Auburn DG Found Dead
 

http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/met...ge_tab_newstab

Auburn freshman from Cobb shot to death

By MIKE MORRIS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 03/05/08

An Auburn University freshman from Cobb County died Tuesday night after being found shot several miles from campus, police and school officials said.

Auburn police responding to a report of an injured female on Alabama Hwy. 147 a few miles north of town found Lauren A. Burk, 18, of Marietta, suffering from a single gunshot wound. She later died at East Alabama Medical Center.

About 20 minutes later, Burk's 2001 Honda Civic was found on fire at the Hinton Field parking lot near a dormitory on campus.

Burk graduated last year from Walton High School in Marietta, said Jim Hardin, director of the Auburn University Office of Judicial Affairs.

Burk was a member of Delta Gamma sorority and did not live on campus, Hardin said.

The Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, the Lee County Sheriff's Office and athe Lee County District Attorney's Office were assisting Auburn police in the investigation.

Hardin said police had made no arrests as of early Wednesday afternoon.

Oh how awful! My heart goes our to her friends and family.

Oh my god, how awful! I'm so sorry for her parents and family and DG sisters.

Wow, how shocking! I sure hope they find out who did this to her!

So terrible. My thoughts are with my Auburn sisters.

Another sad story..we have way too many of these occur..:(

Oh my god. This is horrible. So shocking and horrific. My thoughts and so many prayers to my Auburn sisters. God help them through this time.

Horrible.

Official statements from Auburn and Delta Gamma are at:

http://www.oanow.com/oan/news/local/...und_dead/7469/

Terrible news. Big story and photo at the AU.edu website. I hope they can still get prints off the vehicle even tho it burned.

I hope the find the person/people responsible for this soon and punish them to the fullest extent of the law!!!! My prayers are with her family! :(

How sad! As an Auburn alum, it is doubly sad to hear of such a violent tragedy on the Loveliest Village on the Plains.

Such a beautiful young woman - prayers are with her family, sisters and friends.

I tell you what, 2008 has been a terrible year for family tragedy and lost lives and it's only March!

My heart goes out to this young girls family. Delta Gamma and Lauren Burk are in my prayers.

What an unbelievable tragedy. My thoughts are with her family, friends and sisters.

LITB to my Delta Sigma girls :(

So sad that such things happen to good young people. My heart goes out to her family.

Completely tragic. My thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends.

according to the auburn/opelika newspaper, there was a similar incident 2 years ago. the young woman involved is still missing, but her car was found on fire.

what a tragic,cruel loss. my thoughts and prayers are with lauren's family and her delta gamma sisters.

How awful! My heart goes out to her family, friends and her DG sisters

*SMH*
What a horrible tragedy. I hope they find the punks who did this
My thoughts are with her family, friends and DG sisters :(

How awful! My heart goes out to her family, friends, and sisters. =(

Terrible! I hope they find out who did this...and soon.

It's a little odd that all of the newspaper articles and statements all state that she was "found dead" when it sounds like she wasn't. According to the statements, she was found shot, then died from her injuries at the hospital. The sad end result is the same, but that's a detail they should get right.

I can't but hope she died immediately - I'd hate to think she suffered. So, so sad.

Hard to get a straight story, but I'm fairly certain she was alive when emergency personnel arrived. There seems to be a pretty tight lid on information, and I sincerely hope that this is because the authorities are very close to putting the pieces together in this matter. I've gotten several calls today about "word on campus" type of stuff, but I'm hoping the answers, and justice, will come swiftly.

Auburn Coed Tragedy
 

Sincere sympathy to the family and Delta Gamma sisters of Lauren. She graduated from Walton High School, which is our neighborhood high school. A friend's daughter knew Lauren at Auburn and is still shocked and unable to understand how this could have happened.

God bless her family and the sisters of Delta Gamma.

First, my thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Lauren. It seems that she was an amazing girl with so much to offer this world.

There is concern in the Auburn parent community about the length of time it took for the emergency notification system to become activated. It wasn't until 1pm the following day that an email was sent to parents and students of Auburn. So, most students were unaware of any possible danger on Monday evening and went about their usual activities without being extra cautious.

It was the lead story on the Atlanta news stations, as she was an Atlanta girl. They were talking about the killer being at large and some campus cop said that they didn't feel, after reviewing their evidence, that women were in any "stranger danger". That would seem to indicate that they feel like an acquaintance did it. They referred to "a weird cell phone call" that her friends said she'd made right before she left.:confused:

Oh my goodness...this is so tragic.
My heart and prayers goes out to my auburn sisters, Lauren's family and the auburn community.

How sad...sympathies to her friends, family, and DG sisters.

Article from Auburn's student newspaper
 

Freshman Female Killed, Burning Car Found on Campus
By Katie Noland / Copy Editor Lauren Burk Lauren Burk, an 18-year-old freshman in pre- graphic design from Marietta, Ga., was found Tuesday night at approximately 9:08 p.m. with a single gunshot wound, The Plainsman was first to report Wednesday. The Auburn Police Department confirmed at 4:10 p.m. there have been no other shootings or deaths on campus.

Burk’s body was found north of the Auburn University campus on U.S. Highway 147. The Lee County Sheriff’s office was investigating a location 4.9 miles north of Auburn’s campus.

The Plainsman was first to confirm that at approximately 9:27 p.m. Tuesday, Auburn police responded to a vehicle fire at Hinton Field RH-Zone parking lot behind the Hill residence halls.

The 2001 black Honda Civic that was engulfed in flames was registered to Burk, but no one was in the car.

After the discovery of her body, Burk was transported to East Alabama Medical Center in Opelika where she was pronounced dead.

Lee County Sheriff’s Office is investigating what they are calling an “unnatural death,” along with the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, the Auburn Police Department and the Lee County District Attorney’s Office.

Auburn President Jay Gouge, who was out of town Wednesday, released a statement saying, “We are so saddened by this situation, words simply aren’t adequate. This is a close-knit community that rarely experiences such a tragedy. Our heartfelt prayers and thoughts go out to those in Lauren’s community in Marietta, her friends in Auburn and especially her family.”

Confusion and shock spread throughout campus quickly Wednesday morning.

“I want to know what caused it, because obviously she was targeted,” said Jeni Young, a freshman in special education.

An e-mail was sent to all Auburn students at 12:03 p.m. regarding Burk’s death.

“I was surprised we didn’t get an e-mail earlier,” said Megan Kuenzli, a freshman in elementary education.

Burk was a member of Delta Gamma sorority, which released a statement on the Auburn University Web site Wednesday afternoon concerning Burk’s death.

“Considering the unexpected and disturbing nature of the situation, the women of Delta Gamma have reacted with immense concern. Delta Gamma Fraternity will partner with the University to support the chapter as they come to terms with the loss of their sister and friend. Delta Gammas across the country offer hope and friendship to Lauren’s family and all who have been affected by this tragedy.”

The Auburn Police Department, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office and the Alabama Forensic Sciences Department are investigating the shooting and looking for the killer or killers.

“I have given any assistance I can to this investigation, and hopefully this will soon come to a conclusion and then we will begin the prosecution,” said District Attorney Nick Abbet.

A vigil will be held tonight at 5 p.m. in the C-Zone behind the Hill residence Halls.

How awful for her family, friends, and sisters. :(

When a violent crime happens to a student off campus, but partly on campus ( the burning car) I do believe that constitutes enough to activate the emergency notification system. My daughter and myself received our emails closer to 1:00 pm the following day. The speculation is that Lauren was abducted either on campus when leaving her boyfriends dorm, or off campus while leaving her dorm. Her dorm is a private dorm adjacent to campus. To call it 'off campus' is merely a technicality since it is closer to the library and classes than the on-campus dorms. This is all speculation based on what little has been released. However, a killer was on the loose and possible on campus. Students should have been notified by the ENS system that is in place for just such an occassion.

I saw on Fox news there will be a press conference this afternoon. I'm not familiar with all the depts at AU but I hope they have a good Police Forensic Dept that can utilize their professors knowledge. The Governor was just on TV but really didn't say anything other than about the reward so the lid is tight on info.

My thoughts and prayers are with Lauren's family and the Auburn family in this troubled time.

Arrest has been made
 

By STAFF REPORTS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 03/07/08

WSB-TV reported there has been an arrest in connection with Auburn freshman Lauren Burk, of Marietta. The arrest was reportedly made in Phenix City, Ala. after a high-speed chase. WSB did not identify the man who was arrested, but reported that a Phenix City investigator said that the man was found with evidence that could link him to the Burk case.

Phenix City police wouldn't immediately confirm the report.

Phenix City police officials could not be immediately reached to confirm the report.

A Burk family spokeswoman Kathy Singleton said the family had not been notified of an arrest in Phenix City, but had heard the news through media reports Friday evening.

I hope they FRY whoever did this.

We'll know tomorrow...
 

Police will not release the suspect's name tonight (they're tying up loose ends in the case ie. they're filling out paperwork so they can formally charge the bastard). There will be a press conference in the morning.

Apparently, they found the guy because he robbed an elderly woman in Phenix, AL and they were tracking him down. When they found him, they found evidence linking him to Lauren in his car.