SAN DIEGO – A 17-year-old Poway boy who collapsed and died at his home in September accidentally overdosed on ecstasy, according to a toxicology report released Tuesday.
The San Diego County Medical Examiner determined that Blake Robert Casale had MDMA in his system, commonly known as ecstasy, when he died Sept. 9. The manner of death was determined to be an accident.
According to the report, on the evening of Sept. 9, Casale had some friends over at his house in the 13000 block of Orchard Gate Road for a get-together when he began to act strangely. Trevor, a friend of Casale, told San Diego County Sheriff’s deputies that Casale was trying to climb the walls of his home and was extremely hot to the touch. Trevor decided to run a cold shower for Casale, hoping it would calm him down. However, while in the bathroom, Casale reportedly collapsed. Trevor called 911 and began performing CPR on him.
Emergency responders brought Casale into the living room and continued Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support efforts. However, Casale was pronounced dead at 8:40 p.m.
According to the report, all Casale’s other friends fled the home prior to the arrival of paramedics, leaving Trevor alone with him. Some later returned.
Casale’s father reportedly told deputies that his son had a drug history.
Casale was a senior at Poway High School and a member of the school’s wrestling team, according to a GoFundMe page that was set up to help his family pay for his funeral expenses.
