Murder of Erika Hill

Erika Antoinette Hill was a 15-year-old girl who was murdered in Fitchburg, Wisconsin, a suburb of Madison, Wisconsin, on February 25, 2007. Her body was taken to Indiana, where it was found the next day. However, her identity was not learned until 2015. Discovery and identification: Erika was a teenage girl who was murdered by her abusive adoptive mother. After she was killed, her body was burned and some of her teeth were removed to prevent identification. On February 26, 2007, one day after the murder, the burned body of an African American girl was found inside an abandoned garage in Gary, Indiana. The body had been set afire after death had occurred. The girl, thought to be between 16 and 25 years of age, had been beaten and strangled or suffocated (a cloth was found over her mouth). The body was of petite stature, five feet four-to-six inches tall, and weighing 102 pounds. Distinct scars were found on the face and on several other parts of the body; these may have been inflicted at different times, as they were in different stages of healing. The hair had been pulled back into cornrows. Due to the condition of the body, the color of the eyes and clothing (except for pink underwear) could not be determined. The body remained unidentified until 2015, at which time Taylin Hill, Erika's adoptive mother, was charged with having killed Erika.