Once Hugh DeAutremont’s alias was confirmed, his apprehension and arrest followed quickly as did the discovery of the whereabouts of twins Ray and Roy DeAutremont.
Hugh was the first of the brothers to be located. He had been hiding out in the Philippines as a private in the US Army under the name James C. Price since 1924. He was arrested and transported back to the states in 1927. This is the official report of his arrest. (US Postal Inspection Service, Record Group 28 National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC)
Inspector in Charge Riddiford landed in California days after the discovery of Hugh to help transport him to Alcatraz in 1927. This telegram was sent from Riddiford to the Inspector in Charge of DC during the transportation. (US Postal Inspection Service, Record Group 28 National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC)
Back cover of the March 1927 issue of the US Postal Guide notified postal employees of the capture of Hugh DeAutremont. (National Postal Museum)
After Hugh was discovered, the Post Office Department distributed over 75,000 more circulars to try and find the twins, Roy and Ray. Within almost no time, Roy and Ray were recognized in Ohio and surrounding areas. They had planned an escape but were ultimately apprehended in Steubenville, Ohio and arrested. This document reported that they were in custody. (US Postal Inspection Service, Record Group 28 National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC)
On July 9, 1927, Inspector Riddiford sent this telegraph to inform the Chief Post Office Inspector of DC that Roy and Ray had been apprehended. (US Postal Inspection Service, Record Group 28 National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC)
Roy DeAutremont’s arrest report. (US Postal Inspection Service, Record Group 28 National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC)
Official document of arrest of Roy DeAutremont. (US Postal Inspection Service, Record Group 28 National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC)
Ray DeAutremont’s arrest report. (US Postal Inspection Service, Record Group 28 National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC)
Official document of arrest of Ray DeAutremont. (US Postal Inspection Service, Record Group 28 National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC)
The Trials
This 1927 newsreel produced by the California Oregon Power Company (COPCO) documents the arrivals of the three DeAutremont brothers to Jacksonville, Oregon, on the eve of their trials. Hugh was the first to be apprehended and transported to the Jacksonville jailhouse in March of that year; the twins Ray and Roy joined him there in June. (Southern Oregon Historical Society 1972.78.3, COPCO Film Collection Reel #64-D)
The DeAutremont trials captured the public imagination due in part to the enthusiastic coverage they received in local and state newspapers. In this Medford Mail Tribune photograph dated March 7, 1927, a smiling Hugh is pictured with George Richards and Sheriff Ralph G. Jennings under the title “Siskiyous Suspect, as He Appeared With His Keepers.” Hugh was initially tried in May 1927, but his case was declared a mistrial by Judge Thomas due to the death of one of the jurors. Hugh was tried again in June 1927 along with his brothers. (Southern Oregon Historical Society #085169)
The key players in Hugh DeAutremont’s trials were pictured in this “Who’s Who” feature published in the Medford Mail Tribune on May 5, 1923. The caption reads: “Top row: 1 – Hugh DeAutremont, 23-year-old defendant, 2 – Jackson county’s historic and picturesque courthouse, 3 – Paul DeAutremont, father of the defendant, 4 – C. M. Thomas, circuit judge, presiding in the case. Second row: 5 – Newton C. Chaney, district attorney of Jackson county, 6 – Fred E. Smith of Eugene, chief of defense counsel. 7 – George Neuner, United States district attorney for Oregon and ex-district attorney of Douglas county, active in the prosecution of the case. 8 – The Jackson county jail. A special cell on the second floor has housed young DeAutremont since his return to southern Oregon on March 26. Third row: 9 – Ralph G. Jennings, sheriff of Jackson county. 10 – George M. Roberts, ex-district attorney of Jackson county and special prosecutor in this case. 11 – John A. Collier of Portland, noted criminal attorney, who is allied with the defense.” (Southern Oregon Historical Society #085167)
Hugh’s case received special attention in the press due to his solo arrest, his mistrial, and questions related to his culpability. This Medford Mail Tribune photograph from June 19, 1927, pictures both his “Nemeses and Defenders.” Its caption reads: “In the upper picture, from left to right: O. B. Welter of Portland, postal inspector; Chas. B. Riddiford of Spokane, Wash., chief postal inspector for the northwest division; Maurice Corturri of Portland, special agent of the Southern Pacific; and former Sheriff Charles E. Terrill of Jackson County. All have played active parts in the securing of evidence in the DeAutremont case. In the lower picture, from left to right: Attorney John A. Collier of Portland, Attorney Gus Newbury of this city, Fred L. Smith of Eugene, chief defense counsel, and David B. Evans of Eugene.” (Southern Oregon Historical Society #085168)
Ray and Roy DeAutremont at the Jacksonville Courthouse posing for the press during their trial in June 1927. Handwritten text on the photograph reads: “Two Siskiyou Slayers.” (Southern Oregon Historical Society #014431)
The DeAutremont trials were well-attended by southern Oregon locals and visitors alike. Pictured here from left are notable Jacksonville resident and entertainer Pinto Colvig (known for originating the characters of Pluto, Goofy, and Bozo the Clown), defendant Hugh DeAutremont, jailer Ike Dunford, and an unknown man identified as Mr. Luzinoff. (Southern Oregon Historical Society #010939)
A group of men taking a break in the Jackson County Jailhouse Courtyard during the DeAutremont trials. (Southern Oregon Historical Society #002287)
The crowd outside of the Jackson County Jailhouse during the DeAutremont trials. (Southern Oregon Historical Society #002286)
Cars were lined up along both sides of the street in front of the Jackson County Courthouse during the DeAutremont trails, a testament to public interest in the case. (Southern Oregon Historical Society #007586)
An inventory of the evidentiary exhibits introduced by the state during the DeAutremont trials, as received by the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office. (Southern Oregon Historical Society LIB2016.4.1)
Circuit Judge Charles Thomas presided over the DeAutremont brothers’ trials in Jacksonville. All three were finally sentenced on June 23, 1927. (Southern Oregon Historical Society #010941)
Telegram from Postal Inspector Riddiford stating that all three DeAutremont brothers were found guilty. (US Postal Inspection Service, Record Group 28 National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC)
Trial report on Hugh DeAutremont, 1927. (US Postal Inspection Service, Record Group 28 National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC)
Trial report on Roy DeAutremont, 1927. (US Postal Inspection Service, Record Group 28 National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC)
Trial report on Ray DeAutremont, 1927. (US Postal Inspection Service, Record Group 28 National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC)
Mugshot of Hugh DeAutremont inside the Oregon State Penitentiary where he was to serve a life sentence. (Photograph in “Picture Story of the Holdup . . . Capture and Conviction of the DeAutremont Brothers” album, US Postal Service Corporate Library)
Mugshot of Ray DeAutremont inside the Oregon State Penitentiary where he was to serve a life sentence. (Photograph in “Picture Story of the Holdup . . . Capture and Conviction of the DeAutremont Brothers” album, US Postal Service Corporate Library)
Mugshot of Roy DeAutremont inside the Oregon State Penitentiary where he was to serve a life sentence. (Photograph in “Picture Story of the Holdup . . . Capture and Conviction of the DeAutremont Brothers” album, US Postal Service Corporate Library)
These file cards on Hugh, Roy, and Ray DeAutremont come from the Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem, Oregon, where all three were incarcerated. The brothers each met drastically different fates following their life sentences. Hugh was paroled in 1958 but died of stomach cancer a few months later. Roy was diagnosed with schizophrenia in 1949 and was transferred to the Oregon State Hospital where he received a frontal lobotomy, and later died in nursing home care in 1983. Ray was released from prison in 1961, and Oregon governor McCall commuted his sentence in 1972. (Southern Oregon Historical Society 1996.26, MS 764)
