During a sleepover with his daughter’s three friends, an Oregon man admitted to spiking their smoothies with depressant drugs and has since been sentenced to two years in prison. However, the sentence fell short of what the victims and their families were hoping for.
According to a county spokesperson who spoke to USA TODAY on Wednesday, Michael Meyden from Lake Oswego, Oregon, has admitted to three charges of causing someone else to consume a controlled substance in Clackamas County Circuit Court. Following his release, Meyden will be under post-prison supervision for three years.
Related posts
This Article Includes
- 0.1 Related posts
- 0.2 GM reduces its EV production goal due to lower demand
- 0.3 Police have suspect in custody after gunpoint bus hijacking in Georgia leaves 1 dead
- 1 How did Michael Meyden drug the three girls?
- 2 Why did Michael Meyden drug the girls?
- 3 Girl in court: ‘My life has become a living hell’
- 4 What was the girls’ experience during the sleepover?
- 5 One of the girls felt Meyden standing over, watching her for 15 minutes
According to a statement released by Clackamas County District Attorney John Wentworth, the actions of Mr. Meyden were both reckless and inexcusable. Wentworth believes that the punishment given should match the severity of the crime committed. The incident has had a significant impact on the child victims, their families, and the community as a whole.
According to Jeff Turnoy, one of Meyden’s attorneys, the agreed-upon sentence was two years of incarceration.
According to Meyden, the agreement was reached after intense negotiations between the parties involved. Both sides were satisfied with the outcome, which they believed to be equitable.
According to the Oregonian newspaper, the parents and daughters shared their thoughts prior to the sentencing to express the gravity of the crime on their lives. They appealed to the judge for a more severe punishment, with one mother stating, “You put my child’s life at risk by playing Russian roulette.”
How did Michael Meyden drug the three girls?
On August 26, 2023, the Lake Oswego police initiated an investigation into Meyden after receiving a call from Randall Children’s Hospital’s emergency room. The officers were informed that three girls had consumed benzodiazepine, a depressant drug.
On February 28th, Meyden surrendered himself to the Clackamas County Jail and was detained with a bond of $50,000.
According to the search warrant, the investigators found five prescription bottles of the insomnia medication, Temazepam, along with scales, razor blades, and tools for grinding pills into powder.
Why did Michael Meyden drug the girls?
According to Turnoy, Meyden explained to the court on Monday that he spiked the girls’ smoothies with the intention of ensuring they got a good night’s sleep, in preparation for the activities planned for the following day by his family.
According to the speaker, Mr. Meyden is truly sorry and ashamed of his actions, acknowledging that they were entirely inappropriate. In fact, during his nearly 10-minute statement to the court, he expressed genuine and heartfelt remorse.
According to Turnoy, Meyden’s 10-minute court statement was a display of “authentic and genuine remorse.”
According to the Oregonian , Meyden expressed in court how his life has been completely ruined, stating “Everything that held significance to me before is now gone.”
Girl in court: ‘My life has become a living hell’
During the sentencing, the court heard victim statements from all three girls who were drugged by Meyden, as well as two of their mothers.
According to the Oregonian, the girls have undergone months of recovery from Meyden’s actions, which they deemed as a severe breach of their trust.
During the court hearing, one of the girls expressed her disillusionment and fear towards adults, as reported by the newspaper. She stated that adults were supposed to be trustworthy and dependable, someone to turn to when in need of help or feeling scared. However, her experience has shattered that belief, and now she no longer feels safe around them. The girl also addressed the perpetrator directly, conveying the emotional trauma she has suffered due to his actions. She expressed that her life has turned into a nightmare because of him, and she now has to constantly think twice before trusting any adult.
According to the Oregonian, a mother of one of the girls involved in the case stated in court that Meyden was gambling with her child’s life, playing a dangerous game of “Russian roulette.”
“She said, ‘You overdosed her’, pointing out that her daughter, who is barely 5 feet tall and weighs 70 pounds on a good day, had an excessive amount of drugs in her system that were ‘off the charts’.”
According to the Oregonian, a mother expressed her concern in court by stating that no responsible parent would drug their child or their friends. She also added that touching drugged and unconscious young girls without any ill-intent is not something that a decent parent would do.
What was the girls’ experience during the sleepover?
According to the search warrant, Meyden provided the girls with two smoothies each between 9 and 11 p.m. during the sleepover. The orange beverages had “tiny white chunks throughout” and were served with different colored straws.
Out of the three girls, one of them consumed two glasses of the beverage, while another girl only had one. The third girl, on the other hand, barely drank any of it and just sipped it to be polite because she didn’t like the taste.
According to the search warrant, Meyden attempted to persuade the three girls to go to bed, and around midnight, the third girl sent a text message to her mother, who then informed the police.
The text message read, “Mom, can you please come and pick me up? I am in a state of emergency and I don’t feel safe (crying emoji). Although I might not be able to respond, I beg you to come and get me. Please, please pick me up!”
According to the search warrant, the girl reached out to multiple friends via text for a ride. Luckily, a family friend was willing to pick her up after she expressed feeling unsafe due to her friend’s father.
One of the girls felt Meyden standing over, watching her for 15 minutes
According to court documents, when questioned by investigators, the girl recalled how Meyden attempted to pull one of the other girls towards the side of the bed while she pretended to be asleep. Meyden repeated this action, prompting the girl to text her mother for help.
According to the search warrant, when Meyden made his third round, one of the girls felt his presence as he stood over and watched her for 15 minutes. The girl who sensed him called out for her mother. In response, the girl’s parents arrived at Meyden’s home around 3 a.m. and took the other two girls with them.
According to the search warrant, one of the girls reported feeling “woozy, hot, and clumsy” about 12 hours after consuming the smoothie. She was immediately taken to a hospital, where she tested positive for benzodiazepines.
