A Rhode Island homicide investigation that remained unsolved for more than four decades may have reached a breakthrough after police recovered a discarded water bottle from a theater.
William “Billy” Morton, 61, was arrested Oct. 6 and charged with first-degree murder in the 1985 Newport killing of 22-year-old Hillary Hellewell.
Investigators say advances in DNA analysis now connect Morton to the crime, decades after Hellewell’s death.
Hillary Hellewell was found dead in Newport, Rhode Island, on May 19, 1985. (Getty Images)
Over the years, detectives developed clues pointing to Morton as a possible suspect. To establish a DNA link, however, they needed a sample from him.
According to court records, an investigator followed Morton in late August to a Rhode Island theater where he attended a concert by a Heart tribute band.
FIANCÉE STICKS BY ACCUSED SERIAL RAPIST AS SPECIAL AGENTS DEFEND TAILING HIM FOR RESTAURANT DNA STAKEOUT
Investigators said Morton purchased popcorn and bottled water for himself and his fiancée. The pair left before the concert ended, and Morton reportedly abandoned the trash. An investigator then retrieved the bottle as possible evidence.
Court documents say DNA obtained from the bottle matched genetic material recovered from Hellewell’s body.
William “Billy” Morton had been convicted in 1987 of a violent sexual assault in Newport 45 days after Hellewell’s death. (Visions of America/Joseph Sohm/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Morton was arrested Oct. 6 and remains jailed without bond.
The killing
Hellewell’s body was discovered in Newport at about 4:15 a.m. on May 19, 1985, by two brothers, ages 17 and 20, who were heading to work.
She was found on a sidewalk along Anthony Street wearing white painter’s pants, a sweater and socks. Her shoes were missing.
The arrest warrant states that Hellewell’s body had no pulse and was largely “cold to the touch,” although some areas remained “slightly warm” when police arrived.
A medical examiner determined that Hellewell died from asphyxia caused by strangulation and classified the death as a homicide.
Detectives documented a bloodstain on the back of her white pants, along with a “heavily soiled” blue T-shirt found near her head, according to the warrant.
Swabs collected during an internal examination detected spermatozoa, indicating sexual contact, the warrant says.
Hellewell was formally identified the following day after she was reported missing.
Boats make their way through the harbor in Newport, Rhode Island. (REUTERS/Brian Snyder)
Friends and relatives told investigators that Hellewell had spent the previous evening at a gathering with friends in Newport. Authorities were also told that alcohol had been consumed during the night.
Investigators learned that Hellewell had offered to walk home with one of her male friends, who’d become overly intoxicated.
He made it home. She did not.
The next day, he was still so intoxicated, he couldn’t give many details to police.
The men who were close to Hellewell at the time of her death were ruled out as being “potential donors” of the sperm, according to court records. But Newport Police were never able to develop a viable suspect.
At the time of Hellewell’s murder, DNA evidence was collected and preserved.
Resurrecting a cold case
The case was reviewed by state officials in 2004. They hoped new advancements in DNA technology could help.
During that review, DNA profiles for Hellewell and the suspect were entered into the FBI’s Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) database.
Then in 2023, the Rhode Island Attorney General’s office formed the Cold Case Unit (CCU), and Hellewell’s case went under review again.
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha’s office worked with the Newport Police Department, with help from the Smithfield Police Department. (USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect)
With recent breakthroughs of technology used to evaluate DNA, the evidence was sent to a private lab.
That work brought a new lead into sharp focus. Suddenly, Morton was a suspect.
Investigators pinpointed Morton’s family line through the DNA found on Hellewell’s body. They later found Morton had been convicted in 1987 of a violent sexual assault in Newport 45 days after Hellewell’s death. The assault took place a couple miles from where Hellewell’s body was found, court records show.
Morton was sentenced to 20 years in prison. He spent seven years behind bars, and served out the remainder of his sentence on probation.
Date-night DNA discovery
After the new DNA evaluation, investigators collected evidence and conducted interviews. New clues led them to Morton.
They began to watch and trail him.
On Aug. 21, Michael Nayor, a senior cold case investigator with the Rhode Island Office of the Attorney General, followed Morton and his fiancee, the arrest warrant shows. They pulled into a Burger King before heading to a theater in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.
The investigator purchased a ticket to a show by Bad Animals, a Heart tribute band, and followed the couple inside. He watched as Morton bought popcorn and two bottled waters, the arrest warrant shows.
Naylor watched Morton sip his water throughout the show. And when he set the bottle on the seat next to him, Naylor took note, the warrant shows. .
When Morton and his fiancee left early, the bottle of water was left behind. Naylor seized it and submitted it for DNA testing.
The DNA profile from the water bottle “is consistent with the previously reported partial profiles” from the sperm stain on Hellewell’s pants, and a stain on the blue shirt found near her body, according to the Rhode Island Department of Health.
On Oct. 6, officers from multiple agencies visited Morton’s home at about 7 a.m., as he was leaving for his job as service technician at a Volkswagen dealership. He was charged with first-degree murder in the Rhode Island District Court Second Division.
The case will go to a grand jury, said Rhode Island Attorney General Peter F. Neronha. A status conference is scheduled for Oct. 20.
News Media could not reach Morton’s attorney for comment.