'It's Some Closure': Slain Oak Forest Woman's Family Finds Comfort In Faith As Killer Takes Plea Deal

OAK FOREST, IL — The family of a slain Oak Forest woman found some closure last week when the man charged in her death pleaded guilty and was sentenced to more than three decades in prison.

Lauren Pikor, 30, was found fatally stabbed Aug. 4, 2023, outside her Oak Forest home. Her ex-boyfriend Chad Oster, of Tinley Park and 36 at the time, was immediately implicated in her death. Though they had been involved romantically, they were estranged at the time of the attack. Oster fled the scene and kept police at bay in an hours-long standoff before being arrested and charged the next day.

Oster's arrest would prove the most expeditious action in the case, followed by court proceedings that spanned nearly three years for the grieving family.

It all came to a somewhat unceremonious—and for the Pikor family, unexpected—end on June 10, with Oster taking a plea deal that admitted his guilt of first-degree murder, with several other charges against him dropped. The deal came with a 33-year prison sentence in the Illinois Department of Correction's Stateville Correctional Center.

They didn't know that day in court would be the last, Lauren's mother, May Pikor, told Patch, a frustrating turn of events for the family that had rarely missed a court date.

"We sat there every court date—if we weren’t there, we were on Zoom," she said.

"It was horrible," she said, of the abrupt end to the case. "We had no clue that that was the last court date. Otherwise, we all would have been there."

Lauren, who was a single mother to daughter Eva, was also a twin to Christina and sister to Nicholas. Christina, specifically, had hoped to read a victim impact statement in court, Pikor said, but was not given that opportunity.

The family, she said, often felt lost in the shuffle of the court system. They felt unseen by even the judge and found facing Oster and his family difficult.

"We always try to see the kindness in people, that’s just my faith," she said, "but when you sit down in that courtroom and see how people treat each other, it’s just evil."

'Through the Grace of God'

As the family reeled following Lauren's death and then endured the court case, they have continually grounded themselves in their faith, Pikor said.

"How we’ve gotten through it these past years—through the grace of God," Pikor said. "All of us, our faith and our community, and the fact that we truly believe that God has been with us every step of the way. We never once blamed God. God made things possible for our family in ways that we wouldn’t have been able to do, opportunities that seemed almost miraculous."

The Oak Forest community rallied around the Pikor family following Lauren's death—support Pikor says still has not wavered.

"I’m so grateful for our community, our church, our parish, our friends—everyone," Pikor said. "They’ve still been there for us, have always been there for us."

Now nearly 12 years old, Lauren's daughter Eva was at the home the night of her mother's death. The grief of losing her mother has been heavy, she said, but it's a weight Eva bears with courage.

"She’s a very strong, very mature girl for her age," Pikor said.

"... She was her mother, she was her best friend. Lauren was an amazing mother—dedicated her whole life to Eva, worked really hard to provide for Eva as a single mother. She loved Eva to death."

Pikor sees a lot of Lauren in Eva.

"Eva’s amazing," Pikor said. "She’s an amazing young girl. She reminds me a lot of Lauren: her strength, her faith. She’s flourishing, she’s doing well. She misses her mother every day."

For Eva, too, faith has been key in navigating her loss.

"Our family is very strong in our faith, and she relies on that, too," Pikor said. "And I’m so proud of her for that. She’s not embarrassed to say it."

'Grief is crazy'

As they face the upcoming third anniversary of Lauren's death, the family continues to take in stride their new reality of life without her.

"It doesn’t feel normal," Pikor said. "We have to start making our own different 'normal.' She’s greatly missed, there’s not a day that goes by we don’t cherish her, think of her."

Eva now lives with her godmother and aunt Christina's family, a fit that seemed natural, Pikor said, as Christina and Lauren had for some time shared a home after having their children.

"For them, to be together is normal," Pikor said. "They call each other sisters now. She felt at home, because that’s just how close our family is."

Eva plays softball—she's a talented pitcher—and is doing well in school, Pikor said.

"She's thriving," she said. "The family unity—that was never broken. She knows who was there for her, who loves her and will be there for her. She feels safe and is happy where she is."

Still, sometimes they find themselves sidelined by the impact of their loss, like a recent family photo taken at a graduation party that showed only four family members, instead of five.

"It just didn’t feel right," Pikor said. "It didn’t look right.

"... Grief is crazy, it hits you in different ways."

The family has stood by each other, steadying each other throughout each court appearance.

"It’s been really hard," Pikor said. "The peace that we have received here and there—every time we had to go to court, it was hard to drudge all that up."

While relieved the case is over, they know that still nothing will be the same.

"Nothing’s going to bring back Lauren, but it's some closure to our family," she said. "The court system was terrible to us."

Our family will always honor and cherish Lauren's memory every day of our lives. She will never be forgotten. Watching her legacy live on through her beautiful daughter—in her smile, her personality, and her loving heart—is a blessing that we will forever hold close and dear to our hearts. Lauren's love and light continue to shine through the lives she touched, and her memory will remain with us always.

— The Pikor family

Court records show that Oster will receive credit for the 1,042 days he's spent in prison awaiting trial. He'll also serve three years of mandatory supervised release once he's out.

"Do we feel like justice was served?" Pikor said. "I, personally, honestly wish he would have had a life sentence. The way things went—how we were treated—was the hardest part to accept. The victims’ families are not regarded for in the court system. It’s very hurtful. I just never realized that it was that cold."

While they felt overlooked by the courts, Pikor said their community lifted them up. The family is so grateful to the community for their kindness, support and comfort. She felt compelled to share the case's outcome with those who have always stood by them.

"We’ve lived here for 29 years, I raised my kids here," she said. "Our community needs to know—because they were there for us from the beginning, and they still are. In many ways—through prayer, reaching out, a hug—just amazing people."