Daveigh Chase's mother reacts to actress's death at 35

• Daveigh Chase, known for The Ring, died at 35
• Mother Cathy Chase last saw her in jail in 2019
• Cathy says daughter battled addiction and homelessness for years

Cathy Chase, the mother of actress Daveigh Chase, has shared her reaction to her daughter's death at the age of 35. Daveigh, best known for playing Samara Morgan in The Ring and voicing Lilo in Lilo & Stitch, had her death confirmed by PEOPLE on Wednesday, June 17.

Cathy spoke to the Daily Mail about learning of her daughter's death. "I actually thought it was fake news, that first time I saw it, and then, but then all of a sudden, it's all of these different legitimate sites had her name and I realized that it wasn't fake," she told the outlet, adding that she had last seen Daveigh in 2019.

Mother describes moment she learned the news

Cathy said she would routinely scroll through social media platforms and the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's website at night, searching for any trace of her daughter. She was doing so on Tuesday, just before news of the actress's death broke.

Describing that moment, she said: "I was devastated." She went on to describe the physical sensation: "It felt like something inside of me squeezing all of the air out of me, and at the same time, it felt like I was exploding outwardly."

Cathy said she then ran outside. "I let out this guttural scream and I just was running. And these weird sounds were coming out of me, these kind of, like, primeval sounds," she told the outlet. "And I went out into the backyard, and I was screaming, 'No, no, no, no!' I am in so much pain but I hope her soul heard me."

Boyfriend's claims about her final illness

Daveigh's boyfriend, Roy Hernandez, claimed on a GoFundMe fundraiser that the actress contracted meningitis and "several serious blood infections," and that her condition eventually became "critical." He also wrote that she had "a difficult childhood and a painful falling out with her family."

Daveigh's former manager and longtime friend, John Ryan, later urged fans not to donate to the fundraiser.

Mother says daughter struggled with addiction

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Cathy claimed her daughter struggled with addiction. According to Cathy, it began after Daveigh took painkillers following a back injury sustained in a motorcycle accident about a decade ago. After that, Cathy claimed, the actress "was seeking drugs and was partying with the wrong people."

Cathy also said her daughter struggled with homelessness.

A career that began in childhood

Daveigh launched her acting career with starring roles in several films, including the American dub of Spirited Away, Lilo & Stitch, Donnie Darko and The Ring, the last of which earned her an MTV Movie Award for Best Villain. Her final role came in the 2016 film American Romance.

Last contact in 2019

Cathy, a former nurse who said she moved from Oregon to Los Angeles to support her daughter's acting career, said the last time she saw Daveigh was in October 2019, while visiting her in jail. She had made plans to collect Daveigh upon her release, but told the Daily Mail: "when I got there, she never waited."

"I went to pick her up the day after she was released because I didn't know she was let go early. I can't stop blaming myself for that. She went back to the streets after she was released," Cathy said. She added that she lost all contact with her daughter after that point.

Mother defends herself against criticism

Cathy pushed back against suggestions that she had failed her daughter. "It upsets me because people are saying I must've been a bad mother, but I never gave up on her," she told the outlet. "As a mother, you don't give up on your child. I was hoping she would still come home."

"I never kicked my daughter out," she continued. She also said she "tried desperately to try to get [Daveigh] help, but you can't legally force someone who doesn't want that help."

Identifying her daughter's remains

Cathy identified Daveigh's remains on Thursday. Describing the experience to the Daily Mail, she said: "We were able to lay hands and pray. Technically, we were touching the glass, but it's as close as we could get, so we were able to lay hands and pray for her."

"It was a beautiful experience, and, I feel very blessed, too, have been able to share that with my daughter," Cathy said.