Teen Did Not Tell Family of Her Whereabouts, Dies after a Rave
Fifteen-year-old Sasha Rodriguez’s life ended tragically early from drug intoxication after she attended a recent rave at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum. According to an “L.A. Times” report, the teen took ecstasy, became dehydrated, passed out and hit her head. Rodriguez’s friend tried to shield her from the crowd, but people stepped on the girls nevertheless. As a result, the teen suffered respiratory failure and the failure of multiple organs, from which she never recovered.
Missing Lines of Communication
Rodriguez’s family was not aware the teen attended the Electric Daisy Carnival, and they never imagined Sasha would do drugs. The rave was supposedly an event where only those over the age of 16 were allowed without a legal guardian, but witnesses told the “L.A. Times” that no one at the event was checking IDs. The family only found out about Rodriguez’s whereabouts when they learned about the teen’s hospitalization.
The L.A. Memorial Coliseum is state-owned land that is under the authority of a joint city, county and state commission. The President of the Coliseum, Barry Sanders, stated he plans to hold a special meeting of the commission to review the requirements of those using the venue. The “LA Times” reports that about 120 rave attendees required hospitalization for drug intoxication. Because of this, emergency room doctors do not want the Coliseum to host any more raves.
Unexpected Costs
To help with the unexpected funeral costs, friends of the family held a bake sale at a local elementary school. Sasha’s mother, Grace Rodriguez, told CBS News, “I was supposed to be planning her Sweet Sixteen party. Now I have to plan her funeral.”
The funeral or death of a child is something parents often refuse to think about, and preplanning their own is typically not a priority. However, the unexpected death of any family member is not only heart breaking, but can create a financial burden. Learn more about grieving the death of a child and funeral preplanning.
[photo: Family photo]
July 6th, 2010 at 5:35 am
The concept of a rave has always been, and still is, an all-night dance event. The lights, pumped-up music, oxygen bars, liquid nitrogen fog, & costumes are all legitimate stimulants to enjoy. However, many other stimulants are available at any rave, regardless of security or age limits, due to the basic culture of the rave. Any responsible parent or guardian should be knowledgeable of what a rave entails for the protection of their minors, and the hosting facility management team should definitely be aware of what will most likely happen before allowing the event to take place in their facility.
My condolences to the family for losing their beloved daughter in this tragedy.