A daughter decided to shoot her “violent, hateful and cruel” mother one last time as she condemned her in a scathing obituary.
Gayle Harvey Heckman criticized her mother Linda Lernel Stull in a fiery “tribute” in her hometown newspaper after her death on December 12, claiming she subjected her to years of physical, verbal, emotional and sexual abuse.
“Lernell allowed her many inappropriate suitors to sexually assault Gayle,” read part of the shocking obituary. It was concluded that her family “all understands that the world is a much better place without her.”
After the obituary sparked a huge response online, Willcox Newspaperwho published the piece ripped it from their website and apologized, claiming it was “submitted through our website and published without proper looking on our part.”
Responding to the decision to unpublish the obituary, Heckman criticized the newspaper's position to “protect and protect child molesters,” according to a purported response. shared with X.
Linda Lernel Stull (pictured) was condemned as a 'violent, hateful and cruel' mother in her obituary written by her daughter
The scathing 'tribute' was written by her daughter Gayle Harvey Heckman because she wanted to 'clear my name', she said
Heckman barely pulled a punch as she summarized and recounted her mother's life Sturgis Magazine she decided to write the ferocious eulogy “to clear my name.”
“For 24 years and counting, my mother has had to find a reason for her daughter not to be in her life, to keep her from looking like a monster.… I had to reclaim my name,” she says. said.
Heckman opened the obituary by noting that her mother was “welcomed into the world by loving parents” on October 1, 1951, and that she gave birth to her first child, Gayle, in 1969.
“Lernel deceived her first husband, Roderick Alan Harvey, into believing he was the biological father of her first child,” the tribute read.
'They married and divorced when Gayle was three years old. Lernel then had Gayle adopted by her second husband, Frank Randall Cullum. They divorced after ten years of marriage. Gayle never heard from Frank again.”
Heckman then dropped the bomb that 'Lernal's third husband, James Floyd Hart, sexually assaulted Gayle when she was 13. Instead of protecting her daughter, Lernal accused Gayle of 'trying to steal her husband' and proceeded to beat her senseless.”
“After another divorce, Lernel acquired her fourth husband through the (unofficial or unreadable) word-of-mouth Jackson State Prison pen pal program,” the piece continued.
'Between and during her marriages there were all kinds of unsavory men in and out of our house.
'As a mother, Lernal was violent, spiteful and cruel. She abused Gayle physically, mentally, emotionally, verbally and financially.
“Lernell allowed her many inappropriate suitors to sexually assault Gayle. Lernel's abuse continued into Gayles' adulthood, attempting to physically, verbally, emotionally and mentally abuse her in front of her children.
'Gayle had to take out a restraining order to protect herself and her family. That was 24 years ago.'
She said she unexpectedly found out who her biological father was in March 2023 'through a popular online DNA service'.
“After years of deception by Lernel about who Gayle's father was, Gayle and her family navigate the waters of getting to know their biological family on their father's side.
'This is it. Lernal will never be the mother and grandmother she could have been to her family. That door is closed forever with her death. That's what Gayle and her family mourn, who their mother and grandmother could have been.
“While they fear that Gayle, her husband and their four children will not be able to share their grief, their grief lies with the Ler-nal siblings, their aunts, uncles and cousins, as they mourn the death of a complicated family member . , whom they love very much.
'Lernal passed away on December 12, 2023 in Three Rivers, MI, and will now be sentenced.
“Gayle and her family forgive Lernal and hope she has found peace. They also hope to find peace within themselves.
“Lernal will not be missed by Gayle and her family. They all understand that the world is a much better place without her.”
When the eye-opening obituary was published, it sparked a huge online backlash, prompting the publisher to admit that they hadn't actually read it before the piece went to print.
“It was submitted through our website and published without us properly looking at it,” said Mike Wilcox, publisher of Wilcox Newspaper.
'We removed it from the website after complaints about the content came in. After we removed it, several complaints and phone calls came in (mostly from the daughter) admonishing us for doing so.”
In an alleged response from Heckman to the obituary's failure to publish, she sharply criticized the newspaper's decision, calling them “child abuse apologists.”
In a purported response from Heckman shared with X, she denounced the decision to unpublish the piece.
“As most survivors know, we expect to be attacked by child abuse advocates for not following the rules,” she reportedly said.
'Especially if there is a deep generational trauma. My name has been slandered my entire life by my abuser.
'Especially when she had to explain why her daughter wasn't in her life. The obituary was partly to reclaim my name.
'To set the record straight once and for all. I am Lern's daughter. I am her 'family'. My truth, like the obituary, is not fake.
'Wilcox paper has made their position clear. They protect and protect child molesters. Even in death. To me, people who protect monsters are no different than my abuser.”