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The Unknown Woman

Just after 11:30 p.m. on the same night as the Morrison murders, Dr. Frank McHugh was awakened by pounding on the door of his home in Murray, Utah. Walking from his bedroom through the examination room that served his medical practice, McHugh opened the door to find Joe Hill clutching his chest. McHugh vaguely knew Hill from treating one of the Eselius brothers for a recent illness, and the doctor led Hill into the examining room.

Hill told McHugh he had been shot by a man in an argument over a woman. McHugh found that the bullet had passed through Hill's chest, missed vital organs, and exited just beneath his shoulder blade in back. McHugh cleaned and bandaged the wound, told Hill to rest in bed, and arranged for a friend to drive Hill home.

During the examination, a gun dropped from Hill's clothing. The doctor would later report that he did not get a clear look at the type of gun, since it was held in a holster. As Hill was being driven home by McHugh's friend, Hill reportedly told the man to stop near a vacant field. Just outside the range of headlights, Hill apparently threw the gun into the field. The driver would later report that due to darkness, he could not exactly recall where Hill had thrown the weapon.

The next morning, Dr. McHugh read about the Morrison murders in the newspaper. Of special interest was the police plea for community help in identifying anyone with suspicious gunshot wounds as potential suspects. McHugh called the police department in Murray and reported his treatment of Joe Hill the night before.

Murray police units rushed to the Eselius house, stormed up the stairs, and kicked in the door on Joe Hill's room. Finding him in bed, the police ordered Hill at gunpoint not to move. When he made a reaching motion across the bed, an officer fired. The bullet passed through Hill's hand, shattering bones. Hill had not been reaching for a weapon, as suspected, but was instead reaching for his pants.

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