A 16-year-old Española girl died of a possible drug overdose Jan. 9 at a Hamm Parkway home, according to Española Police.
Mercedes Roybal was locked in the bathroom of the family’s house when her mother Vanessa Manzanares became concerned and called police and a family friend. Manzanares told 911 dispatchers her daughter might have taken some pills.
The friend, Sammy Serna, kicked in the bathroom door and found Roybal sitting in front of the toilet, where she had vomited, a police report states.
Serna injected Roybal with the opioid antagonist Narcan but she did not respond, and Manzanares attempted CPR until medics arrived, but Roybal could not be revived, the report states.
Manzanares told police that Roybal had taken two Xanax around lunchtime, and she and Roybal had arrived home from Santa Fe that afternoon around 3 p.m. Manzanares then took a nap and when she woke up, she found the bathroom light on and Roybal’s car in the driveway.
Four Xanax pills were taken into evidence by police, a police report states. The same report states describes the incident as a possible drug overdose.
State Office of the Medical Investigator Anthony Cervantes said Roybal’s death was “possibly drug related” and her cause of death had not been released pending results of toxicology testing. Española Police Det. Bryan Martinez said he is investigating Roybal’s death as suspicious because the cause is not yet known and she had no prior medical problems.
Pojoaque High School Principal Vera Ortiz said Roybal is a former student, but has not attended the high school since last school year.
Manzanares said her daughter was an aspiring pharmacy technician who was scheduled to take her General Educational Development (GED) test Jan. 20 and had already passed a pre-test.
“She just didn’t really like high school,” Manzanares said. “She wanted to be with me a lot, and she just thought it was better for her to do her GED.”
The day of Roybal’s death, Manzanares said she and Roybal had gone to a court appearance for Roybal’s stepfather in Santa Fe. That hearing was for a drug trafficking charge, according to an online court records database. Roybal had been sick recently with headaches and had been sleeping frequently, Manzanares said. Manzanares said she believed Roybal died from choking on her vomit.
The Office has confirmed that at least 20 Rio Arriba County residents died of drug overdoses in 2008.