New Details Released in the Apparent Overdose Death of Griffen Kramer
Heroin is believed to be the cause of teenager's death, in which 4 have been arrested, authorities say.
Four people were arrested Thursday in connection with the death of Griffen Kramer, 18, a backup quarterback for Thousand Oaks High School who may have died of a heroin overdose on Oct. 30, according to the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department.
Three of the suspects were arrested on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter: David Nernberg of Agoura Hills; Corey Baumann, 19, of Agoura Hills and a 17-year-old boy from Oak Park, who has not been identified because he is a minor, according to a Sheriff's Department statement.
Another 17-year-old boy from Agoura Hills was arrested and booked on a narcotics-related charge and was cited and released into the custody of his parents.
In the hours leading to his death, Kramer reportedly was sitting in a cul-de-sac with Nernberg and taking heroin, a Los Angeles County sheriff's detective told the Ventura County Star on Friday.
According to the Star, Kramer, son of former NFL player Erik Kramer “shot up … [and] started foaming at the mouth while his friends watched, said homicide Detective Sgt. Barry Hall.
Nernberg called his friends, asking what he should do as Kramer slipped into unconsciousness, Hall told the Star.
"Rather then seek medical attention, he took him to his house and let him sleep it off," Hall told the Star.
The initial investigation indicated Griffen had likely died from a heroin overdose, but a toxicology report is still pending, said Lt. John Corina.
Baumann faces additional charges of possession of heroin and cocaine with the intent to distribute.
Nernberg and Baumann were being held in lieu of $125,000 bail. No bail has been set for the 17-year-old from Oak Park who was being held in Sylmar Juvenile Hall.
The suspects were arrested at about 7 a.m. Thursday while deputies were serving warrants in search of information about Kramer's death.
In August, Kramer reportedly told the Star that he attended Agoura High as a freshman but spent part of his sophomore year in a rehab center for substance abuse.
He credited football for offering hope.
Kramer said, "If it wasn't for football, I might have fallen into the rabbit hole and not make it back out," according to the Star.
This is a developing story. Check back for more details.
Marie Cunningham
5:44 pm on Thursday, November 17, 2011
Wow. This is terrible. Thanks for the update.
Pam Williams
6:16 pm on Thursday, November 17, 2011
This is very sad and an unfortunately a part of a growing trend in our community. We as parents need to be vigilant of where, what and with whom our kids are; this is our responsibility. Patterns of behavior are can easily be picked up if you're paying attention. I have seen it over and over again with kids I have worked with and kids my sons have known. Before you know it rumors of drugs, alcohol and other inappropriate behavior surfaces. I don't mind being a broken record to my students and to my kids when I tell them that everything you do in life matters and it begins very early in age.
Joey Levin
8:42 am on Friday, November 18, 2011
I am just going to re-iterate what others have said..WE NEED TO WATCH OUR KIDS and LEARN THEIR LANGUAGE..I run FREE quarterly R.A.P. sessions at Calabasas H.S. (Check under "Awareness" for schedule) BEGGING community parents to attend to hear from the mouths of experts what is going on in their kids lives..Attendance is NEVER as good as it should be..WHY???
David Stumpf
10:55 am on Friday, November 18, 2011
Sage advise for certain. However we should put this into perspective. As indicated, one 19 year old (a "legal" adult), two other "adults" and two minors were booked into custody. That's three adults folks. Yes – Adults (at least biologically and chronologically). Of course we need to be diligent and involved parents, but clearly can only do so much once our children launch into adulthood. We need to provide support and a "compass" for our children that will guide them through life, and we need to be supportive parents into adulthood. However, we can't be the Police Force forever. Since graduating in June, dozens, if not hundreds, of Agoura High School Graduates moved away from home and either started College or their independent lives. At this point in their lives we have to trust in ourselves that we have done our jobs as parents, and we also have to trust our children. This is a difficult time in our community, but from what I can tell over the course of nearly a dozen years in Agoura, including helping to raise an AHS Graduate myself, we have done a very good job overall.
Kim L.
8:45 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
Sadly in 2008 my family experienced this nightmare. Since the devastating loss of our daughter, we have been working closely with a group called Friends Don't Let Friends Die. (www.friendsdontletfriendsdie.com). We as parents can teach our children about drugs and the dangers, but there may come a time when they want to just try it. They often feel a false sense of security by doing these things with friends. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard the phrase "My friends would never let anything happen to me." Most of our children have heard about the dangers of drugs most of their lives, but we neglect to tell them that when they do these things they may not be able to make decisions for themselves and the people they are with may not help them. I was surprised to find out how often this is happening. A simple phone call could have saved this boy's life. I learned the hard way that people make assumptions and think that parents must not have taught their child about drugs, I talked to my daughter every day about the dangers of them. We are fighting against peer pressure, media hype, and "role models" who glorify these things. My heart is broken for this family because this didn't have to have the outcome it did. Now a young man is dead, and four young men who were so afraid they might get into trouble are in more trouble then they would have been in if they had just called for help.