Funerals were held on Sunday in the hometowns of slain Auburn University freshman Lauren Burk and University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill senior Eve Carson. The girls were killed in unrelated fatal shootings last week.
Burk, a Marietta, Ga., native, was allegedly abducted on campus last Tuesday night while getting into her car, and was found later that night injured on the side of a road nearly five miles from campus. She was transported to East Alabama Medical Center, where she died from a single gunshot wound.
Authorities found Burk's car charred and gutted 20 minutes after finding her.
On Friday, police arrested 23-year-old Courtney Lockhart as the main suspect in the case, and have charged him with capital murder. Lockhart confessed to abducting and killing Burk, according to sworn affidavits that were read during a court appearance yesterday.
If convicted, he could face the death penalty. Lockhart reported to court yesterday at 3 p.m., the same time as a campus-wide memorial service was held for Burk.
On Wednesday morning in Chapel Hill, police responded to gunshot reports and found the UNC senior Carson's body at an intersection about half a mile from campus. The student body president from Athens, Ga., died of multiple gunshot wounds, including one to the right temple.
Carson's car was identified on Thursday morning a little less than a mile away from where her body was found. More than 5,000 students attended an address regarding her death that afternoon, according to reports from the Daily Tar Heel, the university's newspaper. A candlelight vigil was held for her that night.
UNC senior Paul Cohen described a campus in shock in Chapel Hill. "It was raining on Friday," he told the Daily. "It was appropriate for the mood on campus, just a real somber feeling."
Cohen depicted Carson as an extremely popular and respected student at the university. "The thing about Eve is, she was a Morehead scholar, which is the most prestigious scholarship we have," he said. "She's [the class] president and she's done research and community service in three foreign countries. She's not the kind of person you'd expect to find trouble ...
"I'd been introduced to her a couple times; I think everybody had, just because of who she was," he continued. "I don't know anyone who didn't get a pit in their stomach upon the news, whether they knew her or not."
While no one has been arrested in Carson's murder, police are enhancing two ATM surveillance photos that show a possible suspect using her ATM card and driving an SUV that resembles her 2005 Toyota Highlander.
The UNC Board of Trustees is offering $25,000 for information leading to the killer's arrest.
Giovanni Russonello contributed reporting to this article.
