Michael Meyden has been sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to the 2023 incident
Dave Killen/The Oregonian via AP
An Oregon father has been sentenced to two years in prison after admitting to drugging the drinks of his daughter’s friends, according to reports.
Micahel Meyden, 57, received his sentencing in Clackamas County Circuit Court on Monday, June 10, after he pleaded guilty to spiking the smoothies of three of his daughter’s friends with sedatives at a sleepover on Aug. 25, 2023, NBC News and The Oregonian reported. Meyden was charged with three felony counts of causing another person to ingest a controlled substance.
Per the outlets, Meyden gave the bizarre excuse in court of supplying the girls, who were 12 years old at the time, with spiked drinks because he “wanted them to go to bed” by 11:00 p.m. “I was overly fixated on them going to bed, yes, that is true,” he said in court, according to The Oregonian. “My whole life is destroyed. Everything that was important to me up until that point is gone.”
Dave Killen/The Oregonian via AP
An affidavit obtained by NBC News confirmed that the three girls tested positive for benzodiazepine, a depressant drug typically prescribed for anxiety and insomnia. Meyden’s daughter also tested positive for drugs, though he was not charged over this, his attorney Jeff Turnoy said, per the outlet.
Following the sentencing, Clackamas County District Attorney John Wentworth issued a statement to PEOPLE, saying, “Mr. Meyden’s actions are inexcusable and reckless and required a punishment commensurate with the crime. The impact this event has had on the child victims, their families, and our community has been enormous.”
“Mr. Meyden is incredibly remorseful and humbled by his conduct and choices. He understands appropriately that he hurt a lot of people and is very regretful of all that,” Turnoy said, per NBC News. “And his demeanor in court was authentic and genuine, showed nothing but sincerity in being apologetic and remorseful for his behavior.”
In a probable cause affidavit obtained by PEOPLE in March, police alleged Meyden to have laced smoothies of his daughter’s friends. He turned himself in to the police and pleaded not guilty to nine felony and misdemeanor charges, according to the Lake Oswego Police Department.
According to the affidavit, one of his daughter’s friends drank two cups of smoothies, a second girl drank one and a third “barely any,” allegedly causing Meyden to get “upset” with the girl.
The girl then “pretended to be asleep” as Meyden frequently checked on the other girls, who were sleeping in the basement. She eventually texted her mom and several other friends to be picked up as she told them what happened, per the affidavit. The mother told police the next morning.
Meyden’s sentencing on Monday included dismissals of three additional felony counts and three misdemeanor counts in a negotiated plea deal, authorities said, per NBC News. He also received three years of post-prison supervision.
