The parents and family of an 8-year-old California boy are overwhelmed with grief after he hung himself while imitating a scene from a movie and later passed away as a result.
A big-hearted California 8-year-old boy died Sunday after his playacting went too far and he hanged himself in his parents’ Stockton home.
Baby-faced Julianni Plascencia loved playing football for the Stockton Bengals and was looking forward to seeing his favorite NFLer, 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick, play Sunday in the NFC Conference Championship Game, the boy’s father, Ronnie Plascencia, told the Daily News on Thursday.
But the bubbly child didn’t make it to game day after he used a scarf Saturday night to accidentally hang himself at the family home.
The boy’s mother went off to the store, leaving Julianni in the care of his 14-year-old brother.
“He said, ‘I’m going to hang myself,’ but he didn’t say it like he was serious, so my older son told him to quit playing around,” Ronnie Plascencia said. “He could hear him playing in the other room, but then he realized it had been quiet for a little while.”
When the teen went to check on his younger brother, the boy was slumped over near his parent’s closet, one side of a scarf tied around his neck and the other end to a doorknob.
“He must of been reenacting something he saw on TV,” a devastated Ronnie told the News. “He probably knew it was dangerous, but not the severity of trying it out.”
The family stayed by the boy’s side for the next several hours after he slipped into a coma and was kept alive by a web of machines.
The family left the hospital room to talk about the next steps, and when they returned to Julianni’s room, the machines started beeping – the boy had flatlined.
What a tragic and sad accident. Our thoughts and prayers go out to this family.
