An Oregon man, aged 57, who was found guilty of drugging a group of preteen girls by serving them fruit smoothies spiked with a prescription sedative during a sleepover party, is now facing a lawsuit from one of the victims. The lawsuit was filed earlier this week in Clackamas County Circuit Court, seeking $2.4 million in damages from the man, Michael Meyden, and his former wife, Yukiko Meyden. The charges include intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, and battery.
Earlier this year, Meyden pleaded guilty to three felony counts of causing another person to ingest a controlled substance. In June, Clackamas County Circuit Court Judge Ann Lininger sentenced Meyden to two years in a state correctional facility.
The incident occurred on August 23, 2023, at Meyden’s residence in Lake Oswego, Oregon. According to the lawsuit, Meyden, through his daughter, invited the plaintiff and two other minor children to his home for a sleepover. During the event, Meyden prepared mango smoothies for the children and insisted they drink them.
Meyden later confessed to adding the sedative Temazepam, a Schedule IV controlled substance typically used to treat insomnia, to the smoothies. Shortly after consuming the drinks, the plaintiff and two other children became drowsy and fell asleep. One child, who had not consumed the smoothie, noticed Meyden behaving strangely and observed that one of the other children appeared very unwell.
The child who did not consume the spiked smoothie contacted her parents and family friends repeatedly, asking to be picked up. After being taken home by a family friend, her parents returned to Meyden’s home to collect the other two children and took them to the hospital. Both girls tested positive for benzodiazepine. One of the girls reported feeling “woozy, hot, and clumsy” before falling into a deep sleep after drinking the smoothie.
The same child also reported to the police that she saw Meyden enter the basement where they were sleeping. She pretended to be asleep and observed Meyden moving the child sleeping next to her. Meyden returned a second time and checked the same child’s breathing by placing his finger under her nose and waving his hand in front of her face to ensure she was deeply asleep.
During Meyden’s sentencing hearing, one of the victims expressed her anguish, stating, “My life has become a living hell because of you and your actions. I want you to think of yourself as the monster you are.” Another victim called him a “horrible” and “rotten old man who did this to children.”