Missing Oregon Mother Committed Suicide, Police Say
The Oregon mother of two who went missing nearly two weeks ago committed suicide in a rural part of the state near Sheridan, police confirmed Thursday.
Jennifer Janelle Huston's body was discovered by police on Tuesday in the remote area of Southeast Gopher Road near Sheridan. A dark green, 1999 Lexus LX sport utility vehicle, the car Huston left her home on July 24 in, was discovered hidden behind tree cover about 1/8 of a mile off of the road by a local resident who was chopping wood on his property. He reported the vehicle to police, saying that it looked suspicious and he smelled what he thought was the odor of a dead deer emanating from near the car.
Police found Huston's body about 50 yards away from the vehicle after doing a quick sweep of the scene. The Newberg-Dundee Police Department has said no foul play was suspected, and that Huston died of asphyxiation "fairly close to the time she was reported missing."
Huston was last seen filling up her gas tank at a gas station in Portland and purchasing over-the-counter sleeping pills and snacks from a local Rite-Aid. Police say that the empty box of sleeping pills was discovered at the scene of Huston's death.
Huston's parents, Bill and Deborah Turner, released a statement to the media Wednesday, asking for privacy while they grieve the death of their daughter. "We don't know what led Jennifer to this dark place and to this end and perhaps never will understand this," the couple said.
The 38-year-old mother of two reportedly complained of severe headaches on the days leading up to her disappearance, her husband told police and media outlets. He also said that his wife was acting erratic before she left home on the evening of July 24, telling her family she had to go run errands.
