>> i didn't realize how much in danger she was. >> one of our friends looked him up. this is not the guy you think he is. >> he kind women to get what he wanted. >> he was good at it. >> he was peaking in her dorm room. spirit lauren kept saying the police will handle it. >> we got the notification on our phones, lockdown. >> he was lying in wait. i said this is not real. >> how do you not recognize this girl needs help. what could scare every parent to see could happen at any campus across the country. hello, and welcome to dateline. college senior lauren mccluskey was known as a star athlete. few knew that off the field, she was trapped in an abusive relationship. she turned to campus police for protection not once but several times. most of us would agree it was the right thing to do. why did things turn out so very wrong? here is josh mankiewicz with lauren's promise. >> ♪ >> graduation at the university of utah in salt lake city, home . it time for selfies. smiles. celebration. in may 2019, 8500 graduates and their families packed the university's huge arena. lauren mccluskey should've been here too receiving her degree in cap and gown as happy as her classmates. except, she was not. the story of what happened and why is as sad as it is eye- opening. >> this was not one of those things that it was out of our bones control. >> how many times do women have to call for help before the university of utah realizes, you know what? we've got to stop this up. >> what are the two of you thinking at that point? >> i couldn't fathom what happened. >> neither of us slept that night. >> it's a story that could have ended differently. if just one person had stepped up. if one more phone call had been made. 1.connected. instead, the repercussions of a preventable murder would continue for years to come. lauren grew up in a college town of pullman, washington. her parents both professors. from early on, lauren was a girl in motion. her mom, jill. >> she could climb trees when she was two years old. >> she excelled at the hurdles and high jump. a stack of metals tell her story which paid off with scholarship money from the university of utah. her dad, matt. >> one of the attractions of the university of utah was that it appeared to be very safe. >> and they actually sell that. salt lake city is one of the safest cities and it's a safe place. >> that's part of the pitch? >> yeah. >> and she headed off to college, lauren was a parents dream. dedicated athlete, studious, not a party here, not a drinker. not active on the dating scene. what were you worried about? >> the only thing i worried about was i wanted to research a safe car. that was my only real worry. >> lauren met alex on day one of her freshman year. >> so, we were roommates our freshman year, august 2015. we became instant friends. >> alex and lauren hung out together. attended church together and for the next three years, lauren continued to focus on her studies. track events and her friends. as for boyfriends? not so much. did she have a lot of boyfriends? >> i would say no but she hang out with her friends a lot. >> then september 2018, the start of senior year. lauren and alex went to a bar downtown one night. lauren met someone. his name is shawn fields and he was working security at the bar. he let the two women in and kept an eye on them throughout the evening. as they were leaving, he made contact with lauren. >> she was like, gave him my number. i guess we will see if he contacts me. >> he did. lauren told alex the next morning. >> she said he texted me and were going on a date this afternoon. >> he said he was a part of computer science suit -- he was 28, little old but not a big deal. more dates followed and lauren told her parents about the man in her life. >> is sounded sold sort of old- fashioned the way he was paying attention to her and asking her out for dinner and doing these things. >> i used to say, she is in love. >> you could hear it in her voice? >> yeah. >> things moved quickly and they were soon exclusive. when did you realize they were boyfriend and girlfriend? >> probably a week after they met. >> he made her feel special. >> that special feeling would not last. >> is lawrence princess charming as he seems? her friend start to worry about her new relationship. >> we noticed she was tired. she seemed stressed. you could tell at least physically in her face that she was going through emotionally a lot on her mind. you know, with the relationship. >> before long her friends had a new worry. >> i was told he was going to give her a gun. >> we never thought a gun was necessary. >> when dateline continues. wh if you smoke, it's totally possible. that's what happened to me. 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>> a lot of that happiness was there already but she clearly seemed very happy about her relationship with this person. >> lauren's parents hundreds of miles away in washington state knew only what their daughter was telling them. it was different for her good friends at the university. they began noticing that the very independent lauren was now at shawn's back and call. >> every time he would text her, she would stop what she was doing to pick up the phone or text. >> alex said she was put off by shawn's behavior when lauren and she went back to the bar where he was working. >> he would say don't forget to pick me up at 2:00 a.m. don't fall asleep. he said it jokingly but i could tell he was serious. >> in other words, pressuring her to pick him up in the middle of the night after his shift ends? >> yes. >> the very next night alex said something made her uncomfortable. >> he was asking where were you? she was with me the entire time. the fact he kept asking was bothering me. >> did you say something to lauren? >> i said it wasn't normal but she thought he would start to trust her. >> he said they were brand-new but he's already possessive? >> yes. >> another friend named diamond was thinking the same thing. diamond new lauren did not have a ton of dating experience. >> she really went all out for him. was really interesting, i think, too much time in a. to her it translated as this is a relationship. it's what we do. >> a lot of who are you with, where are you going? did you say to her this is not acceptable behavior for a boyfriend, any man? >> i did. i said i'm coming to usa older friend who has dated quite a few people. presenting him calling you and asking who you are with and wanting pictures of people around you, that's not protection. >> that's not love. >> and it's not. >> and she would say? >> she would say it's fine. he just wants to make sure i am okay. >> carmen said lauren told her about a fight with shawn and he stormed off and lauren found she would be the one to change. >> she clearly said, i don't want to upset him again that way. i don't want to see him that mad again. >> a couple weeks into the relationship, shawn was practically living with lauren in the dorm on campus. he made friends with other students and was able to come and go without a key card. lauren's friends thought she was sleep deprived and she seemed sad. >> we noticed she was tired. she seemed stressed. you could tell at least physically in her face that she was going through emotionally a lot on her mind. you know, with the relationship. >> then something more ominous. lauren told her friends at shawn wanted to give her a gun for her protection. >> that immediately, that was a first trigger. >> a trigger because diamond was working for the university housing department. at the time she was lauren's resident assistant living in a nearby building. she endanger that she needed a gun? >> not that i know a. when i was with her, we never thought a gun was necessary. >> it's not illegal to have a gun on campus but do a lot of students have a gun? >> not to my knowledge but it still has to be concealed. you have to have a license. you have to go through the necessary channels. from what i was told, he was trying to give her a gun he had. >> and that would've been against the rules? >> yes. >> in something you would've had to report? >> and that's what i did. >> diamonds that you called her superior about what she learned and she wrote an email. the university asked us to make clear that diamond is speaking for herself and what she says is the response from housing officials to her alerts was not proactive. >> it was a lot of, oh, we will have a meeting about a. will talk about it later. or stuff like that were seems like -- >> it's not a big deal. >> yeah. this is not normal and i don't understand why you are not heightened about it. >> it was one of many decisions that university officials would later look back on and regret. >> coming up. >> she had called me and she seemed shocked and scared. >> shawn had a secret. an ugly one. >> did she have any idea what she would find when she started searching? arted searching? is he? claritin clear? yeah. fast relief of allergies with nasal congestion, so you can breathe better. claritin plus decongestant. live claritin clear®. hi, i'm jason. i've lost 228 pounds on golo. ♪ claritin plus decongestant. changing your habits is the only way that gets you to lose the weight. and golo is the plan that's going to help you do that. just take the first step, go to golo.com. josh mankiewicz: by late september 2018, lauren mccluskey's good friends at the university by late september, 2018, lauren mccluskey's good friends at the university of utah were increasingly unhappy about her new relationship with shawn fields. >> i would make comments like this guy is literally not good for her. he throws us off. >> you were afraid of him? >> yes. >> physically afraid? >> yes. he was a huge guy. >> when lauren's friends heard he wanted to give her a gun, their concern intensified. >> we would tell her, no, her safety is fine. if anything, he is compromising your safety. >> in early october, lauren made a frightening discovery. >> she called me and she seemed shocked and scared. >> lauren had seen her boyfriend's i.d. and it had his photo with a different name. suspicious. she turned to google. did she have any idea what she would find when she started searching? >> no. >> suddenly shawn fields is melvin rowland. it was stunning. most of what she thought she knew about her boyfriend was a lie. from his real name, melvin rowland, to his age, 37. 16 years older and finally this. lauren's boyfriend was a registered sex offender. he had been convicted of sexual for simple abuse and enticing a minor over the internet. you said you've got to break up with this guy and she said i will? >> yeah, she was going to. >> lauren talked with her mom and talked about what she learned about her boyfriend and she wanted to break up with him. >> she asked me advice for the best way to separate from him. >> i'm thinking you said get as far away as you can and make sure you never see him again. >> yes. >> that night, roland showed up peering in her window and startling her. when he finally came in, she confronted him about his lies. >> he was that i was set up. they framed me. then she said they needed to break up. every time he said he was going to leave he would force himself upon her. >> he is twice her size. >> may be four or five times her size. he was huge. >> so she could not resist. >> there is no way she could have gotten away. >> he stayed until morning and when he finally did leave, he was driving car. letting him use the car was the price of getting him out the door. >> yes. >> now, how to get the car back? rowland was going to leave it at a distant university parking lot where lauren could pick it up. jill didn't like that one bit. that is when she jumped into action. >> i'm worried he is dangerous. >> she call the campus police. >> we can definitely have someone help her read. can you have your daughter give us a call? >> jill had more. >> let me tell you a little bit more. he was lying to her. he's actually a sexual offender. and lied about his age and things like that. he has her he has her car. i'm worried she's going to go there alone and someone's going to hurt her. >> campus police sent an escort with lauren and the car was retreat without a hitch. the dispatcher called jill back. >> she texted me she got the car back. seo thank you so much. i appreciate it. >> no problem. >> they were relieved. >> we were assured they would be on the lookout. we thought the situation was very safe. >> they were wrong. and, had they known what lay ahead, they almost certainly would have been on the next plane to salt lake city. >> coming up. >> i'm being blackmailed for money. >> i did not know her but she sounds scared. did she sound scared to the two of you? >> yeah, she does. >> new threats but campus police did not seem overly concerned. >> that cyber extortion is a crime. did campus police taken seriously? ken seriously? ch hospital because he believed no child should die in the dawn of life. in 1984, a patient named stacy arrived, and it began her family's touching story that is still going on today. vicki: childhood cancer, it's just hard. stacey passed on christmas day of 1986. there is no pain like losing a child, but saint jude gave us more years to love on her each day. marlo thomas: you can join the battle to save lives. for just $19 a month, you'll help us continue the lifesaving research and treatment these kids need now and in the future. jessica: i remember as a child, walking the halls of saint jude, and watching my sister fight for her life. we never imagined that we would come back. and then my son charlie was diagnosed with ewing's sarcoma. vicki: i'm thinking, we already had a catastrophic disease in our family. not my grandson too. marlo thomas: st. jude has helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20% when it opened to 80% today. join with your credit or debit card for only $19 a month, and we'll send you this saint jude t-shirt that you can proudly wear to show your support. jessica: for anybody that would give, the money is going towards research, and you are the reason my child is here today. charlie: i was declared-- this will be two years cancer free. but there's thousands and thousands of kids who need help. saint jude, how many lives they do save is just so many. marlo thomas: charlie's progress warms my heart, but memories of little angels like stacy are why we need your help. please become a saint jude partner in hope right now. [music playing] i am jessica layton with the top stories. l.a. county first major wildfire has devoured more than 14,000 acres. it comes one day after forcing 1200 to evacuate from the hungry valley recreation area. the fire is only 2% contain. stereophonics dominated the tony's taking home five awards including best new play. it earned 13 nominations, the most a play has ever received. ea ca. college senior lauren mccluskey yf welcome back to dateline. i am andrea canning. college senior lauren mccluskey was stunned to learn her boyfriend lied about his name, age, and criminal past. he was not shawn fields but melvin rowland. once convicted of luring an under aged girl online and attempted sex abuse. lauren quickly ended the relationship but was about to discover the real terror is just beginning. back to josh mankiewicz with lauren's promise. after lauren mccluskey got her car back from her ex- boyfriend, her parents exhaled. he believed the university of utah police who now knew lauren had broken up with a registered sex offender would keep an eye out for melvin rowland. lauren hoped rowland was out of her life. a flurry of texts suggested otherwise. messages to lauren from people who identify themselves as rowland's friends. >> why did you do this to the big guy? he really loves you. >> the messages seem to be anonymous but they wondered if it was rowland disguising his number. a text told a dramatic story. rowland was in an accident then at the hospital then he died. lauren blocked all the numbers and called her mom. >> we talked about it. he could not have died in a car accident because it would've been reported. if there was a fatal accident. >> lauren so social media post from rowland so she knew he was not dead. then she received this text. will you come to funeral? lauren answered i know he is alive. please leave me alone and do not text this number. i got police involved. she did and told the campus police dispatcher her fears. >> i got a text about, asking if i wanted to go to his funeral. i think they are trying to lure me somewhere. >> what did they do about it? >> initially when she told them about the harassment, they told her there was not much they could do. >> not much because the cops said the text weren't threatening violence. they asked lauren to call back if the situation escalated, and it did. the very next day she received an email saying explicit photos taken during their relationship would be posted on social media unless lauren paid to keep them secret. she called campus police again. >> university police and security, can i help you? >> i'm dealing with a situation where i am being blackmailed for money. so, a photo of me in my ex- boyfriend, they are threatening to send it out to everyone. and he's asking for $1000. >> i did not know her but she sounded scared. did she sound scared to the two of you? >> she does. >> she sounds like she's worried this guy is out there and nobody is looking for him and nobody is taking her seriously. that's what i hear in her voice. >> absolutely. >> lauren was scar