People do crazy things all the time while high. Most people who have smoked pot have experienced a bad trip at least once, usually experiencing feelings of paranoia or anxiety. But some people react so poorly that they go into what’s called cannabis-induced psychosis, where they experience a complete breakdown of reality. In the case of one California woman, the results of a bad trip led her to commit the unthinkable.

For Bryn Spejcher, smoking pot was not something she had any experience with. Before the fateful day of May 28, 2018, she had little to no experience with cannabis. She had been dating her boyfriend, Chad O’Melia, for only a few weeks before they decided to smoke a bit of marijuana together in his apartment in Thousand Oaks. After the first hit didn’t do much to her, O’Melia encouraged her to take another despite her desire to stop.

Her reaction was nothing short of disastrous–she immediately ran to the bathroom, overcome with panic. She then left the bathroom and, in a state of cannabis-induced psychosis, stabbed O’Melia 108 times. She even stabbed her own dog during her psychosis. She was found by law enforcement sobbing over O’Melia’s body with the knife still in her hand. Tragically, she then stabbed herself in the throat when the police tried to disarm her.

As sensational as the act of killing her boyfriend was, her trial was just as shocking. Experts testified for the defense stating that the bong hit sent Spejcher into a state of psychosis. Her lawyers argued that she had become “involuntarily intoxicated,” which is an important distinction. In California law, a person is seen as responsible for their actions while drunk or high unless involuntarily intoxicated. Because her intoxications was deemed involuntary, jurors found Spejcher guilty of involuntary manslaughter instead of murder.

David Worley, the Ventura County Superior Court Judge overseeing the case, ruled that Spejcher had no control over her actions after the second bong hit. He sentenced her to two years’ probation and ordered her to perform 100 hours of community service as punishment.

While the situation is no doubt tragic on all sides, the levity of the sentence was shocking to many who had been following the case. Some people were outraged over the lenient sentence, while others pointed out the dangers of high-potency marijuana.

While the sentence is no doubt lenient for an act of homicide, it is in line with traditional sentencing guidelines for involuntary manslaughter. During sentencing, Specjher cried as she apologized to the victim’s father, Sean O’Melia. “My actions have ripped your family apart,” she said. “I am broken and aching inside. I hurt that you’ll never see Chad again.”

All in all, it’s a heartbreaking case and an extreme example of what can happen when a trip goes wrong. Our hearts go out to O’Melia’s family in such a tragic time.