Police found Hall’s blood at the cabin, which had been cleaned, and several items were missing, including towels and a quilt. Hall’s car was abandoned near a railroad trestle; the driver’s seat was pushed back, unlike how she normally drove. Blood and hair matching Hall’s were found in the trunk. A bloody towel belonging to Epperly, with cabin carpet fibers on it, was found nearby. Later, Hall’s clothes and another towel were discovered along the riverbank. They were bloody but not torn, and contained hair matching both Hall and Epperly, as well as cabin carpet fibers.

Epperly was convicted of Hall’s murder despite the lack of a body. Investigators believe he killed her after she rejected his advances. His conviction was the first in Virginia history without a body being found. Hall’s body has never been recovered.