A young Southern California man died earlier this month after he jumped from a moving vehicle while under the influence of hallucinogenic drug LSD but his parents want him to be remembered for how he lived, not how he died.
Lewis Lee, 22, died Sept 6. from head injuries he suffered Sept. 4 when he leaped naked out of a car going about 30 miles per hour, according to the Orange County Register.
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Dale and Angela Lee say they don’t want their son to be remembered for how he died, but for the way he lived.
“It’s bad enough to lose your child, but people thinking of your child as a druggie whose life ended because he used drugs is very painful,” his mother said in Korean as she sat in the living room of her home surrounded by her son’s things – books, poems and pictures. His father sat quietly on the couch as their pastor, Paul Lee, helped translate her thoughts.
“Ever since he was a little kid, he never disobeyed,” his mother said. “He was a real, real good son.”
Lee’s parents described their son as hard-working and responsible, helping out with the family’s painting business.
But Lee and his best friend Jay Ahn decided to try LSD for the first time during the Labor Day weekend at Ahn’s home in Anaheim.
“Lewis was against partying and wasting time,” Ahn, 23, said. “He wanted to try it because he wanted to learn more about himself. For any other circumstance, he would’ve never done it.”
A 26-year-old friend from Buena Park was at Ahn’s home watching over them, but at some point, Lee became agitated and took off his shirt before running out the door.
“We were scared not knowing where Lewis went,” Ahn said. “I was not in the right state of mind. My body wouldn’t function.”
The 26-year-old man, who didn’t take drugs, and Ahn got in a car and went looking for Lee. When they got to Beach Boulevard and Ball Road they spotted Lee running in the middle of the street totally naked.
The two friends put Lee into their car but were having a hard time calming him down.
As they were approaching Brookhurst Street and Katella Avenue, Lee apparently opened the back door and jumped out of the Camry.
“I was grabbing his arm while he was trying to go for the door,” Ahn said. “I don’t remember exactly what happened. I was grabbing him, I was screaming and then he jumped out into the air.”
Lee suffered irreversible brain damage and was taken off life support on Sept. 6. His organs were donated to 10 people, including a 15-year-old boy who received his heart, according to the O.C. Register.
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