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Update: Murderer Tyler Tessier committed suicide in jail on September 6, 2018, the day his three-week trial for killing Laura Wallen was set to begin. Wallen’s mother, Gwen, called Tessier a “diabolical human.” “As awful as today is, I feel at peace,” she said after learning of Tessier’s death.
Two weeks ago, Tyler Tessier drove his on-again, off-again girlfriend Laura Wallen to a grocery store and then to a wooded area in the northern part of Montgomery County. Laura was four months pregnant, a fact known to Tessier. Tessier was keeping a secret from her, however—he had recently become engaged to another woman. The two women had just found out that Tessier was dating the other.
Tessier decided to cover his secret by executing Wallen with a gun shot to the back of her head. Then, days later, he attended a news conference with Wallen’s parents and pretended to mourn her death.
Police found Wallen’s body on Wednesday. Tessier has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder.
Laura was a rare person who showered everyone around her with love, a teacher that genuinely cared about her kids. She taught social studies at Wilde Lake High School in Columbia, Maryland. One student recalled something nice Laura would do for him and said, “It would put a smile on my face every time. She was such an amazing lady. She did whatever she could to make us happy.”
We can’t bring Laura back, but we can honor her memory. Please take one of the following two actions today to honor her memory:
1) Per the family’s request, make a donation to In Honor of Her, a nonprofit that has raised nearly $500,000 in support of domestic violence survivors. These funds have assisted local women’s shelters, supported community awareness programs, and contributed towards scholarship funds. You can make a donation here:
http://inhonorofher.org/donate/
2) Post the following status message and link to Facebook (post it PUBLIC, if you’re willing, so more see it):
You might have heard about a terrible shooting that just occurred in Maryland in which a pregnant school teacher was killed by her boyfriend. The teacher’s name is Laura Wallen and she had a special connection with her students at Wilde Lake High School, where she taught social studies. They called her “Wallaby with the jellyfish hugs” because she always wanted to embrace them. One student said, “She wanted you to be involved and happy all the time; she didn’t want you to be sad or left out or alone.” Another said, “She was a friend first, teacher second.” We’ve had a very special person taken from us. Click here if you’d like to read more about her. The stories are incredibly moving. Read the final paragraph in the following article to see how you can support Laura’s family:
Once you have taken one of the two actions above, click the orange banner below to report taking action!