UPDATE: Woman returned from Oregon to face charges of killing mother

A former Saugus High School student was in jail in Van Nuys Wednesday accused of murdering her mother after homicide detectives brought her back from Oregon, said the detective in charge of the case.

Laura Lutrell Purviance, 24, of Woodland Hills, appeared in Van Nuys Superior Court Wednesday on a felony charge of first-degree murder, court papers show.

Her arraignment was put over to next month, at which time, she is expected to be prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Elizabeth Ratinoff.

Purviance’s bail remains set at $2 million.

If convicted, she faces up to life in prison.

“On the 13th of February, she shot her mom (Caroline Sue Purviance), which caused the death, and she fled in her mom’s vehicle,” Los Angeles Police Department Detective David Peteque told The Signal Wednesday.

“She ended up in Oregon,” Peteque said of the daughter. “And we narrowed down where she was.”

Caroline Sue Purviance, 61, who worked as a special education instructional assistant for three local high schools, was found dead inside her daughter’s home on Mason Avenue in Woodland Hills on Feb. 14, LAPD officers said last week.

On Feb. 15, about 4 a.m., Oregon state troopers arrested Purviance in the Valley of the Rogue State Park rest area along Interstate 5, about 13 miles north of Medford and about 20 miles from the California state line.

While in Oregon, the 5-foot-10-inch, 170-pound woman waived her extradition rights, allowing Peteque to bring her back to Los Angeles. Peteque flew to Medford and returned to Los Angeles with her on Tuesday, he said.

“She was very cooperative,” he said.

Although he couldn’t share much information about the case, Peteque said the murder did not follow an argument between the victim and her daughter as reported by some media.

The felony complaint for arrest warrant, filed Feb. 19, alleges Laura Purviance personally and intentionally discharged a handgun.

A funeral service for Caroline Sue Purviance is scheduled at 2 p.m. Saturday in Pasadena at All Saints Church.
For more than 20 years, she worked, lived and a raised a family of five children in Saugus.

jholt@signalscv.com
661-287-5527
on Twitter @jamesarthurholt

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UPDATE: Woman returned from Oregon to face charges of killing mother

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	Posted: February 27, 2013 12:45 p.m. Updated: February 27, 2013 6:23 p.m.


	ohhyaa: Posted: February 27, 2013 4:52 p.m. I wonder what the relevance of the suspect's height and weight is?? In case anyone is interested... she also has hazel eyes and brown hair. Laura Lutrell Purviance had been in contact with the authorities (LAPD) and was parked in a rest stop in Oregon awaiting her arrest. The suspect had a roommate who found the body of Caroline Sue. The roommate was from the U.K. and said she knew the suspect for six months and that she (the suspect) had a recent falling out with her boyfriend. The suspect also was involved with occupy protests and another against Bank of America. According to the victims Facebook page, she hated her parents and also hated the Santa Clarita Valley (glad she left). The suspect also talked about recent struggles with depression. (seems to be a common symptom with recent violent acts). The victim had been working as a nurse at a mental health hospital in Pacoima (how ironic). I'm sure she will be missed. thecloser: Posted: February 27, 2013 6:04 p.m. @ohhyaa i can tell you have no life lol ohhyaa: Posted: February 27, 2013 6:22 p.m. @thecloser. LMFAO. I guess a person can only do just so much laundry and housework in a day. I'd like to believe that i'm extremely effecient which gives me a little extra free time. Also, I got all of the facts by just google searching her name and reading the article at Dailynews.com. I just wanted to know a bit more than 5' 10" tall. Now seriously, isn't my post more interesting? Mropinion: Posted: February 27, 2013 8:28 p.m. Usually the complaint is 'Not enough info'. Today it's 'To much info'. tacalert: Posted: February 27, 2013 11:02 p.m. Not a complaint. Jim seems to have a fetish to describe what young women are wearing or what their measurements are. That's all. It would make sense if the line was something like, "the 5'10", 170 pound woman could easily overtake her 4'09", 100 pound mother..." Not saying that is the mother's measurements. Just making a point. BBennetts: Posted: February 28, 2013 3:07 a.m. What kind of shoes did she have on? tacalert: Posted: February 28, 2013 10:18 a.m. Shoes will be discussed in the follow up article. lmp: Posted: March 1, 2013 12:28 a.m. Caroline was not a mental health worker. That's a different Caroline. Perhaps you should not rely on googling people. ohhyaa: Posted: March 1, 2013 10:10 a.m. @Imp, According to the Daily News, Caroline had been working as a Nurse in a mental health hospital in Pacoima. I guess the Daily News got it wrong and you got it right. lmp: Posted: March 17, 2013 5:09 a.m. Yes. The Daily News got it wrong, and the victim's daughter got it right.


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