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DELTA, B.C. — Days before he was scheduled to return to military school on the East Coast, 19-year-old Cody wanted one last summer hurrah with his buddies.

To keep the carousing in check, parents Jim and Sheila told their son he could invite his friends over to their Ladner, B.C., home.

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“You think if you’re home and watching, nothing’s going to happen,” Sheila says from the family kitchen.

But shortly after 1 a.m. on Sept. 1, Jim and Sheila were roused from their sleep by two of Cody’s friends.

Something was wrong with Cody, they said. Come quick.

Upstairs in the den, Cody was slumped over in a chair. He was unconscious and blue in the face.

Sheila screamed.

They carried his limp body onto the floor and checked for a pulse or a breath. They detected neither.

With the guidance of a 911 dispatcher, Sheila began pumping her son’s chest.

“I was concerned his brain was getting no oxygen,” she said. “And his eyes had completely rolled back in his head.