What happened? Q & A on the investigation into student's murder

Auburn fire fighters and police investigate a car fire that occurred Tuesday night off Lem Morrison Drive on Auburn University's campus. The car was registered to AU freshman Lauren Burk, who was found shot at a separate location, and later died at EAMC.

By: | Opelika Auburn News
Published: March 06, 2008

What happened?

At 9:08 p.m. Tuesday, Auburn police responded to a report of a female lying in the roadway on Alabama Highway 147 (North College Street) between U.S. Highway 280 and Farmville Baptist Church, according to Auburn police. When police arrived, they discovered Lauren A. Burk, 18, an Auburn University freshman from Marietta, Ga., had suffered a single gunshot wound. Police did not release the location of Burk’s gunshot wound.

Burk was transported to East Alabama Medical Center where she was pronounced dead Tuesday night, according to EAMC Public Relations Manager John Atkinson. Atkinson was unable to provide the time of Burk’s death.

Police are investigating the shooting as a homicide, Auburn police Capt. Tom Stofer said Wednesday afternoon. “We are considering it a murder at this point.”

Related incident:

At 9:27 p.m. Tuesday, Auburn fire and police responded to a report of a vehicle fire in the Hinton Field parking lot on Lem Morrison Drive on the Auburn University campus.

The vehicle, a 2001 black Honda Civic, was registered to Burk, according to a release from Auburn police.

When firefighters arrived, the front of the vehicle was “heavily involved” in flames, according to Auburn Fire Division Acting Chief Lee Lamar. The fire appeared to have started somewhere inside the vehicle, according to Auburn fire Battalion Chief Matt Jordan. The cause of the fire, however, has not been determined, Lamar said.

Are there any suspects?

Police were specifically asked if there was a suspect in the murder. “At this time, we have not identified or named a suspect,” Stofer said.

During a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Auburn police Assistant Chief Tommy Dawson would not say who had been brought in for questioning. “We don’t have a suspect at this time,” Dawson said.

Related to Slesinski case?

Auburn police are not connecting the murder of Burk to the case of Lori Ann Slesinski, 24, an Auburn University graduate who has been missing since June 2006, Dawson said Wednesday. Less than a week after Slesinski was reported missing, her vehicle, a blue 2005 Mazda Tribute, was found on fire in the roadway of DeKalb Street.

Staff writer Amy Weaver also contributed to this article.