David Lester Laut (December 21, 1956 – August 27, 2009) was an American shot putter. He was born in

Findlay, Ohio Findlay ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County, Ohio, United States. The second-largest city in Northwest Ohio, Findlay lies about 40 miles (64 km) south of Toledo. The population was 40,313 at the 2020 census. It is home ...

, and grew up in

Oxnard, California Oxnard () is a city in Ventura County, California, United States. On California's South Coast, it is the most populous city in Ventura County and the 22nd-most-populous city in California. Incorporated in 1903, Oxnard lies approximately west ...

. Laut attended Art Haycox Elementary School, E. O. Green Junior High School, Santa Clara High School,

Moorpark College Moorpark College is a public community college in Moorpark, California. It was established in 1967 with enrollment of 2,500 students and enrolled 14,254 students in 2014. An Exotic Animal Training and Management center houses over 200 animals o ...

(all in Ventura County), along with

San Jose City College San José City College (SJCC) is a public community college in San Jose, California. Founded in 1921, SJCC is located in the West San Jose neighborhood of Fruitdale. History The college was founded in 1921, opening its doors to students in Sep ...

and

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

, where he was a two-time

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

champion and ranked No. 1 shot putter in the United States.

Career

Laut won the bronze medal at the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the sec ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. He also won the gold medal at the

1979 Pan American Games The 1979 Pan American Games (Spanish: ''Juegos Panamericanos de 1979''), officially the VIII Pan American Games were a multi-sport event governed by the Panam Sports Organization, and were held in San Juan, Puerto Rico, from July 1 to July 15 ...

and the bronze at the

1981 IAAF World Cup The 3rd IAAF World Cup in Athletics was an international track and field sporting event sponsored by the International Association of Athletics Federations, held on September 4–6, 1981, at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy. Overall results M ...

. He was the 1979, 1981, 1983 and 1985 United States champion in the shot put. His personal best throw was 22.02 meters, achieved in August 1982 in Koblenz. In 1985, Laut was ranked No. 7 shot putter in the world and as the No. 1 American. Laut tore tendons in both knees during an agility test to become a firefighter. He attempted to join the 1988 U.S. Olympic team, but fell short at the Olympic trials. In 1997, he was named to the Ventura County Sports Hall of Fame. After his retirement from being a professional shot putter, he became an assistant track coach at

Ventura College Ventura College is a public community college in Ventura, California. Established in 1925, the college has a campus with an enrollment of 13,763 students. It is part of the Ventura County Community College District. History Ventura College ...

in 1994. He served eight seasons as the track coach for

Hueneme High School Hueneme High School (HHS) ( ) is a public high school in Oxnard, California. The school is part of the Oxnard Union High School District and serves students in the southern portion of the city of Oxnard and most of Port Hueneme including part of ...

in the

Oxnard Union High School District The Oxnard Union High School District (OUHSD) is a union high school district in Ventura County, California. The district serves students in grades 9–12 on the Oxnard Plain, including the cities of Oxnard, Port Hueneme, and Camarillo, Californ ...

and was promoted to athletic director in 2008.

Death

Laut died at his home in Oxnard, California, on August 27, 2009, after being shot several times in the head. He was 52 years old. His wife, Jane, was arrested over five years later, and she claimed that she had shot Laut in self-defense. Clinical psychologist Katherine Emerick, who was treating Jane Laut for depression, testified that she had diagnosed Jane Laut with post traumatic stress disorder,

anxiety Anxiety is an emotion which is characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and includes feelings of dread over anticipated events. Anxiety is different than fear in that the former is defined as the anticipation of a future threat wh ...

, dependent personality disorder, and

avoidant personality disorder Avoidant personality disorder (AvPD) is a Cluster C personality disorder characterized by excessive social anxiety and inhibition, fear of intimacy (despite an intense desire for it), severe feelings of inadequacy and inferiority, and an overre ...

. On March 30, 2016, she was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to 50 years in prison. She had turned down a plea bargain for a six-year sentence.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Laut, Dave 1956 births 2009 deaths American male shot putters Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in track and field Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1979 Pan American Games People from Findlay, Ohio Sportspeople from Oxnard, California Deaths by firearm in California Male murder victims People murdered in California UCLA Bruins men's track and field athletes Track and field athletes from California Medalists at the 1984 Summer Olympics Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Sportspeople from Ventura County, California Mariticides 2009 murders in the United States Medalists at the 1979 Pan American Games