Portland parent accused of allowing drug use in home that led to teen's fatal overdose in 2023
PORTLAND, Ore. () — A Portland man is accused of allowing teenage drug use in his home which resulted in the overdose death of a 15-year-old girl in 2023.
When it happened, the parents of Lauren Dominguez were initially told there was no 'ticket-able' offense. However, with a new district attorney in place, they said they now have hope there will be accountability for Lauren's death.
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'We got the first half of freshman year of high school, the hardest year as a teen to try to find your people, trying to find your way,' said Tracy Dominguez, Lauren's mother. 'She had such a bright future and it was robbed. But we've got to make some changes, and we're here to do it.'
'Justice is important, culpability is important,' added Marc Dominguez, Lauren's father. 'The through line that can easily be drawn between when we were kids with alcohol in homes… same with these parents who promote gun use in their kids who end up now doing time because they promoted their own child to shoot up a school inadvertently or advertently, these types of parental accountability situations need to be brought to the floor.'
Lauren, a Franklin High School Freshman, had died of a fentanyl overdose back in February of 2023. She had been in the home of a 17-year-old boy with whom she was intimate, according to court documents.
The parent of that boy and the owner of the home where it happened, Hooman Tony Rahnamoon, is now facing multiple charges after being accused of allowing the two of them to do drugs after seeing it take place and not intervening. He was arraigned in a Multnomah County court on Tuesday afternoon.
'Mr. Rahnamoon knew they were using and observed that on multiple occasions and allow that to happen,' said Multnomah County Sr. Deputy District Attorney JR Ujifusa.
Lauren's parents told KOIN 6 News they believe their daughter was caught in a perfect storm between coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic and the impacts of Measure 110, the Oregon law that temporarily removed criminal penalties for people caught with small amounts of hard drugs. That state legislature later re-introduced criminal penalties with HB 4002 last year.
Tracy said her daughter was 'welcomed' into Rahnamoon's home in the middle of the night only to be found dead the following day.
Rahnamoon, 51, pled not guilty to the three misdemeanor charges but apologized repeatedly to Lauren's parents in court.
Tracy and Marc said the last time they saw Rahnamoon was on the morning of Feb. 18, 2023, after they found out Lauren was missing from school. Lauren's sister found out through social media sleuthing that she had snuck out to visit Rahnamoon's son the night before.
'The homeowner comes down the driveway, lets us know that our 15-year-old daughter is upstairs and she's not breathing. She was using drugs with his son, is what he said,' Tracy said.
Prosecutors said Lauren and the son had previously met up to use drugs the night before, with Narcan and drug paraphernalia found after her death.
Court documents show Rahnamoon later admitted 'about 4-5 days, at most a week, before she passed, he had observed his son' and Lauren using drugs at his home.
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Though cases like these are rare, Multnomah County District Attorney Nathan Vasquez said more and more cases like it are starting to crop up around Oregon.
'It's one that we have started to see throughout the state. It's one that this office will look for, at any point in which we can prove that a child has been given these deadly substances. This office is going to be seeking to prosecute those cases and hold those offenders accountable,' Vasquez said.
Her friends and family described Lauren as hilarious, a devoted sister and beloved by classmates and neighbors.
'We don't want any child to feel 'a part of' by sneaking out and using until they die,' Marc said.
'We need to hold these homeowners accountable, especially when they have our minors in their home,' Tracy added.
The DA's office said they weren't able to determine who provided the drugs that led to Lauren's death but they did rule out Rahnamoon's son, who also appeared in court as his father was arraigned.
Rahnamoon is facing one count of frequenting a place where substances are used and two counts of endangering the welfare of a minor. Each of the three charges carries a maximum sentence of one year. He is expected to reappear in court on March 11.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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