West
California woman who avoided prison after stabbing boyfriend 108 times while high appealing light sentence
A California woman who got out of jail scot-free after stabbing her boyfriend 108 times in a marijuana-induced psychosis is appealing her slap-on-the-wrist conviction, arguing that she was tricked into using the drug to begin with.
Bryn Spejcher, 32, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter after she stabbed Chad O’Melia, 26, dozens of times before turning the knife on her dog and then herself.
She received a sentence of two years on probation and 100 hours of community service.
LAWYER FOR CALIFORNIA WOMAN AVOIDING JAIL IN MARIJUANA STABBING STANDS BY ‘PSYCHOTIC’ DEFENSE: ‘NOT A CON JOB’
Bryn Spejcher reacts as the jury finds her guilty of manslaughter on Friday, Dec. 1, 2023, for the 2018 cannabis-induced killing of Chad O’Melia. Jurors deliberated less than a day before returning their verdict in the afternoon. (ANTHONY PLASCENCIA/THE STAR / USA TODAY NETWORK)
In a new interview, she revealed she plans to appeal the slap on the wrist because she believes O’Melia tricked her into using the drug, she told the Daily Mail.
Although the two were dating, Spejcher told the outlet she never considered O’Melia her official boyfriend and said she told him she no longer had any romantic interest in him two days before killing him.
She claimed he was aggressive, intimidating and had a temper, she told the outlet. So when he encouraged her to hit a bong on the day of the stabbing, she gave into the pressure — then went into a deadly psychosis.
CALIFORNIA WOMAN WHO GOT HIGH AND STABBED BOYFRIEND 108 TIMES WILL NOT TO GO PRISON, JUDGE RULES
Sean O’Melia joined ‘America’s Newsroom’ to remember his son, Chad, who was fatally stabbed by a California woman. (The O’Melia Family)
“Yes, I physically inhaled it,” she said. “So, we’re both accountable, but there’s obviously been more attention to my part [in the attack] versus Chad’s part.”
Her lawyers have maintained that O’Melia introduced her to a hyper-potent strain of marijuana that she wasn’t ready for, resulting in an adverse reaction that sent her into a deadly craze. They did not immediately respond to questions about the appeal Friday morning, before business hours on the West Coast.
“The defense presented in court was not a ‘con job’ as some have described it,” her attorney Michael Goldstein told Fox News Digital after the initial sentencing.
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Bryn Spejcher, left, was sentenced to 100 days of community service after stabbing Chad O’Melia, right, 108 times in his LA apartment. (Ventura County District Attorney’s Office/Fox & Friends First)
Months before the fatal encounter, O’Melia’s roommate also had an “extreme reaction” after smoking out of the same bong, Goldstein said. He suffered hallucinations and fear of death.
Spejcher had only smoked pot less than a half-dozen times prior to the stabbing, her lawyers said, describing her as a “naive user.” She worked at the UCLA Medical Center as an audiologist and is hearing impaired herself.
“The defense of ‘cannabis-induced psychosis’ was based primarily on the testimony of both renowned psychiatrist Dr. William Wirshing and prosecution expert Dr. Kris Mohandie,” Goldstein said.
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Sean O’Melia, right, chats with other protesters in a demonstration held the day before Tuesday’s sentencing of Bryn Spejcher, convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the killing of Chad O’Melia, Sean’s son. (TOM KISKEN/THE STAR / USA TODAY NETWORK)
Wirshing and Mohandie were among four experts whose work was cited in the trial. They both found that the explosive violence was “unpredictable” and “unforeseeable,” Goldstein said.
The specific strain contained a 31.8% THC level and a warning label that said, “Caution, for High Tolerance Users Only,” he added. According to the Yale School of Medicine, the average THC content in cannabis seized by the DEA was 4% in 1995 and had risen to 17% in 2017.
Marijuana is legal in California for prescribed medicinal users over 18 and recreational users above 21.
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Chief Deputy District Attorney Audry Nafziger addresses the jury during the manslaughter trial of Bryn Spejcher on Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023. Spejcher, who was found guilty, was sentenced to probation and community service. (JUAN CARLO/THE STAR / USA TODAY NETWORK)
A search of SweetFlower.com, the website for a Los Angeles-based dispensary, found marijuana “flower” for sale legally with THC levels as high as 39%. Similar levels were available Friday from a local competitor, The Artist Tree.
Processed and concentrated products can contain up to 90% THC, Goldstein added.
“Nobody seems to want to address this issue,” he said.
O’Melia’s father, who organized a protest outside the courthouse for Spejcher’s no-prison sentencing hearing, told Fox News in January that the system has “completely failed” his son and the family when Spejcher received a punishment of just two years of probation, 100 hours of community service and no prison time.
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West
Coast Guard rescue swimmer dies after medical evacuation mission off Washington coast turns tragic
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The U.S. Coast Guard on Friday confirmed Petty Officer 2nd Class Tyler Jaggers, an aviation survival technician stationed at USCG Air Station Astoria, Oregon, died Thursday following a medical evacuation mission off the coast of Cape Flattery, Washington.
During the Feb. 27 mission, Jaggers was critically injured and put on life support, according to statements from the Coast Guard and the Coast Guard Helicopter Rescue Swimmer Association (GCHRSA).
He later died at Madigan Army Medical Center in Fort Lewis, Washington, surrounded by his parents, sister, fiancé, friends, and Coast Guard teammates, according to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem.
“We are grateful for his faithful service,” Noem wrote in a social media post.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Tyler Jaggers died after a mission off the Washington state coast. (U.S. Coast Guard via X)
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Prior to his death, Jaggers was meritoriously advanced to AST2 for his “relentless drive in qualifications, the mentorship he consistently provided to swimmer candidates, and his exceptional performance across operational missions,” according to officials.
He was also awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross — one of the nation’s highest awards for heroism in aerial flight — by the Commandant of the Coast Guard.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Tyler Jaggers leaves behind his parents, sister, fiancé, friends and Coast Guard teammates. (U.S. Coast Guard via X)
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“Through his selfless service and sacrifice, AST2 Jaggers exemplified the finest legacies of Coast Guard service, and the sacred oath of the Aviation Rescue Swimmer community: So Others May Live,’” officials wrote in the statement.
The GCHRSA said it is actively coordinating support for Jaggers’ family and the aircrew at Air Station Astoria.
Authorities provided limited details about the mission. (U.S. Coast Guard via X)
Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Wash., said Coast Guard crews “never waver in rushing to the water to save lives and that’s what Tyler Jaggers was doing when he was injured.”
“My thoughts and prayers are with him and his family, along with the entire United States Coast Guard and the team based in Astoria,” Gluesenkamp Perez wrote in a statement on X.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Tyler Jaggers poses for a photo with a group of Coast Guardsmen in this undated photo. (U.S. Coast Guard via X)
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Additional details about the mission have not yet been released.
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San Francisco, CA
Court document details attack on SF mayor’s bodyguard as Lurie responds to incident
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — For the first time since the attack on San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie’s bodyguard, one of the suspects was in court on Tuesday afternoon.
On Monday, District Attorney Brooke Jenkins filed charges against the man. Those charges include:
- Resisting an executive officer
- Assault with force to cause bodily injury
- Willful disobedience of a court order
- Unlawful lodging at the same location from a previous citation
Mayor Daniel Lurie said the incident won’t deter him from walking the streets of the city doing what he was doing moments before his bodyguard was attacked last week.
PREVIOUS STORY: SF mayor was ‘worried’ about 2 men on street, checked on them before bodyguard attack
Multiple angles covered a dramatic altercation between one of San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie’s security detail and individuals on the street.
“I think I need to be able to see it myself and not just stay cloistered up and not be out of the streets. I walked the streets this morning and had some great interactions and was able to help some people,” said Mayor Lurie.
We obtained the detention motion, which revealed specific details about the incident.
The document said Mayor Lurie was riding in a car northbound on Larking Street with two of his security detail. The mayor asked the driver to stop and got out of the car with one of the officers to approach four people who were blocking the road; “two were sitting on the sidewalk… one was actually sitting in the street.” The document says one of the individuals “was aggressive” and “stepped towards the mayor,” after he asked them to move out of the road a few times. This led the bodyguard to position himself between the mayor and the individual. The document states the individual “got very close” to the officer and threatened him and said, “Bruce Lee I’ll kick your a**!”
The officer, according to the document, proceeded to shove the individual away from him “with both hands to defend himself and to create distance,” causing the individual to fall backwards on the sidewalk.
The individual quickly stood up and “rushed at the officer.”
Multiple people in the area captured the altercation on video.
We asked the mayor if he would do anything different in the future.
INTERACTIVE: Take a look at the ABC7 Neighborhood Safety Tracker
“I’m not going to stop doing it. I will consult with our detail and our chief and make sure we can do this safely,” said Mayor Lurie.
San Francisco Supervisor Rafael Mandelman said he is glad the mayor sees the crisis on the streets up close.
“A lot of people will cross the street to get away from it hide from it. We don’t want our city hiding from this problem,” said Supervisor Mandelman.
Kevin Benedicto, vice president of the San Francisco police commission, said they will be looking into the incident.
“A number of commissioners are going to want to ask the chief about updates about the incident just to make sure we have all the policies and procedures in place,” said Benedicto.
The Individual who attacked the mayor’s bodyguard has been charged in the past for criminal threats in 2019 and 2020.
One of the arraignments is set for Wednesday at 9 a.m.
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Like sand through the hourglass, so too go the dumplings of the Denver Post’s annual food bracket.
Our competition started with 32 restaurants chosen by editors and readers specializing in dumplings and momos, a Tibetan and Nepali variation, in the Denver area. Two weeks later, only eight restaurants remain.
The next round of matchups in our Elite 8 competition to be decided by reader votes are:
Rocky Mountain Momo (9678 E. Arapahoe Road, Englewood) vs. ChoLon (multiple locations)
LingLon Dumpling House (2456 S. Colorado Blvd., Denver) vs. Star Kitchen (2917 W. Mississippi Ave., Denver)
Nana’s Dim Sum & Dumplings (multiple locations) vs. Dillon’s Dumpling House (3571 S. Tower Road, Unit G, Aurora)
Hop Alley (3500 Larimer St., Denver) vs. Momo Dumplings (caterer; momo-dumplings.com)
The most recent matchups recorded more than 460 entries. Our most popular head-to-head was Rocky Mountain Momo facing off against Yuan Wonton. Rocky Mountain Momo advances with 55% of 260 votes.
MAKfam, a Chinese restaurant with a Michelin nod for its value, faced a tough first-round opponent, The Empress Seafood, and scraped out a win. But this time, it wasn’t as lucky, losing to ChoLon, an upscale Asian fusion restaurant with multiple locations, by only five votes.
Make your picks below for who should advance to the next round. The online voting form will close at 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, March 15.
Subscribe to our new food newsletter, Stuffed, to get Denver food and drink news sent straight to your inbox.
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