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The 15-year-old daughter of a Gilroy firefighter died from possible alcohol poisoning this morning after a sleepover at the home of the child of an ex-councilman, police and sources said.
The girl, Sarah Botill, who firefighters confirmed is the daughter of Mike Botill, died at Saint Louise Regional Hospital late Saturday morning, Gilroy police and sources said. The girl had been at the home of former Gilroy City Councilman Roland Velasco, who is a policy aide for Santa Clara County Supervisor Don Gage, and his stepdaughter on the 9000 block of Bunting Court, sources said.
The girl was alive but was unresponsive and had difficulty breathing when fire and police responded to a call at 8:44 a.m., Sgt. Jim Gillio said.
Firefighters were dispatched at 8:46 a.m., and Engine 71 arrived from Las Animas Fire Station at 8:52 a.m., Gilroy Police Sgt. Wes Stanford said. Firefighters were en route to Saint Louise Regional Hospital by 9:14 a.m., he said. Sunrise Fire Station, the station closest to the house on Bunting Court, was temporarily closed due to a staffing shortage as a result of city employee furloughs.
Gillio did not have the time of death readily available, and would not confirm the name of the girl until certain parties were notified.
"We're not even smack dab in the middle of this investigation; we're in the very beginning," Gillio said Saturday afternoon.
He noted that it is still unclear whether alcohol caused the death, although he said that three girls had been drinking vodka in the early hours of Saturday morning. Police say the vodka had been brought to the house. Although Gillio said police know where the alcohol came from, he would not disclose that information because police are still interviewing subjects.
Gillio would not say where the girl went to school, but said that the Gilroy Unified School District was notified of her death "so that they can prepare for this Monday when students return to school."
Gillio did not know of any medical problems that the girl might have had.
Andrea Whelan, an investigator with the Santa Clara County Office of the Medical Examiner-Coroner, said an autopsy will be conducted on Monday, and there might be a number of tests pending. However, the coroner's office would not release the girl's name and referred all calls to police.
Alcohol poisoning, at least in Gilroy, is very rare, Gillio said. He did not "remember a similar case within the last 10 years."
In addition, city staff are creating a support network for the family, he said.
"We have a tight-knit community within the city employee group and all of us are dealing with grieving with this and taking care of the family," Gillio said.
At the Las Animas Fire Station Saturday afternoon, Battalion Chief Ed Bozzo said the situation was difficult for the fire department.
"It's tough when you're dealing with your own family like this," he said.
Supervisor Gage said he had been questioned by police and was told that the incident occurred at Velasco's home.
Reached at his home on Bunting Court Saturday afternoon, Velasco said he did not wish to comment.
Don and his wife, Jeanne, who attended the Gilroy Downtown Holiday Parade on Saturday, said they have known the Botill family for years.
The Botills also lost a 2-year-old child to illness several years ago, Don Gage said.
While some neighbors went to console the Velasco and Botill families, others said they did not realize what had happened. A neighbor who lives across the street, said she heard a fire truck roll in and wondered what had happened.
"It's just really devastating," said the neighbor after she learned about the girl's death.
According to collegedrinkingprevention.gov, a government Web site aimed at modifying college drinking behavior, "Alcohol depresses nerves that control involuntary actions such as breathing and the gag reflex (which prevents choking). A fatal dose of alcohol will eventually stop these functions."
Youths aged 12 to 20 years old consume 11 percent of the alcohol drank in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2005, the last year for which the Centers give data, more than 145,000 youths went to the emergency room for injuries and other conditions related to alcohol.
Jonathan Partridge Jonathan Partridge covers City Hall for The Dispatch. Reach him at 847-7109 or e-mail him at jpartridge@svnewspapers.com.
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