Found Deceased MD - Laura Wallen, 31, pregnant, Olney, 3 Sept 2017 #1 *Arrest*

[mayita]

As a former teacher, the daughter of a teacher, and friend of current teachers, I can tell you that it is one of the few professions where having a child out of wedlock is still frowned upon. A dated sentiment for sure, but one that does exist, even in the urban areas.

Laura and her boyfriend both have ties to the agricultural industry in Maryland, specifically dairy cattle. There are a number of rural farming communities outside the beltway in Howard and Montgomery counties.

I don't believe the speculation of an inappropriate relationship with a student is helpful or appropriate.

I am not a teacher but I do live in the area and Columbia, Olney and Silver Spring are considered part of the DC Metro Area.

Again, I do not have any children in HS (or at all) but I will be extremely surprised that anyone would care about anyone being a single mother or a divorcee.

There are so many people that are single mothers or women who are divorced from all groups, origins, ethnicities etc. I have been living here for 17 years and I have never perceived any kind of bias towards single mothers. That area also houses a lot of LGBTQ couples, interracial couples, people from other countries, cultures etc.

Maybe I am mistaken but I do not believe that would be the case. JMO, of course.

 

[onlyjamielynn]

As a former teacher, the daughter of a teacher, and friend of current teachers, I can tell you that it is one of the few professions where having a child out of wedlock is still frowned upon. A dated sentiment for sure, but one that does exist, even in the urban areas.

Laura and her boyfriend both have ties to the agricultural industry in Maryland, specifically dairy cattle. There are a number of rural farming communities outside the beltway in Howard and Montgomery counties.

I don't believe the speculation of an inappropriate relationship with a student is helpful or appropriate.

IMOO I don't think anyone was implying a relationship with a student out of disrespect for her. However, with limited information and some of the comments made I can see why one would question it. Furthermore, I think it would be terribly naive to say "oh she just went on her own to regroup" or "I bet the BF did it" (I'm not implying, only giving an example). I think at this point it's important to look at any possibility.

Maybe the relationship with a student was strictly platonic, however the student became upset/obsessed and enraged. Laura thought she was just being a great person/human being and someone took it too far. Until she is home, no one knows.

 

[isr]

I am not a teacher but I do live in the area and Columbia, Olney and Silver Spring are considered part of the DC Metro Area.

Again, I do not have any children in HS (or at all) but I will be extremely surprised that anyone would care about anyone being a single mother or a divorcee.

There are so many people that are single mothers or women who are divorced from all groups, origins, ethnicities etc. I have been living here for 17 years and I have never perceived any kind of bias towards single mothers. That area also houses a lot of LGBTQ couples, interracial couples, people from other countries, cultures etc.

Maybe I am mistaken but I do not believe that would be the case. JMO, of course.

I understand and appreciate that you have no bias against an unwed woman having a baby. I am speaking specifically of women who are teachers. In a straw poll amongst my friends who are teachers, we could think of no teacher who was pregnant during a school year and unwed (some 60+ years of teaching between us). I'm not saying the bias is right, I'm just stating it does in fact exist. There are many parents who feel teachers should be held to a higher moral code (not that I agree).

 

[bellesnwhistles]

Personally I think it depends more on the person and their own values/morals/beliefs than their career but I see what you are saying.

 

[bellesnwhistles]

If she was telling her students though, I don't think she was ashamed or worried what others thought. But who knows! Wish we had more to go on

 

[JLD333]

I understand and appreciate that you have no bias against an unwed woman having a baby. I am speaking specifically of women who are teachers. In a straw poll amongst my friends who are teachers, we could think of no teacher who was pregnant during a school year and unwed (some 60+ years of teaching between us). I'm not saying the bias is right, I'm just stating it does in fact exist. There are many parents who feel teachers should be held to a higher moral code (not that I agree).

i agree with this. I also think most teachers would worry about the example they are setting for their students - especially high schoolers. It's certainly not as taboo as it once was but I'm sure it's still not an ideal situation.

I say this as someone who got pregnant outside of marriage and had a shotgun wedding I knew my now husband loved me and planned to marry me anyway but it was still a stressful period for me and I felt like a failure for a period of time - whether anyone else felt that way about me or not!

 

[tarabull]

Wilde Lake High School students hoping for safe return of missing teacher Laura Wallen
September 12, 2017

http://www.fox5dc.com/news/local-ne...r-safe-return-of-missing-teacher-laura-wallen

 

[bradfordsleuth]

I don't usually do this, but I am going to tell a very personal story from my own experience.

I have a really awful inkling that perhaps she received some difficult news about her pregnancy and has maybe self-harmed.

Almost 10 years ago I received devastating news at 21 weeks into my 1st pregnancy that the baby had a terminal condition (my baby girl had never developed kidneys in utero, therefore could not develop lungs and and it was not survivable.)

My first instinct was to blame myself and I thought my world was honestly ending....it took my amazing husband and the love of family and friends for me to face giving an induced birth to her born still at 23 weeks and to get past the grief.

Those were very dark days.

Maybe she has been faced with a similar situation and has let her own grief overcome her ability to cope with it.

I hope she and the precious tiny hands and feet that she carries make it home safe and healthy.

JMO

 

[JLD333]

I don't usually do this, but I am going to tell a very personal story from my own experience.

I have a really awful inkling that perhaps she received some difficult news about her pregnancy and has maybe self-harmed.

Almost 10 years ago I received devastating news at 21 weeks into my 1st pregnancy that the baby had a terminal condition (my baby girl had never developed kidneys in utero, therefore could not develop lungs and and it was not survivable.)

My first instinct was to blame myself and I thought my world was honestly ending....it took my amazing husband and the love of family and friends for me to face giving an induced birth to her born still at 23 weeks and to get past the grief.

Those were very dark days.

Maybe she has been faced with a similar situation and has let her own grief overcome her ability to cope with it.

I hope she and the precious tiny hands and feet that she carries make it home safe and healthy.

JMO

This thought has crossed my mind too. I had my anatomy scan at 16 weeks and they can do blood tests to check for chromosome abnormalities as early as 9 weeks. It seems to me like she would've shared that devastating news with someone besides her BF over the weekend but maybe not.

The reference to "trouble" in the press conference is really making me scratch my head. I still feel as if her and her BF had some sort of argument or disagreement on Saturday night based on his reluctance to say what their last convo was about and the talk about them getting through something at the PC.

If she's alive and missing voluntarily, where on earth did she go? Is someone hiding her??

 

[Seajay]

What I get from the presser and family is, they want the public help in locating her but they don't feel anything pertaining to her life is any bodies business. This is why we have so many questions and theories but very little actual facts. They want to get the word out that she's missing but they do not want us knowing who, what, when, where or why she's missing. IMO

 

[bradfordsleuth]

What I get from the presser and family is, they want the public help in locating her but they don't feel anything pertaining to her life is any bodies business. This is why we have so many questions and theories but very little actual facts. They want to get the word out that she's missing but they do not want us knowing who, what, when, where or why she's missing. IMO

I agree with your statements.

It just may make it difficult for the public to sympathize with Laura or her family if they are being 'shut out' from knowing what led to her disappearance.

Unfortunately, people may judge them for holding back this info instead of focusing their efforts on helping to find Laura, which is why we are all here.
JMO

 

[doodles1211]

What I get from the presser and family is, they want the public help in locating her but they don't feel anything pertaining to her life is any bodies business. This is why we have so many questions and theories but very little actual facts. They want to get the word out that she's missing but they do not want us knowing who, what, when, where or why she's missing. IMO

This seems to be common for families not wanting personal info out there other than the basic facts. They do no want to have judgments being made of the mp or the family. What they fail to realize is that details could hold info that could possibly help to find them.
I definitely would like to know more about the concerning texts.

 

[TruthIsStranger]

As a former teacher, the daughter of a teacher, and friend of current teachers, I can tell you that it is one of the few professions where having a child out of wedlock is still frowned upon. A dated sentiment for sure, but one that does exist, even in the urban areas.

Laura and her boyfriend both have ties to the agricultural industry in Maryland, specifically dairy cattle. There are a number of rural farming communities outside the beltway in Howard and Montgomery counties.

I don't believe the speculation of an inappropriate relationship with a student is helpful or appropriate.

I'm a teacher as well (in a conservative southern state--SC), but I've had a different experience. Things are changing very quickly. Seven years ago, seeing tattoos on new teacher hires surprised me (I'm in my late 40s), but now, it's not considered unusual. At my last school, an assistant principal with a long term live-in boyfriend decided she couldn't wait any longer for a proposal so she got pregnant. Eventually they married and all was well. No fallout--she was a popular​ admin. Same school: lesbian teacher (who was then promoted to an assistant principal position) got pregnant with her partner (not an employee). Despite the fact that there were a lot of family values/conservative teachers/admins/families at this public school, there was no scandalous talk that I was aware of. Interesting, isn't it? [emoji4]

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[dropjaw]

Yes, thank you, I completely agree. I grew up in Columbia (Wilde Lake was my neighborhood school) and work for another county's school system close by and gasp! I am an unwed, single mother. I never once felt judged by anyone in my work environment and I certainly wasn't embarrassed. This is completely normal in our area and we embrace and celebrate diversity on all levels.

No one can say what her personal thoughts are on this, but I'd certainly be surprised if anyone made her feel uncomfortable about having a baby and not being married in her work environment.

I am not a teacher but I do live in the area and Columbia, Olney and Silver Spring are considered part of the DC Metro Area.

Again, I do not have any children in HS (or at all) but I will be extremely surprised that anyone would care about anyone being a single mother or a divorcee.

There are so many people that are single mothers or women who are divorced from all groups, origins, ethnicities etc. I have been living here for 17 years and I have never perceived any kind of bias towards single mothers. That area also houses a lot of LGBTQ couples, interracial couples, people from other countries, cultures etc.

Maybe I am mistaken but I do not believe that would be the case. JMO, of course.

 

[TruthIsStranger]

Yes, thank you, I completely agree. I grew up in Columbia (Wilde Lake was my neighborhood school) and work for another county's school system close by and gasp! I am an unwed, single mother. I never once felt judged by anyone in my work environment and I certainly wasn't embarrassed. This is completely normal in our area and we embrace and celebrate diversity on all levels.

No one can say what her personal thoughts are on this, but I'd certainly be surprised if anyone made her feel uncomfortable about having a baby and not being married in her work environment.

When you think about a teacher's role in society, and the very diverse families they serve, one would hope that they're not super judgmental about these things, especially with regard to one another in the workplace. Sure, we're role models, and we don't want teens getting pregnant, but teachers aren't teens. They're grown women, they have decent jobs with benefits, and they're highly educated with master's degrees--or working on them--so they can afford to support a small family.

Maybe the rampant domestic violence and child abuse in our society, along with the scary addictions/mental illnesses/backgrounds/double lives potential mates bring to the table has softened people's stance that having ANY husband is better than being alone.

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[mrsNKY]

Just throwing out a scenerio. What if the last appointment with the sonogram was a new due date and bf could not be the father? Maybe they are trying to work it out until they have testing..the bf doesn't want to create another layer of despair on the family, continues to say the baby is his. It would be horrible to tell this to the family now and you really don't want her to hear this made public while she is having issues. Just a thought.

I wonder if she appeared to be in a hurry when she left or casually walking to her car?
Another thing, wonder if she thought the bf was cheating and she left to try to catch him. The place where he went was the apt complex. She parks outside the gate to walk in, she gets distraught and just walks away. Maybe the texts were odd, because she just loses it.

The fact that she doesn't name him is odd to me. I went awhile without naming my kids on SM. My husband, I have always mentioned and he also has all the SM I have, so we are always tagged together.

Could one of her students have called her for help ie: I'm drunk and can't drive home or something more nefarious? She seems like she would be that kind of teacher.

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[Txteacher1]

Does anyone know if there is a public bus or transportation system? If so are there stops near the apartments where her car was found?
Of course, these days if you want to ditch a vehicle you only need a smart phone and uber....

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[BloodHoundSleuther]

We heard her phone last pinged in Silver Spring. Is there any other information available regarding her personal belongings? Purse, wallet? What was found in her vehicle? If all personal belongings are gone, that would suggest she may have willingly left. However, if someone wanted to make it look as if foul play occurred in the Columbia area where her vehicle was found, personal belongings would have been left intact in the vehicle. It's a very important piece of information the public needs to assist further!

 

[CTPDMom]

If my daughter were a teacher, an excellent, well-respected one, and who also suffered from a mental illness (like bi-polar) which is well controlled with meds for many years, but she stopped taking her meds due to a pregnancy...I wouldn't want to share that info publicly because I'd fear that her teaching career might be derailed. Mental illness has a terrible stigma attached.

That scenario might not make logical sense in light of the fact that she's missing, and if found unharmed her teaching career could be derailed anyway, but as a parent I can see that as possible.

Just my thoughts.

Also, it was mentioned upthread that police might have made several trips to her home before she was formally 'missing'. If an adult isn't reachable, but no real 'evidence' that there's an issue, LE might agree to a 'welfare check'.


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[JLD333]

As time goes on, I'm starting to wonder whether they are playing it to look like she's voluntarily missing so the BF gains a false sense of security. It is odd that as long as they've been together, they don't appear more involved in each other's lives.