What a weird story. Has this 'choking game' popped up in any of your communities?!
Quote:
Manteca death focuses attention on choking game
By M.S. Enkoji -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 3:26 pm PDT Friday, October 14, 2005
A 12-year-old Manteca boy, who tied his karate belt around his neck and hanged himself to death in his bedroom, might have been experimenting with a choking game, a dangerous fad among adolescents police said.
Manteca Police are investigating the death of the unidentifed boy who was taken to a hospital after his his grandmother found him hanging Monday.
Investigators are unconvinced the death is a suicide because there are no typical indicators, said Manteca Police Lt. Mike Cook.
"There was no family fight just before, no mental illness. There was no apparent reason for him to take his life," Cook said.
Called "pass out" or "the choking game" among other names, the object of the popular game among young teens is to cut off oxygen to the brain, producing a rush or a high, according to experts.
In recent months, the deaths of several teens who died after accidentally strangling themselves have prompted parents to talk about the dangers of prolonged oxygen deprivation to the brain.
After her 13-year-old son died choking himself in May, Sarah Pacatte of Paradise went on the talk-show circuit and created a Website where she tracks other deaths and posts warning signs for parents at www.stilllovingmygabriel.com.
Sacramento County hasn't had any similar deaths, said Sacramento County Coroner Ed Smith.
Hanging deaths among adolescents are rare, he said, maybe one a year. But the cases he's seen all clearly pointed to suicide, he said.
source: http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/...-14555203c.html
(Sacramento Ca. Newspaper)
