Overdose: No family is immune from drug plague

Cause of death of Joshua Ruzicka, son of Utah Eagle Forum President Gayle Ruzicka, is confirmed

By Glen Warchol
The Salt Lake Tribune

Article Last Updated: 01/06/2008 12:38:43 AM MST

When the son of Utah Eagle Forum President Gayle Ruzicka was found dead of a drug overdose in the morals activist's home, it brought into sharp focus the breadth and depth of Utah's drug problem.

    Joshua Ruzicka was in a coma and not breathing after injecting a drug cocktail of heroin, cocaine and morphine when police and medical technicians arrived March 8 at his mother's Utah County home.

    "He was a dear boy. He wasn't this hard core, mean, awful thing that you think about when you hear about someone who took drugs," said Gayle Ruzicka. "He was a kind, sweet boy and the family dearly loved him."

    Joshua, 27, had been clean for a couple of years, but had resumed using drugs shortly before his overdose, she said.

    Until recently, police refused to confirm the cause or circumstances of his death, saying the information was part of an investigation. Ruzicka and her family had declined to discuss it with reporters; the words drugs, overdose or addiction never were uttered at Joshua Ruzicka's funeral at the family's Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ward house. His obituary said only that he had "returned to the arms of his Heavenly Father."

    "It's not something we hide, but it's not something we flaunt out there because it causes pain," said Gayle Ruzicka. She asked that her son's overdose not be reported.

    Most people in her community of Alpine-Highland know about Joshua's overdose. Many who are having addiction problems call her, she said.

    "I tell them, 'Love them where they are. Don't abandon them - too many people abandon their children when they are going through this. If ever there's a time when they need to feel your love, it's now.' "

    Highland-Alpine Police Chief Kip Botkin confirmed this week that a medical examiner's report found that Joshua Ruzicka died of an overdose. Gayle Ruzicka and her husband were out of state at the time of the incident.

    Gareth Bozung, 27, who was with Joshua Ruzicka that night, has been charged with possession and distribution of illegal drugs and obstruction of justice in connection with the death. He is in the Utah County jail on unrelated charges of drug possession and possession of a concealed weapon, according to court records.

    Bozung told police that he sold Joshua Ruzicka a bag of heroin for $5 and was shooting "speed balls" with him until 4 a.m. Bozung called from Ruzicka's house for medical help and police arrived with the ambulance, Botkin said.

    Joshua Ruzicka, one of 12 Ruzicka children, grew up in Utah County's Mormon-dominated culture, but entered the world of drugs in his 20s. A talented musician, he had struggled with drug addiction for years, friends say.

    In 2005, he pleaded guilty to charges of attempted possession of drugs. According to court documents, a Sandy police officer discovered eight balloons of heroin and dozens of syringes, many bloodied, in a car driven by Joshua Ruzicka and a friend.

    His friends say he was popular and respected in the Salt Lake City area's music community, but his addiction undermined his ability to stay with a band.

    "He started using when he was 21," Ruzicka said. "He came and told me about it. We were his rehab house. Joshua was not the first of his friends to die. He knew he had to quit or he would die. We did everything to help him."

    Mike Forshee, a commander in the Utah County Major Crimes Task Force, said drug addiction, including heroin, is rampant in the county - along with overdose deaths.
    "We have about one [fatal overdose] a week," Forshee said. "The majority are heroin-related. It's hitting the county hard."

    But Lance Merrill, who lost his 19-year-old daughter, Jani, to an overdose in 2006 and now leads Dads Against Drug Dealers, said Forshee's numbers are dated.

    "It's more like twice that now," said Merrill, of Provo. "Almost every day there's an obituary in the paper that said someone was 'a wonderful person, loved by children and animals and they were taken before their time.' But no cause of death is listed."

    "People will not talk about it," he said. "Society has a shame about it."

    Forshee said the innocence of the culture in what is known as "Happy Valley" hampers fighting drug addiction. "There's something unique about the demographics of the area. Maybe it's the religion. We have adults who have not seen drugs - ever - raising children," he said. "The kids are doing it, but the parents don't know what to look for."

    Merrill, who is Mormon, says this willful ignorance extends to public officials and even doctors. "It's so in-the-closet and hush-hush and it's-their-own-damn-fault."

    Acquaintances of Joshua Ruzicka said he took "a lot of flak" over his mother's high-profile conservative stands against homosexuality, pornography, video-game violence, profane rock music and abortion. "People made a lot of snide remarks about his mom. She was an easy target," said one friend. "But he never joined in."

    It was obvious at Joshua Ruzicka's funeral that he was adored for his humor and creativity. Besides music, he was an audacious skateboarder and an adventurous chef, family members said.

    Still, Ruzicka said reporting the circumstances of Joshua's death would be "like breaking healing bones."

    "I have children who get deeply, deeply hurt," she said. "Family comes first."

    Merrill says drug addiction must be dragged out of the shadows to help families and society come to grips with the tragedy it causes. His daughter's obituary said, simply, "Our daughter lost her battle with addiction."

    "At my daughter's funeral we talked about her overdose," Merrill said. "Now, even my bishop talks about addiction and what it's doing to the community. My daughter's death became a rallying cry, 'We've got to fight this.' "

    gwarchol@stlrib.com

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    * NATE CARLISLE contributed to this article.