Woman Who Stabbed Man 108 Times Gets Probation: Reports

THOUSAND OAKS, CA — A Thousand Oaks woman was sentenced to probation and community service after she stabbed a man she was dating over 100 times while having a psychotic episode as a result of an adverse reaction to marijuana, according to reports.

Bryn Spejcher, 33, was initially charged with murder in the death of 26-year-old Chad O’Melia and faced the possibility of life in prison, according to the Los Angeles Times, but she instead was ordered to serve two years’ probation plus 100 hours of community service.

Spejcher was convicted by a jury last year of involuntary manslaughter, according to a news release from the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office. She and O’Melia had been dating a few weeks when on May 27, 2018, she went to his apartment and they both took several hits from a bong, causing Spejcher to suffer from Cannabis-Induced Psychotic Disorder, the news release said.

She repeatedly stabbed O’Melia, herself and her dog, according to the district attorney’s office and the Times. Police arrived at the apartment to find O’Melia in a pool of blood and Spejcher screaming with a knife in her hands, which she plunged into her own neck, the news release said, adding officers used a Taser and baton blows to disarm her.

“It was clear that she had no control of her faculties and never intended to cause any harm,” her attorney, Michael Goldstein, told the Times. “All of the medical experts agreed, including the expert called by the district attorney’s office.”

Spejcher stabbed O’Melia 108 times, according to KTLA, who said O’Melia’s family questioned the judge’s ruling.

“I think he set an absolute terrible precedent in the state of California where it’s okay to kill somebody after you smoke marijuana,” O’Melia’s father, Sean O’Melia, told KTLA.