Lauren Teresa Giddings 27, was a promising law student, after earning her law degree She was preparing to pursue a career as a defense attorney
She was known for her ambition and friendliness to people around her. Gidding’s life took a disastrous turn in the month of June 2011 when she was brutally murdered at the hands of her former classmate and neighbor Stephen Mark McDaniel.
The Crime
Lauren Giddings and Stephen McDaniel attended Mercer University in Macon, Georgia for a law degree.
According to McDaniel’s statement, at 4:30 am on Sunday, June 26, 2011, he entered Gidding’s apartment using a master key, wearing a mask and gloves he strangled Lauren to death by hand in her bedroom.
The next day, he brutally dismembered Lauren’s body with a hacksaw in her bathroom. McDaniel discarded some of her body parts in a campus dumpster and threw her torso in a trashcan near the apartment complex, Barristers Hall.
The rest of her remains were never recovered.
Investigation and Arrest
After her family and friends had gone days hearing from her, Lauren was reported missing on June 30, 2011. Authorities recovered her torso from the trash can.
In an interview with WGXA, McDaniel portrayed himself as a concerned friend and neighbor but getting to know about the recovery of the torso shocked him on camera which drew attention from authorities.
On July 1, McDaniel voluntarily went to the police and gave a statement about Lauren’s disappearance; interrogation lasted over 12 hours.
The following day, McDaniel was in custody and his apartment was searched. McDaniel was in custody for a month while investigators linked several pieces of evidence to him including the hacksaw he used.
By August 10, McDaniel was formally charged with Lauren’s murder.
Legal Proceedings and The Aftermath
In 2014, McDaniel pleaded guilty to Lauren’s murder after he accepted a plea deal.
According to the plea deal, McDaniel provided the details of how he committed the crime, thus avoiding the death penalty but receiving a life sentence.
His sentencing also included the dismissal of additional charges of burglary and 30 counts of child sexual exploitation.
One of the prime pieces of evidence that proved the premeditated crime was footage found on McDaniel’s personal computer, it showed him filming Lauren’s apartment the night she was murdered.
McDaniel pleaded guilty however the case wasn’t closed because there remained significant
doubts about the full truth.
Attempts for appeal
McDaniel continued to pursue legal avenues to reduce his conviction.
In 2018, McDaniel represented himself in court arguing that his constitutional rights had been violated during trial and his legal research was intercepted by the district attorney.
He claimed that his attorneys provided inadequate representation and he was not medically cleared before giving consent for a few searches.
His appeal was denied but McDaniel’s father attempted to raise funds in a GoFundMe campaign but it was quickly taken down.
In 2022, McDaniel filed another habeas corpus petition claiming that documents crucial for his defense had been stolen but his efforts were.
He remains incarcerated at Hancock State Prison and is eligible for parole in 2041
Lauren’s family
Lauren’s murder was a great loss for her family and friends.
All these years have been filled with weddings, babies, and birthdays for her family, all events Lauren has never seen.
“it’s hard not to think about, this is something Lauren should be here for,” says Sarah Reybold, Lauren’s youngest sister.
“We still picture her as a 27-year-old woman. To think about her age being 37 now, it’s just crazy to try to think about where she would be.” Says Lauren’s sister, Kaitlyn Wheeler (2021)
Her family remembers her as someone who lived with passion and qualities that continue to inspire those who knew her.
Stephen McDaniel’s actions shattered a family which left the family in mourning, though justice was served in the form of McDaniel’s life sentence. For Lauren’s family, her memories live on through their great moments with the legacy she left behind.
