Daveigh Chase's father opened up about how he's living without his daughter as he marked what would have been her 36th birthday.
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Daveigh Chase’s Father Mourns Her on Birthday
Daveigh Chase's father opened up about how he's living without his daughter as he marked what would have been her 36th birthday.While speaking exclusively to th...
While speaking exclusively to the Daily Mail, John Schwallier said his late daughter is 'constantly' on his mind following the Ring star's tragic death.
The County Medical Examiner later determined that Chase died due to a combination of .
'Every day I am thinking about her constantly,' said Schwallier via phone after calling up the Daily Mail to note that Chase would have turned 36 on Friday, July 24.
Schwallier, who previously to the Daily Mail shortly after his daughter's death, accused her of making it difficult to remember his late daughter.
'The sad part is the only pictures I have of [Daveigh] is what I’ve printed on the internet, since her mother kept me away from her,' he claimed.
The late Ring star Daveigh Chase's father spoke exclusively with the Daily Mail on Friday as he marked what would have been his her 36th birthday. Chase died on June 16 from AIDS and polysubstance use disorder; she's pictured in 2011 in LA
'Every day I am thinking about her constantly,' said Schwallier. 'The sad part is the only pictures I have of [Daveigh] is what I’ve printed on the internet, since her mother kept me away from her,' he claimed. Schwallier posted a heartbreaking childhood photo of his daughter and himself just days after her death (pictured)
The Daily Mail has reached out to Cathy Chase for comment but has not yet received a response.
The late actress's father – who noted that he had still not received any of Chase's remains following her cremation – said that 'She was taken from this life way too early.'
Schwallier somberly added: 'I just want to wish her a happy birthday today and [tell her] that she is on my mind every day.'
Schwallier somberly added: 'I just want to wish her a happy birthday today and [tell her] that she is on my mind every day'; Chase is pictured in 2008 in LA
Chase's father managed to find a small silver lining in his daughter's untimely death, as he said he hoped it would raise awareness about HIV/AIDS infections and deaths, which have risen in some countries in recent years following nearly two decades of significant declines
Schwallier previously spoke via phone with the Daily Mail from his home in the Philippines in late June, when he learned that his daughter had died from AIDS and drug abuse.
'I'm not surprised,' he said in a whisper about her cause of death. Daveigh had become so emaciated that the dad had a hard time believing it was actually her body.
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Schwallier spoke about the turmoil in her family in an exclusive interview with the Daily Mail in late June. Chase is pictured in 2012 in LA
Schwallier signaled a growing conflict with his ex, Cathy Chase, despite their decades apart. 'If Daveigh was with me, she would not have turned out like this,' he claimed; Chase is pictured as a child with her mother
Schwallier hinted that he may wage a legal battle with his ex-wife if necessary to gain control of a portion of his daughter's remains.
'I will fight her for Daveigh’s remains in Probate Court,' he declared on the phone. 'Daveigh was emancipated, so I don’t think she will get any money. I will fight her on that.
'It’s not about the money,' Schwallier added. 'This was my daughter, and I didn’t get to see my daughter for years because of her [mother].
‘I will fight her for Daveigh’s remains in Probate Court,' Chase's father declared on the phone, before accusing his ex of focusing on their daughter's money immediately after her death; Cathy Chase's LA home is pictured days after Daveigh's death
Schwallier said he would fight his ex-wife for part of Chase's remains. 'I want her remains because she belongs with me. [Chase's mother Cathy] can keep half [of the ashes] if she wants, but that is my daughter,' he said; Chase is pictured in 2012 in West Hollywood
'I didn’t think it was my daughter,' he said after seeing her body. Chase's death was determined to be due to a combination of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and polysubstance use disorder
'She must’ve weighed 65 pounds and looked even worse than that video going around,' he continued. 'I touched her thigh above her knee, and it was just bone'
'If Daveigh was with me, she would not have turned out like this,' Schwallier claimed.
Schwallier said he was in Las Vegas on June 16 – the day of Chase's death – when he received a call from Roy Hernandez, a man claiming to be her boyfriend.
His daughter was apparently still alive at the time, and he said Hernandez told him that she was going in and out of consciousness.
Daveigh's father added that he had not seen the disturbing videos of her writhing around on the floor in agony at the time of the call.
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Schwallier recounted his heartbreaking final words to his daughter, as he 'spoke' to her via speaker while Hernandez held the phone to her.
'I just told her I love her and that I’ve been looking for you. I told her, "I have a place to take you if you make it out of the hospital,"' Schwallier recalled. 'I said, "I’m on my way, I will be there in three or four hours." I made it to the hospital in about two and a half.'
The Daily Mail has so far been unable to contact Hernandez, who had reportedly been living on the street with Chase prior to her death.
When Schwallier arrived at the hospital in Los Angeles, he found Hernandez was already there.
Schwallier said he 'spoke' to Chase via speaker one last time while her boyfriend held the phone to her. 'I just told her I love her and that I’ve been looking for you. I told her, "I have a place to take you if you make it out of the hospital,"' Schwallier recalled; Chase is seen in 2013
He said Hernandez introduced himself as Daveigh's boyfriend of six years, and he was joined by his mother and sister, both of whom were crying.
Schwallier said Hernandez's family told him that his daughter and her boyfriend would sometimes visit the Hernandez family home for a shower and some food when they found themselves with nothing.
Schwallier claimed his ex-wife Cathy Chase (pictured) had kept him away from Chase as a child
He said that the child star had been emancipated from her mother when she was just 16, so he predicted a potential battle over whatever money from residual payments his daughter might have earned over the years but never collected; Chase is pictured in 2011 in LA
Then, the following morning, the news alerts came through. Daveigh was dead at just 35.
'I was devastated. 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 told the Daily Mail.
On Friday, June 19, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner revealed that Daveigh died from acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Chronic polysubstance use, or the repeated use of more than one drug over time, was also listed as a significant condition that contributed to her death.
Chase's final significant television role came in HBO's Big Love, where she played Rhonda Volmer, a manipulative teenage bride-in-waiting. She appeared across 32 episodes between 2006 and 2011; pictured in 2003
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Cathy said she did not initially believe it was Daveigh, but later came to that conclusion.
'In the video, she was in a really bad shape. She was very frail. She was fragile. She was saying no, and trying to push the camera away, and they were shoving it in her face. It was gross.
'She was obviously drugged out of her mind. She was nothing but skin and bones and I didn't want to think that was my daughter.'
After seeing the video, Cathy returned to the streets herself, trying to locate her daughter.
From December 2025 onwards, she said she regularly went into Skid Row alone, asking anyone who would speak to her for information.
Cathy said: 'I will live forever feeling I failed her because they told me the wrong time when she was released [from jail] all those years ago.
'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.
'The chaplain at the hospital told me I'm not to blame myself, but I am a mother who loved her daughter so much.
Cathy said she renewed her search for Daveigh on the streets after seeing a video of her in December 2025 that showed her looking severely emaciated
'And I tried desperately to try to get her help, but you can't legally force someone who doesn't want that help.'
Cathy said Daveigh maintained a deep faith, even as addiction took hold in later years.
'My daughter always had strong faith, and I know during the last few years, it might've wavered because of the addiction. However, she had a deep foundation in Christ.'
She also shared handwritten notes from when Daveigh was a child, messages expressing love for her mother and a belief they would always be together.
Cathy still calls her daughter her 'Sunshine.'
