Despite appeals from victims and parents to impose a harsher sentence, a Lake Oswego father who drugged three 12-year-old girls at a sleepover last August received 24 months in prison after pleading guilty to three counts of causing another person to ingest a controlled substance. Michael Meyden entered the plea during a hearing at the Clackamas County courthouse Monday, June 10.
Along with two years in prison, Meyden was sentenced with three years of post prison supervision. Charges for application of a schedule-IV controlled substance and delivery of a controlled substance to a minor were dismissed. Meyden’s sentence could be reduced if he demonstrates good behavior in prison.
Last August, Meyden hosted a sleepover at his home and gave the three victims smoothies laced with the prescription drug Temazepam. One of the girls didn’t drink any of it and became concerned when a friend drank a double dose and passed out. She asked a friend to pick her up and parents subsequently picked up the other two girls as well. One of the victims could hardly walk the next day because she was so drowsy. All of the girls were treated at Randall Children’s Hospital.
An attorney representing the state of Oregon said Meyden lacked criminal history and that the investigation by the Lake Oswego Police Department (which conducted search warrants) found no evidence of his intent for drugging the girls.
“That’s why the case is charged what it is,” he said.
Meyden expressed apologies to the victims at the plea hearing.
“I want to make it up to you,” he said, adding: “I know sorry doesn’t cover this at all. I don’t know what to do.”
The victims, however, felt that any repentance or asks for forgiveness were wholly insufficient considering what he put them through and the risk he posed to their lives and safety. They asked for Meyden to receive a sentence of 54 months in prison.
“I can’t believe how low of a sentence you’re getting for this,” one victim said, later adding: “He does not deserve to get off this easy.”
Prior to Meyden’s statement, the victims recounted how the episode traumatized them. They said they don’t feel safe even in their own home, they no longer trust adults unless they know them well and they couldn’t sleep for days following the incident. A sentence less than the maximum, they said, would make them feel like the violations perpetrated against them meant little to the court.
A parent of a victim described Meyden as “the most despicable and vile predator.” They claimed this wasn’t the first time Meyden had drugged kids and that he had sex toys and some sort of wiring near the shower in his bathroom.
“There is not an adult here who doesn’t believe he had nefarious intentions,” a parent said.
Further, the victims claimed Meyden had made inappropriate remarks toward them and would touch them without their consent.
“My life has become a living hell because of you and your actions,” a victim said at the hearing, adding: “I want you to think of yourself as the monster that you are.”
Meyden stated that his intent for drugging the girls was to ensure they had a good night’s sleep in preparation for a big day of activities. He said at a previous sleepover he hosted, girls had attempted to go for a jog in the middle of the night and often did not go to sleep at the time he had wanted.
He essentially denied any sexual intent.
“As parents we all fail, but I failed in the most spectacular way possible. It was my fault and it was bad judgment,” he said.
“I wanted it to be a big kickoff event that everyone would brag about. People want to assume the worst. I never thought of that,” he said.
The plea agreement was negotiated by Meyden and prosecutors and Judge Ann Lininger decided to hold true to that agreement during the hearing. She said she felt Meyden’s expressions of shame and remorse were authentic, but that he had made “terrible and dangerous” choices and that she wanted to “get a measure of justice for you (the victims) and the families.”
“I do find the negotiated resolution is fair,” Lininger said.
Meyden said that he took 27 sleeping pills in a recent episode while living in an RV, but survived. He was handcuffed and taken into custody following the hearing.
“My whole life is destroyed. Everything important to me is gone,” he said.
A parent of a victim said they would track Meyden wherever he goes following his sentence and alert those nearby of what he is capable of.
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