TONIGHT, A PLACER COUNTY FAMILY HAS A WARNING FOR ALL PARENTS
AND CHILDREN ABOUT THE POTENTIALLY LETHAL COMBINATION
OF OPIOIDS AND SOCIAL MEDIA.
IT’S A NATIONWIDE CONCERN THAT HAS GONE LARGELY UNNOTICED UNTIL
RECENTLY.
IT’S NOW SHAKEN THE WHITNEY HIGH SCHOOL COMMUNITY IN ROCKLIN.
AND UNLESS CHANGES ARE MADE, ITS JUST A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE IT
HAPPENS AGAIN.
>> YOU READY?
♪ >> FOR YEARS, THE DIDIER FAMILY
WAS TREATED TO BEAUTIFUL MUSIC LIKE THIS.
BUT SINCE THE SUDDEN AND SHOCKING DEATH OF THEIR BELOVED
ZACHARY, THE PIANO HAS FALLEN SILENT.
17-YEAR-OLD ZACHARY DIDIER WAS A STRAIGHT A STUDENT WITH WHAT
SEEMED TO BE A LIMITLESS FUTURE.
A STANDOUT ATHLETE IN SOCCER AND TRACK, ON HIS WAY TO BECOME AN
EAGLE SCOUT.
THE LEAD ACTOR IN THE SCHOOL PLAY, AND A TALENTED,
SELF-TAUGHT MUSICIAN.
>> ZACH WAS JUST A BEAUTIFUL SOUL.
HE LOVED LIFE.
HE LOVED PEOPLE, HE LOVED HIS FAMILY.
>> THE WHITNEY HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR WAS SET TO GRADUATE IN
JUNE WITH HONORS, AND HAD HIS SIGHTS ON STANFORD OR UCLA.
>> HE LOVED WINNING.
HE LOVED SETTING HIGH GOALS AND ACCOMPLISHING IT.
IT WAS SOMETHING THAT I THINK HE EVEN WAS WONDERING, WHAT ARE MY
LIMITS, WHAT ARE MY BOUNDS?
WHAT CAN I DO OR WHAT CAN I NOT DO?
>> TODAY, HIS PARENTS, CHRIS AND LAURA, ARE LEFT ONLY WITH THEIR
DREAMS OF WHAT ZACH COULD HAVE BECOME, AND THEIR MEMORIES OF
THE AMAZING 17 YEARS THEY HAD WITH HIM.
>> WE STRUGGLED WITH KNOWING WHETHER TO DO THIS OR NOT
BECAUSE WE WANT ZACH REMEMBERED FOR HOW HE LIVED.
HE LIVED THE MOST INREDIBLE LIFE.
BUT WE HAVE TO TALK ABOUT HOW HE DIED, BECAUSE IT’S INFORMATION
WE ALL HAVE TO KNOW.
>> ON DECEMBER 27, DURING WINTER BREAK, CHRIS FOUND ZACK AT HIS
DESK, WITH HIS HEAD RESTING ON HIS ARM.
HE WASN’T BREATHING, AND CPR HAD NO EFFECT.
>> I WAS UTTERLY CONFUSED AND TRAUMATIZED.
>> WHAT WAS FIRST AN INEXPLICABLE TRAGEDY --
>> HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?
WHAT HAPPENED, HE JUST FELL ASLEEP?
>> ZACH WAS A VICTIM OF FENTANYL POISONING.
>> UNFORTUNATELY, WE HAVE NOW COME TO KNOW OTHER PARENTS WHO
ARE SUFFERING THIS TRAGIC TYPE OF LOSS WITH FENNEL POISONING.
IT IS HEARTBREAKING HOW MANY OF US THERE ARE.
>> LAURA AND CHRIS DIDN’T KNOW IT, BUT ON A COUPLE OF
OCCASIONS, ZACH HAD EXPERIMENTED WITH PRESCRIPTION DRUGS, THE
SAME MEDICATIONS MILLIONS USED FOR PAIN MANAGEMENT EVERY DAY.
ZACH THOUGHT HE WAS BUYING PERCOCET, BUT WHAT HE GOT
INSTEAD WAS A COUNTERFEIT PILL MADE OF FENNEL, A POWERFUL
PRESCRIPTION PAINKILLER THAT IS 50 TIMES STRONGER THAN MORPHINE.
>> IT’S A FAKE PILL.
IT DOESN’T CONTAIN ANYTHING THAT ZACH DID NOT WANT TO BUY FENNEL.
THAT’S WHAT HAPPENED.
-- DID NOT WANT TO BUY FENTANYL.
>> DAYS LATER, AND STILL WITHOUT ALL THE ANSWERS, CHRIS AND LAURA
BURIED THEIR YOUNGEST CHILD AT ST. MARY’S IN SACRAMENTO.
>> WE PRAY THAT YOU WILL NEVER HAVE TO EXPERIENCE IT.
THE FAMILY IS HAUNTED NOT ONLY BY THE FAKE PILLS, BUT BY
THE WAY ZACH GOT THEM.
HE DIDN’T SLIP DOWN A DARK AND SEEDY ALLEY, HE JUST OPENED SNAP
CHAT, THE SAME PHONE APP YOUR KIDS PROBABLY HAVE.
ONE WITH ALL THOSE SILLY CAMERA FILTERS.
DID YOU HAVE ANY IDEA THAT IT COULD BE AS EASY AS PICKING UP
YOUR PHONE, CLICKING ON AN APP?
>> NO, NO IDEA AT ALL.
WE HAD ZERO IDEA THAT THAT COULD HAPPEN.
WE HAD NEVER HEARD OF THAT RISK.
WE NEVER HEARD THAT DRUG DEALERS ARE USING THE SOCIAL MEDIA
PLATFORMS.
>> LAURA AND CHRIS SAID THEY WHETHER TO SHARE ZACH’S STORY
BECAUSE OF THE STIGMA SURROUNDING DRUGS.
ALTHOUGH ZACH HAD NO HISTORY OF ADDICTION, THEY WERE WORRIED
THAT THE TRUTH MIGHT TARNISH PEOPLE’S MEMORY OF HIM.
>> IN OUR INNER CIRCLE OF PEOPLE THAT WE WERE SHARING WHAT WE
SUSPECTED HAD HAPPENED, WE COULDN’T BELIEVE HOW EVERYBODY’S
REACTIONS WERE, I HAD NO IDEA OF THIS, LAURA.
THEN WE REALIZED, OK, WE CAN’T NOT SHARE WHAT WE KNOW.
>> THIS IS AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO GET OUT.
THIS IS A BIG GAME CHANGER AND WHAT MAY HAVE BEEN OK AND
RELATIVELY SAFE IN THE 70’S AND 80’S ARE EVEN THE 90’S, IT’S A
VERY DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENT RIGHT NOW.
>> YOU CAN HAVE A CHILD WHO IS CURIOUS AND TRY SOMETHING ONE
TIME AND THEY ARE GONE.
THERE’S NO LEARNING YOUR LESSON, NO SLIPPERY SLOPE.
IT’S DEADLY.
AND THERE’S THE ACCESSIBILITY, IT’S MIND BLOWING.
♪ >> THERE’S NO DOUBT CHRIS AND
LAURA ARE PROUD OF THEIR BOY AND ALL HE ACCOMPLISHED, THE PLACES
HE WENT, THE FRIENDS HE MADE.
AND THOUGH WE WILL NEVER KNOW WHAT ZACH COULD HAVE BECOME, WE
KNOW THE LEGACY HIS PARENTS ARE COMMITTED TO LEAVING.
>> IT HURTS SO BAD.
IF WE CAN SPARE ONE FAMILY THIS PAIN.
>> TO MAKE SURE NO OTHER CHILD IS LOST THE SAME WAY.
>> WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT THIS.
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT WHAT’S HAPPENING.
WE CAN’T PROTECT ZACH NOW, BUT HOPEFULLY WE CAN PROTECT YOUR
KIDS AND WE CAN PROTECT OTHER KIDS.
WE DID NOT KNO