ROSEBURG, Ore. -- More than a decade after Stephanie Condon disappeared while babysitting for her cousin, the man charged with her murder -- Dale Wayne Hill -- has been cleared to return to Oregon from Nevada to face three counts of aggravated murder.

"We understand the judge has ordered his return to Oregon," said Dwes Hutson with the Douglas County Sheriff's Office. "According to law have ten days to get him back up here. For security reasons we can't say much more about it."

Hill appeared at an extradition hearing in Lyon County, Nev., Wednesday afternoon and waived his right to fight extradition back to Oregon, said Mark Kruger, the chief deputy district attorney in Lyon County.

Prosecutors were ready to argue Hill's time had expired to fight exradition, Kruger said, but didn't need to make that argument because he waived his right to continue fighting extradition.

"He could be on his way back," Kruger said.

The district attorney in Douglas County, Ore., has charged Hill with three counts of aggravated murder. A grand jury handed down an indictment on the eve of Hill's last day in a Nevada jail, where he was serving a sentence for failing to register as a felon. He was scheduled to be released 10 days early.

Douglas County officials placed a hold on Hill and started the extradition process to bring him back to Douglas County, keeping Hill in jail there while the process ran its course.

Hill was arrested in Nevada on March 25, the same day authorities in Douglas County announced they had found Condon’s remains.

Photograph courtesy The Nevada Appeal
 
Condon disappeared in 1998 when she was 14-years-old.  Her remains were found on March 13 near an abandoned logging road outside Glide, Ore.

Hill has been a suspect through much of the case. 

He was arrested on charges of failing to register as a convicted felon, which is unrelated to the Condon case.

Hill pleaded guilty to that charge and was sentenced to 30 days.  He was about to get out of jail 10 days early, however, because of good behavior and work credit, according to Kevin Phillips with the Lyon County (Nev.) Sheriff's Office.

Detectives have had their eyes on Hill throughout the 10 year investigation, a point Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin reiterated in March.

“Dale Hill is still considered a suspect in this case,” Hanlin said on March 25.  “There have been hundreds of leads investigated and cleared over the years.  Hill continues to be the only person the investigation has not eliminated as a suspect.”

Condon was babysitting for her cousin in Tri City the night of disappearance.

• INTERACTIVE: Timeline of the Condon case

Her cousin, Cheryl Richey, came home around 1:30 a.m. and found her twins sleeping in their beds.

She also found Stephanie’s backpack, schoolbook and clothes.  Stephanie, however, was gone.