On May 28, 2018, 26-year-old Chad O’Melia was fatally stabbed at his home in Thousand Oaks. He was stabbed over 100 times.
Thousand Oaks, California
The woman who killed him, Bryn Spejcher, had smoked cannabis with the victim, and the judge said she had a “psychotic break from reality” from using the drug when she was sentenced to two years of probation and 100 hours of community service. A jury found her guilty of involuntary manslaughter.
The Morning of the Tragedy
Sean O’Melia, Chad’s father, recalls the morning he received the devastating news: "The morning of May 28th, at about 10.15 in the morning, two sheriff's deputies came to my home. He said to me, 'I'm sorry to have to tell you, but your son has been stabbed'. And I said, 'Okay, well, I need to know where he is. I need to go and see him. What hospital is he at?' I did not think he was dead."
"And then they told me. They said, 'I'm sorry, sir, we got to tell you that he's deceased'. "And I just....I collapsed, I fell to my knees. I was in disbelief," he said.
Read also: The Life of Chad Everett Harris
Investigation and Crime Scene
After releasing the name of the deceased, 26-year-old Chad O’Melia, the department, which is still investigating the homicide, declined to give the nature of the man’s death or name a suspect. O’Melia’s two roommates were reportedly home at the time of the incident. One of O’Melia’s roommates had called 911.
Officials believe the attacks took place inside the unit and were confined to O’Melia and the woman. Kuredjian said crime scene investigators were able to collect substantial evidence inside the condo.
The Accused: Bryn Spejcher
After a chance encounter at a local dog park, Chad and Bryn began a casual dating relationship. Spejcher allegedly told Ventura County Sheriff’s Office (VCSO) detectives that she had attacked O’Melia because she experienced a marijuana-induced vision, and at turns, retaliated both out of rage and because she claimed to believe that killing him would prevent her own death. Spejcher also reportedly stabbed her support dog, a husky named Arya, according to the VCSO.
“She described voices telling her to ‘keep fighting, keep doing what you’re doing,’” then-Sgt. Steven Jenkins said.
Test results found no drugs present in Spejcher’s system beyond THC, experts testified at a 2019 preliminary hearing.
Read also: "Married to Evil": Chad Graves
Bryn Spejcher in court with her attorney in 2018.
The Trial and Sentencing
In the five years since the homicide, Sean O’Melia has been a constant presence in court. O’Melia is worried that the district attorney may reduce the original murder charge to something like involuntary manslaughter or that some deal will be offered to Spejcher.
Chad O'Melia's father, Bryn Spejcher's attorney speak following the verdict
The woman who killed him, Bryn Spejcher, had smoked cannabis with the victim, and the judge said she had a “psychotic break from reality” from using the drug, when she was sentenced this week to two years of probation and 100 hours of community service - after a jury found her guilty of involuntary manslaughter.
Sean O’Melia says the woman who killed his son should not have been spared prison time. "Because she was in a psychotic episode, therefore, she couldn't have known it was going to happen or what she was doing....so what? There are people that drink alcohol and get behind the wheel of a car, and they're in prison right now because they killed somebody doing that. And this is way more heinous an act. There are people to get 100 hours for not paying their traffic tickets," he said.
"So I don't understand why a person can all of a sudden smoke marijuana and not be held accountable for their actions. That doesn't make sense and legally doesn't make sense. He says the judge failed his son, and the grief of losing Chad and going through the court case has been agony."
Read also: Vallow-Daybell Trial: Key Evidence
Remembering Chad O'Melia
Sporty, well-liked, friendly and welcoming - that’s how Chad O’Melia’s father Sean remembers him. "There's nobody that I know that ever met him that didn't like him. And I will tell you this honestly - he loved his country, Ireland. He loved his Irish heritage," Sean O'Melia told KCLU on Wednesday in an exclusive interview.
"He absolutely loved, loved sports. And I think he loved it more because of the relationships and the team environment and the friends that he developed through it. So he was just a very open, social, welcoming person.
Chad was someone who could talk to anyone,” O’Melia said. “He would find that person at a gathering who was alone and go talk to them and make them feel included. He was hardworking, dedicated, a fitness buff and a team player-all traits likely instilled at a young age with the help of Little League, AYSO and youth football, his father said.
Chad O’Melia could often be seen wearing his rosary. He’d been baptized, celebrated first communion and had been confirmed in the Catholic Church, but there were some holy sacraments in which he never partook. Still, his father, Sean O’Melia, believes his son is in heaven, where they will be reunited someday.
Popular articles:
tags: #Chad
