Hiker never gave up fight, Hilton said
By RHONDA COOK, CHRISTIAN BOONE
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/23/08
Gary Michael Hilton acknowledged that the petite woman nearly overpowered him when he first accosted her. As they struggled near the Appalachian Trail, Meredith Emerson disarmed her attacker of a knife and baton.
Hilton eventually subdued Emerson, kidnapped her and later killed her. She did not make it easy for him, according to interviews Hilton gave to investigators that were obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Speaking to Georgia Bureau of Investigation agent Clay Bridges only days after killing the young woman, Hilton said: "I think it was you probably, or one of the GBIs, said 'That little 120-pound-girl about probably came close to whipping your ass.' She about did."
Her life in danger, Emerson fought back using her strength, her wits and a large measure of courage and determination. In the four days after she disappeared on a Blood Mountain hiking trail in Union County, investigators said, Emerson never gave up.
Bridges said he talked with the South Florida-born vagrant as authorities drove him from the Union County Jail to the Dawson Forest Wildlife Management Area, where Hilton killed Emerson. Hilton made a deal with prosecutors that he would lead investigators to her remains, if they would not seek the death penalty.
As they descended the winding North Georgia mountain roads, the Army veteran casually detailed the abduction and slaying of the 24-year-old University of Georgia graduate.
Bridges said Hilton clearly relished the attention, and authorities described his account as "self-serving."
Still, Emerson's tenacity and smarts are evident throughout, and, despite Hilton's best attempts, her actions overwhelm the one-sided narrative.
"She was doing everything she could to stay alive," GBI Director Vernon Keenan said. "It's not something you can train for. Instinct kicks in. ... She nearly got the best of him. ... She's very much a hero."
Meredith Emerson was described as "feisty" by her roommate and close friend. Her Judo teacher said at 5 feet 4 inches and 120 pounds, she "trained with us like she lived every day �?hard and with everything she had."
Hilton, 61, told investigators he abducted her because she was a woman.
Easy prey, he figured.
'Wouldn't stop fighting'
Both were with their dogs when they met near the Appalachian Trail in Union County on New Year's Day. For a time they walked together, but, as Hilton later admitted, he couldn't keep up with her and fell behind. He intercepted her on her way down, producing a military-style knife and demanding her ATM card.
Without pause, Emerson fought back.
"The bayonet is probably still up there," Hilton told Bridges. "I lost control, and ... she fought. And as I read in the paper, she's a martial artist."
Emerson, who held a green belt and a blue belt in two different martial arts, grabbed the blade.
He countered with a baton. She grabbed it, too. They stepped off the trail and fell down a slope, leaving the weapons behind.
"I had to hand-fight her," Hilton said. "She wouldn't stop. She wouldn't stop fighting," he said. "And yelling at the same time. ... So I needed to both control her and silence her."
He kept punching her, so hard it left both her eyes black and may have fractured her nose. Hilton said his hand was broken by the blows. He figured she had worn down, and they moved farther off the trail.
Then Emerson started fighting again. He finally got her to stop by telling her all he wanted was her credit card and PIN. He then restrained her hands with a zip tie.
Then, Hilton told Bridges, "I had to go back and clean the crime scene."
But he couldn't find any of his weapons. He said he spotted three hikers nearby and assumed they had found the knife and baton.
It was one of several close calls that continue to haunt Hilton's captors. On at least three other occasions before he killed Emerson, Hilton crossed paths or was in the vicinity of law-enforcement officials.
On the day he abducted her, he was worried police officers might be waiting for him in the parking lot as he led Emerson back down the mountain, staying off the established trails. He assumed whoever retrieved his baton and knives had called police, or perhaps they had heard Emerson's cries for help.
Apparently no one did.
Without incident, Hilton placed Emerson and her dog, Ella, in his van and secured his victim with a padlocked chain.
Chained or bound
In the following hours and days, Emerson kept Hilton off-balance by repeatedly giving him the wrong PIN for her ATM card but assuring each time that this time the numbers were correct.
She bought time with that ploy. Three days
Hilton's court-appointed attorney, Rob McNeill, said he could not discuss the case's details, but said Hilton "realizes the gravity of the situation."
At the hearing Wednesday in Dawson County, Hilton was made aware of the murder charge against him. He did not enter a plea.
Hilton never spoke aloud, but nodded when Chief Magistrate Judge Johnny Holtzclaw asked whether his date of birth was Nov. 22, 1946.
Upon entering court from a side door, a handcuffed Hilton, wearing an orange jumpsuit and holding a pair of glasses, chatted softly with his defense attorney.
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