'There is in McLennan County, Texas, a premises...'

Heroin addict waited alone to be busted

Bosqueville – It's not all that unusual among hard drug users, this thing of dying fully immersed in a bathtub full of water.

Not everyone who shoots speed balls goes that route, though Whitney Houston and Jim Morrison did. Ms. Houston seems to have drowned while Mr. Morrison's heart simply gave out, and then his troubled soul gave up the ghost.

David Sirbasku, self-admitted heroin addict

Janis Joplin went out sitting in a chair, alone in a Hollywood hotel room, her head nodded all the way forward, resting on her knee, a fresh deck of cigarettes in her hand.

When death found Lauren Darby, the 28-year-old friend of David Sirbasku, 48, she was in the tub at 8465 Rock Creek Rd., a loaded syringe filled with methamphetamine by her side, an empty one that had been used nearby.

The contents of the full syringe tested positive for crystal meth.

The only thing unusual about Ms. Darby's death, given her use of the speedball to enhance her kicks, is that the other addict on the scene did not go scurrying away, seeking cover.

How, exactly, did she die? That is the subject of further investigation in a post mortem examination court-ordered to be performed on her remains by a qualified forensic medical examiner.

Records show Mr. Sirbasku is responsible for taxes at 8465 Rock Creek Rd.

Most junkies don't necessarily die all alone, but they are found that way after their demise. Think John Belushi, Lenny Bruce. People run away in fear of their entirely possible demise, the police, their past, and a multitude of unnameable, unknowable fears – the kind people don't talk about.

When Mr. Sirbasku met deputies at his door following her death on Saturday, January 5, he freely admitted to heroin addiction and the simultaneous use of methamphetamine.

According to a probable cause affidavit filed by lead officer Michael Gates, he “told investigators that he is highly addicted to heroin and when he uses the heroin, it makes him sleep; therefore he mixes the heroin with methamphetamine.”

Other addicts talk about the myriad “rushes” that course through their bodies as the effects of the two conflicting drugs compete for dominance of the central nervous system. They say sitting in a tub full of hot water – as hot as one can stand it – enhances those rushes.

When the newly organized Narcotics Unit of the McLennan County Sheriff's Department returned to raid the residence on January 8, “within 72 hours,” according to court papers filed in support of the search and arrest warrant, they were backed by the SWAT team. They were along to “take control” of Mr. Sirbasku, according to Mr. Gates' filing.

They found him in the "master bedroom," awaiting his fate.

The search yielded more than one gram and less than 4 grams of methamphetamine, and more than 2 grams but less than 400 of heroin.

It's not Mr. Sirbasku's first rodeo. He has experienced 4 prior arrests, one for possession of less than an ounce of marijuana and two for possession of “analogue narcotics.” A fourth arrest is for carrying a prohibited weapon.

The officers booked him for possession of the controlled substances and seized a luxury import car from Germany parked in the driveway of the sprawling brick residence while they were at it.

He made bail on a high bond, and went on his way.

What else has drug use done for Mr. Sirbasku?

Here's a hint. He once worked at the family business owned by his late father, but has been unemployed since November.

He is 6 feet, 4 inches tall. He weighs 160 pounds.

Drug use is glamorous. Totally.

Glamorous.

- The Legendary