A Case of a Poor Police Investigation
The Detective
Hillsboro Police Department assigned detective Megan Townsend to Tiffany’s sexual assault case. Detective Megan Townsend has been the president of the Board of Directors of The Oregon Association of Cold Case Investigators, a member of Oregon State’s Police Policy Committee of the Board on Public Safety Standards and Training, and a detective on the Major Crimes team of Hillsboro Police Department. The Washington County DA’s Office featured Megan Townsend in a February 2026 news special on KGW.
The Testing of Tiffany’s Rape Kit for Drugs
When Tiffany underwent a rape kit exam an at emergency room the day after her assault, Tiffany’s blood and urine were collected.
According to a report from a state forensic lab, per Detective Townsend’s request, Tiffany’s urine collected during her rape kit exam was tested for only the following 3 substances and no substances that, given the circumstances of the case, could have been used to drug Tiffany:
Hydrocodone (Vicodin) and metabolites of Hydrocodone. Tiffany reported to the police that she was in so much pain after her sexual assault that she took hydrocodone pills she had left over from a previous surgery.
A prescription SSRI drug Tiffany was taking the lowest commercial dose of for anxiety.
The date rape drug GHB. GHB causes short-term memory loss for 6-8 hours. Tiffany told police that on the day of her assault, her long-term memory ended at approximately 5:15 p.m. when she was rendered unconscious by Dr. Hildebrant in a hallway prior to surgery, and resumed at approximately 7:30 p.m as she experienced emergence agitation while in the custody of a female nurse. (After the rape, Dr. Hildebrant drugged Tiffany with a gas anesthetic that can cause emergence agitation.)
According to a different report from a state forensic lab, per Detective Townsend’s request, Tiffany’s blood collected during her rape kit exam was tested for only ethanol (alcohol).
Detective Townsend recorded the urine and blood test results in a police report.
“Even though I was drugged by Dr. Hildebrant, the urine and blood collected during my rape kit exam was not tested for a single substance that could have been used to drug me. My blood was tested for only alcohol, and my urine was tested for an antidepressant I took, an opioid I took to cope with the extreme pain from my sexual assault injuries, and a drug that, given the circumstances of my rape, could not have been used to drug me. Was the purpose of testing the urine and blood collected during my rape kit exam to identify substances I was drugged with, or to attack my character?”
“People do not have to be perfect to be sexually assaulted. The myth that victims are perfect people is an unrealistic and harmful standard that society imposes on survivors of abuse. All kinds of people are sexually assaulted. An offender may even target people with substance abuse issues who the offender thinks will be less likely to be believed.”
Dr. Hildebrant’s Polygraph Report
Polygraphs are so unreliable that the creator of the polygraph warned against its use. Polygraphs are unreliable for a number of reasons. People can experience stress during polygraphs even if they are telling the truth. Some people possess neurological conditions that make their vital signs fluctuate for reasons other than stress. People with antisocial personality disorder (psychopathy), who can lie without experiencing any stress, can easily pass polygraphs while lying. Additionally, people can be trained to beat polygraphs. By law, polygraph reports are not admissible in Oregon courts because polygraphs are unreliable. However, law enforcement in Oregon still uses polygraphs in some instances.
As shown in this polygraph report, Dr. Hildebrant passed a polygraph test administered by a private company. According to email records between Detective Townsend and Dr. Hildebrant’s attorney Jason Thompson, Mr. Thompson asked Allison Brown, a prosecutor for the Washington County DA’s Office, to include information about the polygraph test in the search warrant for collection of Dr. Hildebrant’s DNA. Detective Townsend, who was copied on the email, responded that she would include information about the polygraph test in the search warrant. Detective Townsend did include the fact that Dr. Hildebrant passed the polygraph test in the search warrant for collection of Dr. Hildebrant’s DNA.
Detective Townsend also recorded the polygraph results in a police report.
“Law enforcement should not be performing special favors for alleged rapists to include bogus scientific information in search warrants.”
The Forwarding of the Case to the DA’s Office
Detectives forward cases to the District Attorney's Office (DA’s Office) for review and charging once a detective’s investigation is complete, a suspect is identified, and sufficient evidence is gathered to establish probable cause that a crime was committed. This submission usually occurs after an arrest or citation. Once the DA receives the case file, they review it to determine if they can prove that a crime occurred beyond a reasonable doubt, which may lead to the DA’s Office filing formal charges.
In January 2025, Detective Megan Townsend lacked sufficient evidence needed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Dr. Hildebrant sexually assaulted Tiffany. In fact, Detective Townsend possessed falsified evidence indicating that Dr. Hildebrant was innocent. The tampered DNA evidence, Tiffany’s modified medical record, and the hospital’s edited surveillance video footage all indicated that Dr. Hildebrant was innocent. The male DNA profile generated from Tiffany’s tampered rape kit did not match Dr. Hildebrant. OHSU Hillsboro Medical Center’s modified surveillance video footage and Tiffany’s edited medical record indicated that Tiffany was not left alone with Dr. Hildebrant after her surgery. In January 2025, the only evidence Detective Townsend possessed that implicated Dr. Hildebrant was Tiffany’s word.
Although Detective Townsend lacked sufficient evidence needed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Dr. Hildebrant assaulted Tiffany, on January 10, 2025, as stated in a police report, Detective Townsend forwarded Dr. Nathan Hildebrant as a suspect to the DA’s Office to initiate formal criminal prosecution against Dr. Hildebrant. On January 21, 2025, while the DA’s Office was reviewing the case, Dr. Hildebrant’s attorney sent a letter stating that Dr. Hildebrant would not agree to an interview with law enforcement. A police report stating that Dr. Hildebrant would not agree to an interview was forwarded to the DA’s Office. Of course, as stated in these police reports, the DA’s Office declined to prosecute Dr. Hildebrant and cleared him of wrongdoing.
“I don’t understand why Dr. Hildebrant was forwarded as a suspect to the Washington County DA’s Office when law enforcement had no evidence, other than my word, that he was my offender, and had a lot of falsified evidence indicating that he was innocent. Did Dr. Hildebrant want to be declared innocent?”
The Interviews
Tiffany was sexually assaulted on July 21, 2023. Detective Megan Townsend did not interview any OHSU Hillsboro Medical Center staff members who interacted with Tiffany on the day of her assault until 2025.
Detective Townsend never interviewed any OHSU Hillsboro Medical Center staff persons who transferred Tiffany among hospital locations.
Detective Megan Townsend never interviewed any OHSU Hillsboro Medical Center staff members who interacted with Tiffany on the day of her assault other than a male scrub nurse. In February, 2025, Detective Townsend investigated the male scrub nurse as a suspect. A scrub nurse is a specialized nurse who works within the sterile field of the operating room, preparing the operating room for surgery, and handing instruments to surgeons during procedures. In other words, scrub nurses should only interact with patients in operating rooms. A police report written by Detective Townsend acknowledges this. Tiffany’s sexual assault injuries were consistent with sodomy. However, as detailed in these police reports, Detective Townsend still interviewed the male scrub nurse.
Detective Townsend has never met Tiffany in person, or had an in-depth interview with Tiffany.
After Dr. Hildebrant was cleared of wrongdoing by the DA’s Office, and Detective Townsend interviewed the male scrub nurse, Hillsboro Police Department indefinitely suspended Tiffany’s sexual assault case due to a leak of leads.
“During a phone call on July 21, 2024, Detective Townsend asked me what I remember happening during the sexual assault. I got 1 sentence in, and then she cut me off, and said I didn’t need to talk about it. I was then confused why she had asked me in the first place. Detective Townsend never asked me what I remember from my sexual assault any other time. She never even asked me what room the sexual assault occurred in. She didn’t seem to have any interest.”
The Body-Worn Camera
According to a response to Tiffany’s first subpoena for Hillsboro Police Department, Hillsboro Police Department does not possess body-worn camera footage for Detective Megan Townsend for when she:
collected surveillance video footage at OHSU Hillsboro Medical Center pursuant to a warrant
collected the buccal swabs from Dr. Hildebrant pursuant to a warrant
toured OHSU Hillsboro Medical Center and noted where their surveillance video cameras are