Amber Weidner

Amber Rose Weidner told investigators some teenage girls who were partying at her Willamina house early on the morning of March 29 had started to look at her like she was some kind of horrible person, Deputy District Attorney Ladd Wiles said at her Friday plea and sentencing hearing in Yamhill County Circuit Court.

With that in mind, Weidner said she just decided to "become a horrible person," and proceeded to slash 16-year-old Stephanie Miranda Smith on the head with a butcher knife, Wiles told the court.

Weidner, 28, pleaded guilty to one count each of second-degree assault, menacing and delivering a controlled substance to a minor. In exchange, the prosecution dropped one count each of attempted murder, first-degree assault and endangering the welfare of a minor, three counts of furnishing alcohol to a minor and two counts of unlawful use of a weapon.

In an unrelated case, Weidner pleaded guilty to one count of fourth-degree assault in connection with her role in an attack on a fellow inmate several months later at the jail. That represented a reduction from the original charge of third-degree assault.

Judge Berkeley Smith, filling in, sentenced Weidner to 100 months in prison, or more than eight years, plus three years of post-prison supervision after her release back into the community.

That encompasses the 70-month minimum established under Measure 11 for second-degree assault. She will be eligible to take advantage of the full range of prison programs after completing the 70-month Measure 11 component.

Wiles gave this account:

Weidner gave a party for a group of teenage boys and girls, only one of whom was over the age of 16. Her own children, ages 6, 7 and 11, were present at the time.

She served alcohol and marijuana to the teens, then drank five shots of whiskey and smoked a gram of pot in the presence of both the teens and children. When the teens began to act aggressively, she encouraged them to take it out on the house and furnishings, damaging them.

At one point, she began to get upset with her 11-year-old daughter, and decided to take a walk to calm down. Weidner's daughter asked the teen to stay because her mother's behavior was frightening her.

When Weidner returned, the situation quickly escalated. She got the butcher knife, started waving it around and threatened to kill someone with it. She then struck Smith in the head with the knife, leaving a five-inch laceration that had to be sutured at the hospital.

Following the attack, Weidner took her two youngest children, placed them in a vehicle and drove off, leaving the injured girl behind with the other teens and her 11-year-old daughter.

They fled down the block, going door-to-door to seek help. They eventually got the attention of a resident who called 911 and tended to the bleeding girl as she waited for West Valley Fire District medical personnel to arrive.

Hours later, Weidner called the sheriff's office to turn herself in.

Wiles acknowledged that Weidner had experienced an extremely difficult childhood, but said that did not excuse her behavior.

Weidner's attorney, Mark Lawrence of McMinnville, told the court, "This is one of the most tragic cases I've ever seen, because it did not have to happen.

"Amber is on appropriate medications at the present time, and she's a different person. I am confident she is a different person."

Janmarie Dielschneider of McMinnville was originally appointed to represent Weidner, but the two had a disagreement, and Lawrence was named to replace her. She attended the hearing.

"During the time I have represented her, she has been remorseful and has taken responsibility for what happened," Lawrence said. "She's lost her children and she's going to prison for many years."

Lawrence said Weidner has "embraced" her sentence from the standpoint of trying to make changes while she is incarcerated. One of her goals is to continue her education, he told the court.

Weidner apologized to the victim and members of her family, many of whom were in the courtroom for the hearing. She said she did not intend to hurt anyone.

"What I did was wrong," Weidner said. "Have mercy on me and forgive me."

Smith did not attend. Neither did former jail inmate Katherine Marie Berghoffer, the victim of Weidner's jail attack.

In February, a jury convicted Weidner's husband, 35-year-old Corey Ian Weidner, of five counts of first-degree sexual abuse, two counts of first-degree sexual penetration, two counts of coercion and one count of first-degree criminal mistreatment in a case involving a minor female. He was sentenced to 48 years in prison.

The Weidners involved in the criminal cases are not related to newly elected state legislator Jim Weidner of Yamhill.