Signs Missed In Murder Of Young Woman In Wayland?
WAYLAND (CBS) – "Why?" It's the question friends, family members and neighbors in Wayland have as they mourn the death of 18-year-old Lauren Astley.
Her ex-boyfriend, 18-year-old Nathaniel Fujita is accused of killing Lauren.
On Monday, District Attorney Gerry Leone called it a case of teen dating violence.
"This case, like so many other paradigms is about control and about power," Leone said on Monday.
Northeastern Professor Dr. James Allen Fox says on the surface, Lauren's murder appears to fit into a far-too-common scenario.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Carl Stevens reports
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"Unfortunately, far too many males have a view that this is their right to maintain a relationship that's broken down. It's the old 'if I can't have you, no one can.' It's the obsession with the relationship; that 'I can't go on without you,'" Fox told WBZ NewsRadio 1030. "There's a sense in far too many men that they want to re-establish control."
Dr. Fox Talks To WBZ NewsRadio 1030
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Malcom Astley, Lauren's dad, hopes a memorial service planned for July 16 will continue to help people reflect on ways to be better at preventing tragedies like this, and recognize what is going on.
"Try to look at the pain that lead to the anger, look under the anger, and there is always something else there. It's very rare people are wired to be angry. You've got to look at and work on where that pain came from and what could have been done about it, and what you can do about it now," said Astley.
He believes more wellness courses in schools can help.
"Helping kids to know much more about relationships and how they are involved in relationships and what makes a healthy and giving relationship. The signs that it's not working for either person, and what they can do about it, in terms of resources and finding ways for needs to be met mutually," said Astley.
Former prosecutor Wendy Murphy says there's a good chance that red flags were missed.
"This kind of violence, the fact that there's a homicide now is typically foreshadowed by other forms of behavior that lead reasonable people to understand this is going in a very dangerous direction," Murphy told WBZ NewsRadio 1030. "The question for me is who knew about these folks… Who knew that things were moving in a dangerous direction? Did they not understand what the red flags looked like?"
Murphy says violent people are not going to change. Instead, more emphasis needs to be put on education.
"Do we need to be doing a better job, especially in our schools, teaching folks how to recognize red flags, teaching girls how to avoid getting into controlling and abusive relationships, and frankly doing a much better job educating guys about what a healthy relationship looks like."
