I did some really stupid (at times potentially fatal) stuff at 17 years of age. I'm still around purely by the grace of God. It's unfortunate this kid's foolishness caught up to him. Doubly unfortunate for his family.
I don't think there are any of us who didn't have a bout of bad judgement in our teens.
And I doubt there are many who would feel unsympathetic if they would have been on the scene. Unless, of course, they're psychos.