‘She didn’t leave answers for us to find.’ Oakdale family struggles with girls’ suicides
An Oakdale teen’s stepmother of 15 years said her family is left questioning what led Lauren Murrieta and another girl to take their own lives last weekend. “How she carried herself, no one would even be able to tell she was troubling with herself,” Cheng Saetern told The Bee via Facebook Messenger.
“We will never know the truth or find any answers,” she added, speculating that “she had to do it for her closure for herself. ... She didn’t leave answers for us to find.”
Lauren, 17, and a 15-year-old Oakdale High classmate were found dead by a man who went fishing along the Stanislaus River in Oakdale the morning of Saturday, April 11. Police Chief Scott Heller said that afternoon, “Both victims are believed to have died from small-caliber gunshot wounds” and are believed to have died less then 24 hours before they were discovered.
The Stanislaus County Coroner’s Office released the girls’ names once relatives had been notified. But The Bee, not yet having communicated with the younger girl’s family, will identify her only as “Angie,” which is how she’s referred to on a gofundme account.
Lauren’s father, Steven Murrieta, had Saetern speak on his behalf, telling The Bee only, “I just can’t find the words. ... She will forever be in our heart.”
Saetern said that as a child, Lauren wanted to be a baker, then as she grew older set a goal of becoming a social worker. She was a loving and protective sister to her siblings, her stepmother said. “Lauren left a mark on anyone she came across, whether it be by her beauty, her laugh, her intelligence, her activities, anything she was doing.”
She looked forward to witnessing Lauren’s achievements in life, and to her stepdaughter finding love and having children of her own, Saetern said. “I’m just so hurt and so sad,” she said, adding that she and Murrieta have three boys but “she was my only girl. I loved her so much.”
Saetern set up the page “Our baby girl Lauren” in the funerals/memorials section of gofundme. Lauren’s mother, Pany Boun, also created a gofundme account, “Laurens and Angie funeral.”
The girls’ suicides came just as students in the Oakdale Joint Unified School District were starting spring break, which ends Sunday. Schools will remain closed, though, through the remainder of the school year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
On how grief counseling will be offered to students, district Superintendent Marc Malone told The Bee, “Any student in need of grief counseling can contact the OJUSD District Office (209-848-4884) during this period of distance learning and a direct referral will be made to the OJUSD Grief Counseling Team.”
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline provides confidential assistance to anyone in crisis and their loved ones through a live chat and free 24-hour hot line: 800-273-8255.
This story was originally published April 16, 2020 at 12:49 PM.
