Bryn Spejcher and Chad O’Melia had just started dating in 2018 when the couple decided to smoke marijuana. What transpired next left O’Melia dead and Spejcher and her dog injured. Six years later, in January 2024, Spejcher was convicted and sentenced for the crime.
According to the New York Post, O’Melia, 26, was killed at his residence in Thousand Oaks, California. When police arrived the next day, Spejcher had a knife in her hand and was screaming. It reportedly took tasers and baton blows before Spejcher could be disarmed, and before officers could take the knife from her, she also stabbed herself in the neck. O’Melia, meanwhile, was pronounced dead at the scene from 108 stab wounds, and at some point in the night, Spejcher’s dog was injured with the knife.
Spejcher experienced cannabis-induced psychosis
Reportedly, Bryn Spejcher had not smoked marijuana very often. When she did in Chad O’Melia’s company, she experienced what experts have dubbed cannabis-induced psychosis, a rare but known side-effect of cannabis use, leading to O’Melia’s attack. Spejcher later said she heard voices before she snapped.
Accordingly, both the prosecution and the defense in the case agreed that Spejcher should be charged with manslaughter rather than murder, according to the VC Star. The only question to be decided was whether Spejcher voluntarily smoked marijuana or if it was involuntary, warranting a lesser conviction of involuntary manslaughter in the case.
Spejcher got probation
In December 2024, the VC Star reported that Bryn Spejcher was convicted of involuntary manslaughter after four hours of deliberation. In January 2024, Spejcher, then 32, was sentenced to two years probation with 100 hours of community service. She would, however, serve no jail time, KTLA.com reported. Spejcher had no prior criminal record. If she violated her parole, she would serve four years in jail, the judge said.
Under California law, defendants are responsible for their actions while intoxicated if they choose to become intoxicated of their own free will. In Spejcher’s case, her defense team effectively proved that Chad O’Melia coerced her into taking the second bong hit, which they said sent her over the edge. Meanwhile, Spejcher had smoked marijuana before with no similar effects, so it’s reasonable to say she would not have expected to have a psychotic break.
When Spejcher’s conviction was announced, O’Melia’s father, Sean O’Melia said, “I just want my son back, and that’s not going to happen … Ultimately, there are only people that have taken a loss here. There’s no winning here” (via the VC Star).