Parents of missing student await ID of found skull - 13 WTHR Indianapolis

The parents of missing Indiana University student Lauren Spierer are yet again dealing with difficult and conflicting emotions, as they await test results on a gruesome discovery in the White River.

They also released a message, publicly sharing their pain and pleading for answers in their daughter's disappearance.

"It's extremely difficult to write those letters," Robert Spierer told Eyewitness News by phone Friday.

Those letters are penned by parents who still have no idea what happened to their daughter. Every few months, the Spierers write again, hoping this time they'll stir someone's conscience and get answers about Lauren.

The IU student disappeared June 3, 2011 after a night out with friends in Bloomington.

"It's a mixture of feeling awful about not knowing about Lauren. There's an element of frustration, anger," Robert Spierer explained.

This latest message gave painful insight into a family on edge, as they await a difficult discovery.

Charlene Spierer wrote in her letter: "We are waiting to find out if a skull found in the White River might be Lauren's. It's chilling to say the words. It could take as long as eight weeks. That's 80,640 minutes of agony."

"There's this terrible mix of wanting to know...but not wanting it to be her," Robert Spierer said. "It's terrible to think of your child having ended up in that river in the way that whoever did end up in that river got there. We're balancing this horrible feeling about Lauren and what might have happened to her with finally learning about what did happen."

Robert Spierer says they should know soon, possibly within a week, from the Marion County coroner, whether or not the skull belongs to his daughter. Tests on a tooth could speed up the process, since Lauren's dental records are on file.

Spierer says it's important to note there's nothing specific about these remains that suggest a link to Lauren. In fact, the Spierers have been through this before, about a dozen times, with about a dozen bodies this past year.

"Every time a person is found, that's the kind of dichotomy of emotion we have to deal with," he said.

Despite the hope and the fear of what they could learn, the Spierers say they will never give up in their search to find Lauren.

Robert Spierer also said he believes some students, who will be returning to IU soon, have information that they have not shared about Lauren's disappearance. Bloomington Police and a private detective, hired by the Spierers, continue to investigate leads in the case.