Richard Laurence Marquette was born on December 12, 1934, in Portland, Oregon.

On June 8, 1961, Portland police were alerted by a local housewife whose dog had brought home a human foot in a paper bag. While detectives were investigating at her home, the dog returned with a human hand. A thorough search of the area uncovered more body parts, all fresh and bled dry, with no attempt at burial. The foot, clearly belonging to a woman, had bright red nail polish and slightly webbed toes. An autopsy revealed that the veins and arteries had been completely drained of blood shortly after death, ruling out the possibility of an exhumed and dismembered corpse.

The police reviewed missing persons reports, initially focusing on a runaway teenager. However, her aunt confirmed that the girl did not have webbed toes and rarely wore nail polish. Additionally, her shoe size was too small to match the foot found.

Attention then turned to Joan Caudle, a 23-year-old housewife and mother of two, reported missing by her husband. Mr. Caudle was questioned extensively. He stated that she vanished while shopping for Father's Day gifts. Although she was not known to drink heavily, her husband mentioned she had been depressed due to her mother’s illness and might have visited a bar. He doubted she was having an affair due to her busy schedule with the children and did not believe she was the type to cheat. When asked about her feet, he admitted he had never paid close attention and couldn’t confirm if she had webbed toes. However, her shoe size matched the found foot.

A breakthrough came when a habitual bar-goer, known for public drunkenness, reported meeting a man named Marquette in a bar on June 7. She recalled another woman—later identified as Joan Caudle—taking his attention. Police located Marquette’s residence, a small house, where they found dismembered body parts in the refrigerator, wrapped in newspaper, along with bloodstained lingerie. The only part missing was the head.

An arrest warrant was issued, and a manhunt began. Oregon Governor Mark Hatfield described the crime as "the most heinous in Oregon history," prompting the FBI to add Marquette to their most wanted list, the first time it was expanded to eleven names. Marquette was arrested in California the next day without resistance and seemed relieved. Background checks revealed previous arrests for attempted rape and robbery.

Marquette confessed to meeting Caudle in a bar, recognizing her from elementary school. After visiting several bars, they went to his house, where he claimed they had consensual sex. Following an argument, he said he choked her to death and dismembered her body out of panic. Investigators doubted his story but had no other witnesses. Marquette led police to Caudle’s head near a riverbank. He was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. After serving eleven years, he was paroled in 1973.

In April 1975, a fisherman discovered mutilated remains in Marion County, Oregon. The body, identified as 37-year-old Betty Wilson, was drained of blood and dismembered. Wilson, who had a troubled life, had moved to Salem to escape her abusive husband and lived with her sister. Her husband was quickly ruled out as a suspect due to his alibi in North Carolina.

Marquette became the prime suspect. A search of his mobile home uncovered evidence linking him to Wilson’s murder. He was arrested and confessed, giving a similar account as before: they met in a bar, returned to his home, and after she refused sex, he strangled and dismembered her. Despite having a vehicle, he still chose to dismember her, revealing a pattern. Marquette was sentenced to life without parole in 1975. Psychiatrists concluded he was socially normal unless rejected by women, which triggered his violent behavior.

Marquette also confessed to a 1974 murder of an unidentified woman, following the same pattern of picking her up at a bar, killing, and dismembering her. He led detectives to her remains, but her identity remains unknown as the head was never found.