Cause of death for Lehi High student still undetermined

When David Darby received a phone call from his son Camryn at school on Sept. 23, stating that he wasn't feeling well, he could have never imagined his son would die less than 24 hours later and that two weeks later, he still wouldn't know why his healthy 15-year-old died.

"I received the phone call around noon," Darby recalled. Camryn wasn't feeling well and had a sore throat. Darby drove to Lehi High School to pick up his son.

As the afternoon progressed Camryn began to feel more uncomfortable; he had a severe sore throat and fluctuated between hot flashes and cold chills.

"I told Camryn, if it gets to the point where you feel like you need to go to the doctor, let me know," Darby said.

Moments later Camryn told his dad that he felt it was time to see a doctor. They drove to an Instacare where doctors looked in Camryn's throat and discovered his right tonsil was swollen. They swabbed for a strep test and sent them home with a prescription.

"We grabbed dinner really quick so he could take his pill," Darby said, "then headed for home to put him in a warm bath to try and help with his cold chills."

After the bath Darby gave his son the advice all parents give: rest. Camryn fell asleep on the couch.

At 3 a.m. the next day, Darby awakened to the sound of Camryn snoring loudly.

"It was odd, he has never snored in his life," Darby said. "I woke him up and made him sit up. I told him to just try to watch some TV."

Darby woke a few hours later to find his son on the couch, unresponsive and not breathing. He phoned 911 and started CPR.

Paramedics arrived and worked on Camryn for about 40 minutes before confirming that he had indeed died and determined the time of death was more than an hour before his dad discovered him.

"He was still warm when I found him, so I assumed he had stopped breathing only minutes earlier. It was the worst day of life when I realized he was gone and there wasn't anything I could do."

Darby has met with doctors who confirmed strep test results are negative. He has spoken with the medical examiner who marked the death as "pending due to medical condition," but in a conversation on Friday, he learned the medical examiner found nothing out of the ordinary. They are now awaiting a toxicology report, but Darby is certain it will turn up nothing as well.

"It's one thing to lose your child in a car crash, at least you have the 'why,' but Camryn was a healthy boy. I'm afraid we are going to be left without answers to his death."

Camryn Darby was only 15 years old. He was very outgoing and popular.

"When my nephew moved here and started school, Camryn was the first to approach him and make him feel welcome," Dolores Rodriguez said. "They became best friends. Camryn was such a great kid and a friend to everyone."

After hearing the sad news, the Rodriguez family made it their mission to post fliers around town, sharing Camryn's story and asking for donations in behalf of the Darby family.

"We wished we could do more but we know this is one way to help since the family isn't prepared to pay for funeral expenses right now," Rodriguez said.

Darby stated that Camryn did love his friends but most of all, he had an immense love for his mom, Tierra Skanes.

The family is accepting donations through a fund at Mountain America Bank under Camryn Darby.