29-year-old deceased woman found near TDHS on March 27; Students and parents notified
By Cole Goodwin and Tom Peterson
The Dalles police responded to an unconscious woman who was found in a pickup truck at The Dalles First United Methodist Church on 11th Street adjacent to The Dalles High School on Monday, March 27.
“We’re investigation suicide in the church parking lot at the Methodist Church,” said TD Police Lt. Jamie Carrico this evening, March 28 at 5:30 p.m.
Carrico said they would be releasing the name of the 29-year-old woman in days to come. The woman was in a rented U-Haul pickup, he said.
The Wasco County Medical Examiner has been called in to assess the ongoing case and additional information will be forthcoming from The Dalles Police Department. But it appears to be a suicide, Carrico said.
News of the death was first publicized by Doug Kirchoffer on Facebook this afternoon, March 28.
Kirchoffer posted a letter to The Dalles High School Community regarding the matter.
It states:
Dear TDHS Community.
Yesterday afternoon, emergency responders were called to assist an unresponsive individual at a property neighboring our High School. Unfortunately, upon assessing the situation law enforcement determined that the individual was deceased. The City of The Dalles Police Department is investigating the incident.
While the incident occurred after school hours, we are aware that some students were still in the area and witnessed this activity.
We understand that this type of situation can be very alarming and those that witnessed this event may need additional support. Counseling staff from Mid- Columbia Center For Living have been on site today to help support the TDHS counseling team and meet with students who may need an adult to talk to.
We do want to thank the students who reported the incident. A critical piece of maintaining safe schools is to “see something, hear something, do something”. Talk to your child about speaking to a trusted adult, such as a teacher, counselor, or first responder, if they have heard or seen something that is alarming to them.
School support and counseling specialists will, as always, be made available for students and staff as needed.
Sincerely,
Kurt Evans
Principal
