The Case of April Dawn Buttram

April Dawn Buttram was 18 when she disappeared from the Seattle area in April 1983. Her remains were discovered more than two years later in a wooded area near the Green River, and she was eventually identified through dental records. Gary Ridgway later admitted murdering Buttram and provided investigators with information about where he had disposed of her body.

April Buttram was 18 years old and was living in the Seattle area when she disappeared in April 1983. Her disappearance occurred during the continuing Green River Killer investigation, which had already identified a pattern of young women disappearing from Seattle and southern King County. April was among the victims whose remains were not recovered during the initial investigation. Her case remained unresolved while investigators continued searching for the person responsible for the growing number of murders.

April's remains were discovered in 1985 in a wooded area near the Green River in southern King County. The secluded location was consistent with the type of remote areas Ridgway used to conceal victims. Her remains were eventually identified through dental records, connecting the unidentified remains to April's missing-person case.

April's disappearance was investigated as part of the Green River Killer investigation. By the time her remains were recovered, investigators had already spent years attempting to identify the killer. Gary Ridgway had been questioned and investigated during the early years of the case, but investigators did not have sufficient evidence to arrest him. The investigation remained unresolved until advances in DNA technology provided a breakthrough in 2001. Ridgway was arrested on November 30, 2001, after forensic evidence linked him to several Green River murders. Following his arrest, Ridgway gave investigators extensive information about his victims and the locations where he had disposed of their remains. He admitted murdering April Buttram and provided information that helped investigators locate and confirm the circumstances surrounding her death.

Gary Ridgway pleaded guilty in 2003 to April Buttram's murder as part of his guilty plea to 48 aggravated first-degree murders. He received 48 consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole. Ridgway later pleaded guilty to the murder of Rebecca Marrero, bringing his known conviction total to 49.

April's case demonstrates the role Ridgway's post-arrest admissions played in resolving murders for which investigators had been unable to locate the victims during the original investigation.