No Drugs Found in System of Teen in Rampage That Killed O.C. Trio

A troubled teenager who gunned down three Orange County men in Colorado did not have methamphetamine or any other mind-altering drugs in his body at the time of the killing spree, according to a coroner’s report released this week.

“The results show that he had a normal daily dose of over-the-counter decongestant in him,” Greeley police Sgt. John Gates said Saturday.

The toxicology test results ran counter to earlier speculations by friends that Joseph Gallegos, the 18-year-old gunman, was high on methamphetamine when he killed the three 20-year-old men in an execution-style rampage, police said.

Information on whether the assailant had been using drugs in the days before the crime was not available.

After shooting the men on Sept. 24, Gallegos drove 370 miles to the University of Northern Colorado, where he held his ex-girlfriend and three roommates hostage, investigators said. The standoff ended with police fatally shooting Gallegos in the neck.

“The whole scenario would have been easier to explain if there had been drugs in his body,” Gates said. “This way, it’s more difficult to explain. The downside is we may not ever explain it. Nobody will ever know why he did it.”

The three Orange County men--Joshua Turville, John Anthony Lara III and Steven David Bates--had moved to Bayfield, Colo., to help build the fledgling Calvary Chapel church. The men were all 1994 graduates of El Modena High School in Orange and shared the two-bedroom home where they were murdered. Bibles and religious literature filled the home.

Turville’s 62-year-old mother, Mary Turville, said Saturday she was surprised that results of the drug tests were negative.

“But it doesn’t change what happened one way or the other,” the mother said.

Authorities said Gallegos, who had an extensive criminal history, befriended the men through the church’s pastor. The teenager was making progress in turning his life around but was depressed over a breakup with Heidi Hocker, friends said. They said Hocker ended their relationship after Gallegos became “too protective.”

Investigators said Gallegos apparently snapped after making several unsuccessful attempts to reconcile with Hocker. The day of the shootings, Gallegos had screamed at Hocker on the telephone before gunning down his roommates, friends and police said. He took a Toyota 4-Runner belonging to one of the victims.

Gallegos drove to Hocker’s dormitory room and shot the woman in the foot as she tried to escape. The teenager took Hocker and three other college students hostage in another room. After a three-hour standoff, police opened fire on Gallegos. Hocker suffered a bullet wound and was expected to recover. Her roommates were not injured.

“He told me he came up here to kill me,” Hocker said at the time.

In Orange County, three families mourn the deaths of the men, two of whom led Bible-study classes at the Calvary Church in Santa Ana. The third victim, Bates, attended the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and had moved to Colorado to be with his boyhood friends and enjoy the outdoors, relatives said.

Mary Turville said she feels no anger toward Gallegos.

“It’s a real peace that I have,” Mary Turville said. “But there are times when I stop and feel really sad. That sadness will probably stay with me for the rest of my life.”