Posted on 11/08/2013 7:48:19 AM PST by BenLurkin
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — An Agoura Hills family is raising awareness about the dangers of heroin addiction among teens.
The Isaac family is opening up about the drug that brought their 19-year-old son’s life to an end on Aug. 21, when he was found dead from a drug overdose.
“The face of heroin has changed,” Rick Isaac told CBS2′s Serene Branson when recalling his late son, Josh.
The Agoura Hills High School graduate grew up in a loving home, involved in baseball, basketball, soccer and skateboarding.
Rick and Joyce Isaac now say they’ve learned a painful truth — heroin doesn’t discriminate.
“When he was using marijuana as a teen I would have never dreamed he would have touched heroin,” Joyce said.
Josh’s parents, and his sister, Lauren, started noticing changes in his mood after graduation as he transitioned from high schooler to adult. Lauren, who is three years older than her late brother, now wants to be an addiction counselor.
“I’m from a pretty normal family in my opinion. My parents are well educated and were here for me and our brothers. It can happen to any family,” she said.
Family members say they tried everything. Josh had been in rehab three times this year, the last time in August just weeks before his death, and was set to go back five days after he died.
“I saw him Tuesday night, the night before he passed away. He said he was going to turn his life around, enter a long-term program,” Rick said.
Then came the sheriff’s knock on the door: Josh had overdosed while staying with a friend he’d met in treatment.
“People going into treatment need to know that. Don’t use ‘one more time,’” the father said.
Now the Isaacs visit Josh’s Westlake Village grave, rather than a college dorm, plagued by thoughts of how they could have prevented his death.
“It’s hard for a parent because when they’re little, you can fix stuff. Then they grow up and they’re the only ones that can fix it,” Joyce said.
The family has created a foundation in Josh’s name, hoping to boost awareness about teen heroin addiction and build a dialogue.
“There’s this denial that goes on — ‘I know personally that nothing like that could happen to my kid, never,’” Joyce said.
According to the Los Angeles Overdose Prevention Center, overdose deaths have doubled since 1990. They’re now the second-leading cause of accidental deaths in California for people 15 to 34 years old, second only to traffic accidents.
“I know it’s a serious problem here. There is no discussion. There is a big heroin problem in Agoura/Calabasas. The kids need that fear of drugs when I grew up. They need a fear of it,” Joyce said.
Recent studies suggest there is a shift from injecting heroin — to snorting or smoking it — because of increased purity, and the misconception that these forms won’t lead to addiction. Experts say it’s pure, abundant, and as cheap as a movie ticket.
Cartels are bringing much of it from south of the border, and law enforcement in the greater Los Angeles communities of Agoura, Simi Valley, Santa Clarita and La Cresenta say it’s a growing problem. Narcotics detectives say dealers hook teens by giving them their first few hits for free.
The Isaacs say they’re aware of two other teens who’ve nearly died from overdosing since Josh’s death.
They’re hoping their story sparks a conversation and inspires the community and individual families to look at heroin head on.
“It could be learning disorders, mood disorders, just the difficulty of teen years. It’s a complicated thing to get through. We want people to understand that so they can manage their family and friends as best as possible,” Rick said.
“There’s a lot of people that don’t want to talk about bad stuff in their family, but it needs to be talked about in the community,” Joyce said.
We should get our troops out of there and Nuke the Poppy Fields.
“And how do you suppose that much product is moved under the noses of our Military without their Knowledge.?? “
Like occupying Iowa and saying you have no knowledge of corn,,
I’ve asked G-d for help many times. Sometimes He says, “no.”
As I remember it, G-d gave us free will. That includes the will to destroy ourselves.
I prayed to G-d to help us with our debt a thousand times. Eventually we were led to Dave Ramsey and began the seven year haul to pull ourselves out of more than $150,000 worth of debt. G-d didn’t give us a windfall inheritance. He didn’t let us win the lottery. He gave us the means to fight back.
The addict’s fight is *theirs*. Not their parents’. Pray all you want and sometimes G-d answers that prayer with a negative or by calling someone home so they can’t do further damage.
His wise will is the only way.
As a former deputy prosecutor, what’s your opinion was of LEAP (Law Enforcement Against Prohibition)?
The Heroin sold today is a synthetic man-made product sold cheaply in pill form. Hence it is easy to transfer to from prescription pills.
Why? You don’t think there are any FReepers with excessive zeal for the war on drugs?
I wish I knew the answer. I have a 12 year old. I’ve talked to him about the importance of staying away from alcohol, and my experience with it. There’s no alcohol in my house, but I can’t watch over him 24/7.
Zeal for drugs is the problem.
Well, I can see you would rather try to find some druggies to pick on than address my point, so good luck with that.
You seem to have misunderstood.
I didn’t say God was a vending machine that gives you anything you want when you want it.
I didn’t say God’s help comes in the form of ‘fixing’ everything immediately, i.e., lottery tickets.
I didn’t say God didn’t give us free will and the freedom to benefit from/suffer the consequences of our actions/inactions.
I merely wondered if this family asked God for help. You needn’t read more into it than that.
You been smokin crack?? I personally know a dozen people that in the last 5 years have gotten addicted to Heroin, 5 of them died from overdoses. ALL OF IT WAS THE REAL SHIT. The amount of “synthetic” opiates used is miniscule, and only used as a last resort. the REAL STUFF is Plentiful in Every Big City, as well as Every Prison and County Jail.
Until the vast majority of People realize that OUR GOVERNMENT is Heavily involved in the Importation of Controlled Substances in order to keep “The War On Drugs” going full tilt, and continue the pursuit to a Full Police State, it will Get a Lot worse. But most people cannot see the damned forest, cuz all those trees are in the way.
I remember a film, in high school, warning us of these things. One thing the film mentioned was cocaine, but it was so rare there was no need to worry about it.
Then LSD showed up in the 1960s.
Soon we saw cocaine make a big entrance.
Now crack, designer drugs.
I still remember back in the 1960s when kids who wanted to be “hip” were trying everything they could to get high. Some tried crushing aspirin and smoking it to see if it would work. Others began to huff propellants in pressurized cans. I can truely say I have never tried any of these things.
MJ doesnt lead to Heroin use,, no more than smokes and beers do... but facts dont matter.
Once they tax pot,, they’ll find a new boogie-man to attack and delare war on . . . hu rah !
This hits close to home. For the last 5 years, ever since we have been associated with our local high school, there has been at least one OD death every year. We live in a middle class suburb north of Dallas, and the drug problem is huge.
It starts in middle school, where 7th and 8th graders start with marijuana, and when they get to high school, there is a variety of drugs, pot, Mollies, Hydros, heroin, crack etc freely available. Local kids are openly displaying their drug use on social media. One kid I coached in baseball was caught using “Hydros” in the classroom, and his dad threatened to sue the school district after they suspended the kid, because he claims they never drug tested the kid.
Another emerging problem is the use of ecigs, where the kids are buying synthetic drug oils, eg Blueblossom, to use in those. It can only be detected if the ecig itself is tested, and that doesn’t happen. Every second high schooler is walking around with an ecig, because, my son tells me, it is really the cool thing right now.
There will be more deaths if it isn’t stopped. I have a low tolerance for the casual approach we are taking to this.
Well, I can see you would rather try to find some druggies to pick on...Crybaby much?
How come I never see FReeper drug warriors addressing...
Painkiller addicts around here are switching to Mexican heroin which is cheaper and they smoke it.
You are forgetting the fact that since Vietnam, the US has Maintained the Trade routes specifically so the Afghan’s could sell their Number 1 Crop in the entire country, OPIUM which by the way makes up about half of their GDP annually. So to shift blame away from our own CIA and Military, who admits to doing this in the Past, is merely refusing to OPEN YOUR EYES. I will agree that the Gang Banger element in our Military sounds viable, but they are mere foot soldiers in the Governments War on the People, the Goal is the Police State, cuz only in a Police State can the people be SAFE, just ask the Jews from the 30’s.
I meant to comment on your last paragraph. That’s the truth and the military is used as well. There seems to be a shadow goverment
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