
missed him by a few minutes when
they sought to arrest him there.
Two weeks later Harry was cap
tured in Seattle, Wash, after a
Natlon-Wloe man hunt.
Declares He's Innocent
He denied the murder and re-
fused to talk about it. The theory
OF the defense is not known, but
facts developed during inveStiga-
tionS have added mystery to the pal
pable theory by which the State
links young Hill with the crime.
Mrs. Hill and Harry lived alone
in the big house on the principal
street Of Steator Harry had gone
to high school, tried unsuccesSfully
to go to college, and had been dis
satisfied with various forms OF en-
ployment. He frequented the pool
halls of the town and lost consider
able sums gambling.
Mrs. Hill had allowed him to sign
checks on her account He OBJ
tanned large sums in this way shortly
before she died and the mother had
protested.
1t is the State theory that Harry
shot his mother with a small re-
volver while she was climbing a
stairway from the basement of their
home to the first floor.
Buried in Cellar
Prosecutors believe he dragged the
body of his mother to a remote cor
ner of the cellar, removed a section
of the brick floor and buried the
body. He left home and registered
at a hotel then, telling his friends
that his mother had gone away.
Peter Busch, an odd jobs man, is
the star prosecution witness. He is
expected to testify that Hill in
structed him to stamp down the
earth over his mothers grave and
replace the bricks. He also said that
Hill told him ito be careful and not
go too Deep"
The State fixes the time of Mrs.
Hills death as Aug. 13. Hill lived
in the hotel the week following, con-
Quoting himself normally and pay
ing frequent visits to his fiancee,
Alice Sawyer. Miss Sawyer is ex-
pected to testify in his defense.
The defense has brought a "mys-
terry witness" into the case, Louis
Martineau, a Clinton (Iowa) farm
hand. He said he saw two men at
the Hill home early in the morning
of Aug. 6. They talked with him
and took him to his home in Clin-
ton.
PrOwlers in Case
A few weeks later, Martineau said,
the unidentified providers came to
him and offered him $100 if he
would go to DR.. Hill and tell him
where Harry could be found. This
was during the period Harry was
missing.
Martineau asserted he went to
Streator again with the pair, but
that he became suspicious of their
intentions. He took the message to
DR.. Hill and then went to his
anonymous companions and told
them he couldn't find the physician,