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WEBVTT BE BLUNT, THERE’S NO EASY WAY TO SAY THIS. THE DEFENDANT IS DEAD. THERE WILL BE NO TRIAL." >> IT IS A TOUGH DAY FOR OUR FAMILY TO NOT HAVE THIS TRIAL HAPPEN. KATE: MARK WALLEN TALKING ABOUT THE TRIAL FOR THE MAN ACCUSED OF MURDERING HIS DAUGHTER LAURA ONE YEAR AGO. POLICE SAY WALLEN WAS 14 WEEKS PREGNANT WHEN HER BOYFRIEND TYLER TESSIER LURED HER TO A REMOTE FIELD, SHOT HER IN THE HEAD AND BURIED HER IN A SHALLOW , GRAVE. JUST HOURS BEFORE HIS TRIAL WAS SET TO BEGIN WORD THAT TYLER TESSIER WAS DEAD. ACCORDING TO AUTHORITIES, HE KILLED HIMSELF AT 5:00 IN HIS JAIL CELL. PROSECUTORS SAY THEY ARE DISAPPOINTED AND FRUSTRATED. >> WE WERE ROBBED OF THE OPPORTUNITY TO PROVE HIS GUILT IN A COURTROOM. KATE: SO, HIS TEAM LAID OUT THEIR CASE IN THE LOBBY OF THE CIRCUIT COURT BUILDING, REVEALING NEW DETAILS AND EVIDENCE INCLUDING TESSIER’S , EXPLANATION FOR HIS PERFORMANCE AT THE TEARFUL PRESS CONFERENCE. IN A RECORDED PHONE CALL, TESSIER ALLEGEDLY TOLD A FRIEND POLICE PUT DROPS IN HIS EYES TO MAKE IT LOOK LIKE HE WAS CRYING. HE WORE AN EARPIECE, TELLING HIM EXACTLY WHAT TO SAY. CELL PHONE RECORDS SHOW TESSIER AND WALLEN’S PHONES PINGING A THE BURIAL SITE AT THE SAME TIME TRACKERS ON TESSIER’S CAR WHICH POLICE SAY PLACED HIM IN THE REMOTE FIELD. A SEARCH OF THE PROPERTY ENSUED AND DETECTIVES FOUND THIS PATCH , OF PURPLE FABRIC CALLED THE , FIRST SIGN OF LAURA WALLEN. TESSIER CALLED A PSYCHOPATH AND A COWARD. >> TODAY WAS THE DAY WAS ALL GOING TO CRASH DOWN ON HIM. HE KNEW THE DISCOVERY, HE KNEW THAT EVIDENCE, AND HE KNEW TODAY WAS THE RECKONING. KATE: THROUGH HIS PUBLIC DEFENDER, TESSIER’S FAMILY RELEASED A STATEMENT WHICH READ IN PART "WE WANT TO EXPRESS OUR CONDOL

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The accused killer of a pregnant Howard County teacher was found dead in his cell Thursday morning.Laura Wallen, who was 14 weeks pregnant, was killed a year and three days ago when her boyfriend, Tyler Tessier, lured her to a remote field, shot her in the back of the head and buried her in a shallow grave, officials said.Tessier, 33, was found dead of apparent suicide around 5:10 a.m. Thursday in his cell at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility in Rockville, officials said.The Montgomery County Department of Correction and Rehabilitation released the following statement on Tessier's death:"This morning, inmate Tyler Tessier was woken up at 4 a.m. to prepare for court. He took a shower until approximately 4:15 a.m. He returned to his cell to dress and was observed there during the 4:36 a.m. round. Breakfast was then served at 4:45 a.m. During the next round at 4:55 a.m., he was discovered hanging in his cell. He had tied a bedsheet around the edge of the top bunk and the other end around his neck. The officer untied the end around the inmate's neck and immediately began life-saving measures. A medical emergency was called and medical staff responded to assist. Medical assistance was provided until EMS arrived and took over life-saving measures at 5:13 a.m. Inmate Tessier could not be revived and at 5:32 a.m. EMS terminated resuscitation."Tessier's public defender released a statement saying, "The Tessier family is distraught over the news of their son Tyler’s death. They want to express their condolences to the Wallen family for their loss. At this time, please respect the Tessiers' wish to grieve with privacy."Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Michael Mason told the 65 remaining prospective jurors who showed up as instructed for a 9:30 a.m. start Thursday: "I know part of my instructions to you ... was to avoid all exposure to local news. So I expect what I'm about to tell you will come as a shock. There is no easy way to tell you this, but the defendant was found dead in his cell at 5 o'clock this morning. Apparently, a suicide. So there will be no trial." Mason then talked about procedure and thanked the prospective jurors for their service, saying, "Because there will be no trial, I will be able to excuse you at this time. So I'm sorry to deliver the news to you in such a blunt fashion, but there is just no easy way to tell you this."Jury selection for his trial was scheduled to resume Thursday. Tessier's murder trial was set to begin Thursday as attorneys were expected to seat the jury and begin opening arguments."We were robbed this morning of the opportunity to allow the public to know the true nature and details of this crime," Montgomery County State's Attorney John McCarthy said during a press conference Thursday. "We were anxious to try this case. We would have loved to have put forth all of the evidence in this case.""Our daughter, Laura, was loved and liked. She is absolutely missed and we were robbed of the trial," said Wallen's father, Mark Wallen. "It is a tough day for our family to not have this trial happen."Prosecutors reveal new details, evidence in Tessier caseDuring the press conference in the lobby of the Circuit Court building Thursday afternoon, prosecutors fired up a PowerPoint presentation and laid out their case that police used trackers on Tessier's car, which put him in the field where Wallen was killed.Surveillance video from the Olney Safeway the night before the killing showed the pair together at the checkout line. Cellphone records are said to show Tessier and Wallen's phones both pinging at the same location at the same time. A search of the property turned up a patch of purple fabric, which authorities called the first sign of Wallen.Prosecutors revealed new details and evidence, including Tessier's explanation for his performance at the tearful press conference held when police were still investigating Wallen's disappearance.In a recorded phone call, Tessier allegedly told a friend that police put drops in his eyes to make it look like he was crying and made him wear an earpiece telling him exactly what to say.Wallen's family thankful for community's supportWallen, 31, was a beloved teacher at Wilde Lake High School. Her family said the entire Howard County community lifted them up, for which they are thankful. "As awful as today is, I feel at peace because I worried for my family and my other two grandsons," said Wallen's mother, Gwen Wallen. "People say, 'I'm sorry for your loss.' Laura's not lost. She's with her savior and I will be with her one day."Wallen's family will not get to speak in a court of law, so they spoke out during a press conference Thursday about how lovely Wallen was. Wallen was four months pregnant when she was killed. She was a teacher, sister, daughter and friend loved by many. "Laura, I love you and miss you every single day. I was so looking forward to experiencing the journey of motherhood with you, and me being an aunt, I think I am an aunt today still," said Wallen's sister, Jennifer Kadi. "Today we finally get to rebuild our life and only remember your loving presence as nothing but joy and God's perfect light."Gwen Wallen said she feels at peace. She had been worried about what her family would go through during the trial. Wallen's brother-in-law, John Kadi, said when he heard Tessier had committed suicide, he reminded his wife that was his modus operandi. "He had been not showing up for anything important for 10 years -- birthdays, holidays, anniversaries. He did not show up. Why would he show up today? I'd like to just say he stood our family up for the last time today," John Kadi said.Prosecutors called Tessier a psychopath and a coward. "I think today was where it was all going to crush down on him and the weight, he knew the discovery, he knew the evidence and he knew today was going to be the reckoning," McCarthy said.Family members thanked law enforcement for finding Wallen and gathering and analyzing evidence needed for trial, and they expressed gratitude for the Howard County community who kept them going."To all the detectives, police officers, forensic experts, thank you for all of your hard work," Jennifer Kadi said. "We're taught in our faith God only gives us what we can handle, and I kept thinking it's getting to be too much, and today I feel God is merciful and has given us the ability to move on and talk about Laura and the wonderful things she's done," Gwen Wallen said.Stay with WBALTV.com and 11 News for more on this developing story.