A York teenager died hours after taking ecstasy he’d bought to celebrate his birthday, an inquest heard today.
Joshua Reeson died in York Hospital on Sunday, 27 September 2020 of multiple organ failure due to the effects of MDMA.
The inquest at the coroners’ court in Northallerton heard evidence of Joshua’s final days.
Members of his family, including mother Michelle and dad John, were in court. Today, Michelle described Joshua as a boy “whose kindness knew no limits” and who was “loved beyond measure”
A statement by Michelle, read out by Alison Norton, North Yorkshire assistant coroner, said Joshua would often go out with his friends after school but always knew to be back home by 10pm.
He celebrated his 15th birthday on Friday, 25 September. He texted his mum at her work to thank her for his presents, including a tracksuit and T-shirts.
Later that day Michelle transferred £50 to his bank account, a present from her parents.
The following day he left home to catch a bus to meet his friends in town, and was planning to sleep over at a friend’s.
Shortly before 10pm Joshua texted his mum to say he’d be at his friend’s house soon.
A statement from DCI Nichola Holden revealed Joshua’s movements in the hours before he was taken to hospital. He and two other boys had planned to buy ecstasy “to celebrate Joshua’s birthday”.
CCTV showed Joshua withdrawing £50 from a cashpoint at the Spar shop on Brockfield Park Drive, Huntington, on Saturday morning.
Shortly after 7pm, Joshua and some friends went to the One Stop Shop in Heslington to meet with two unknown people who had agreed to buy them alcohol.
Then he and another boy went to meet a drug dealer in Tang Hall. One of their friends had put them in touch with the dealer and the arrangement to meet took place via social media.
CCTV shows Joshua and his friend meeting an adult in a dressing gown near the Co-op on Tang Hall Lane at about 7.30pm where they were supplied with three bags of MDMA (ecstasy) for £50.
The pair went to a third boy’s house after midnight. In the cellar, they took the MDMA by crushing it up, swallowing and inhaling it.
Joshua was said to have taken the most out of the three grammes they bought. He started feel unwell and was shaking and sweating.
At about 3am the mother of the household came down and told Joshua and his other friend to leave.
At about 3.30am, the boy told another friend of theirs that “Josh was bad”. At the same time, the parent of one of the boys went out to look for them and found Joshua on the pavement between Hospital Fields Road and Maple Grove in Fulford.
He had fallen and banged his head. An ambulance was called. Joshua went into cardiac arrest and paramedics had to resuscitate him.
He was taken to York Hospital. He had a temperature of 41.6°C, and very low blood pressure. was admitted to the intensive care unit where he died at 3.10pm.
Toxicology tests found he had MDMA in his system at sufficient levels to cause a fatality. A post mortem concluded he died of multiple organ failure due to the effects of ecstasy.
Ms Norton concluded that Joshua’s death was drug related. She offered her condolences to the family.
Joshua’s death devastated his family and friends, and both staff and classmates at Joseph Rowntree School, where he studied.
His mother Michelle today spoke of the family’s pain at their loss, and urged other young people not to experiment with drugs. She said: “Don’t assume you are invincible, one time is all it takes.”
You can read her full tribute here.
Joseph Rowntree headteacher Dave Hewitt said shortly after Joshua’s death: “Students knew him as a true friend. Many of them have told me how he was there to listen to them, help them with their worries and would always make time to contact them if he knew they were having a hard time.
“Our lasting memory of him will be of a lovely young man who will be sadly missed.”
Police arrested a number of people over Joshua’s death. In August 2023, five people appeared in court charged in connection with the tragedy.
And last December, a man was jailed for more than four years for supplying Class A drugs linked to Josh’s death.