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Donley stabbed Liam 32 times during psychotic episode
He also stabbed a passer-by who tried to intervene
He says he'll never have such a close friend again and hopes to warn others of the dangers of drugs
Second victim: I forgive Donley
Police warn of dangers of drug
Victim's family tell of devastation
A musician who killed his best friend in a frenzied drug-induced psychotic attack has been jailed for six years and eight months.
Samuel Frederick Donley, 20, pictured, was so affected by the LSD-type drug he and Liam Miller had taken that he believed he was stabbing a skull to get out of a dream world, said Richard Wright QC, prosecuting at Leeds Crown Court on Friday.
He was actually stabbing 20-year-old Liam, of Terrington near Malton, 32 times with a kitchen knife. He also stabbed 60-year-old passer-by Theophilos Theophilou who tried to intervene as Liam lay fatally injured by the gate of Donley's family home in Hamilton Drive West, Acomb.
But Mr Theophilou, who had been on his way home from a gym session at Energise, and a neighbour managed to get Donley back into his house and stay there until police arrived
The circumstances of this case plainly demonstrate just how potent and dangerous the consumption of this and other similar hallucinogenic drugs can be," said Mr Wright.
In a letter to the judge, Donley wrote: "I will never again have such a close friend who meant so much to me as he did. I only hope I can take what has happened to Liam and use it to teach people about the dangers of drugs in future and to stop this from ever happening again."
He wrote that if he had known at the time what he now knew about the drug, he would never had taken it.
Donley, of Hamilton Drive West, Acomb, pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Liam and wounding Mr Theophilou.
Liam was found suffering from multiple stab wounds in York on the night of Monday, July 27. Donley was arrested at the scene.
The Recorder of Leeds Peter Collier QC told him: "You may have hoped for a good high, but you knew there was a possibility of not only a bad trip, but a very bad trip. Nevertheless, you went ahead and you took the drug, an illegal act with such dreadful consequences."
Mr Theophilou told the judge he was haunted by wondering whether he could have saved the deceased man had he arrived earlier, though police had assured him he couldn't.
About Donley, he said in a victim impact statement: "For my part, I forgive him for attacking me in his drug crazed frenzy." He said he had made a full physical recovery.
Detective Inspector Mark Pearson of North Yorkshire Police's major crime unit, said outside court: "What started out as two best friends enjoying a night together, has ended in catastrophic circumstances" and he praised the dignity of Liam's family during the investigation.
"If ever there was a stark reminder of the dangers in taking drugs - this is it."
The policeman praised the actions of Mr Theophilou and two neighbours: "They put their own life in danger and are to be commended for their quick thinking which potentially saved further tragedy," he said.
For Donley, Nicholas Lumley QC said both men came from "ordinary" families. "There are no winners here, only losers," he said.
Donley had never been in trouble with the police. While remanded, he had written music for the prison radio service. He accepted he had to be punished.
Donley and guitarist Liam both played in the same band Nocebo, and had performed together on July 24, three days before Liam's death on July 27.
Donley was originally charged with murder. The charge was changed to manslaughter after the prosecution consulted with psychiatrists and toxicologists about the effects of the drug. They told them Donley couldn't have known what he was doing, so the prosecution couldn't prove that he had intended to kill Liam.
Liam, from Terrington in Ryedale, was a former pupil at Malton School and studied music and art at York College before moving to university in Liverpool to study graphic design. He was a talented guitarist, and played in a local band called Nocebo.
Following his death, friends and family launched a charity called L.I.A.M (Laughter, inspiration, art, music), to help underprivileged young people.
Thousands of pounds in donations have already been received.
Liam's family: "This is the hardest and most painful experience any human being will have to go through."
A statement from the Miller family said:
"It is impossible to find the words to describe how we feel about Liam's death. He is the first thing we think about in the morning and the last thing we think about at night.
"It is hard to accept that he had his whole life in front of him. It was such a waste of life and he didn't deserve what happened. Without any doubt, this is the hardest and most painful experience any human being will have to go through.
"It is very difficult for us to put into words or express how we feel or what we wanted the outcome to be. We know that nothing can ever bring him back. Nothing is going to make up for the suffering our family and friends have had to deal with over the last few months."
How events unfolded
Richard Wright, prosecuting, told Leeds Crown Court Samuel Donley and Liam Miller were alone at Donley's house for the weekend because Donley's parents were away at the coast.
They performed together on Friday July 24 at a social club and on Saturday July 25 went to a party.
On Monday July 27, they told friends via social media they intended to experiment with an LSD-type hallucinogenic Class A drug 25i-NBOMe, also known as N-bomb.
Both men took it and when they didn't feel any immediate effects, took some more. At 10.03, Liam messaged a friend via Facebook: "My mate is bad, what do I do?"
The friend wrote back telling him to remind Donley he had taken LSD and the effects would soon be over. Liam read the message but never replied.
"Shortly afterwards, Donley attacked and killed him," said the barrister.
Liam tried to escape but only reached the gate at the end of the driveway. As he lay there, Mr Theophilou saw Donley come out of the house.
He appeared to be confused and wasn't responding to anything including Mr Theophilou's calls for him to call an ambulance.
Then he went back into the house, came out with a knife and started attacking Liam again before chasing Mr Theophilou up the street.
Hampered by his gym bag and umbrella, Mr Theophilou realised he couldn't outrun him and tried to disarm him as Donley stabbed him on the head and arm.
"The defendant appeared to Mr Theophilou to be aggressive with his face screwed up. His eyes were open but they were glazed," said Mr Wright.
A neighbour of the Donleys, who had seen what happened from his house, came out to help, shouted at Donley to get back to his house and Mr Theophilou sheltered in a nearby garden until police arrived.
Mr Hinchcliffe kept Donley in the musician's house while he got towels and other equipment so he and his partner could help Liam.
"Donley was screaming and running up and down the stairs and then began to stab himself in the throat with the knife he was still carrying," said Mr Wright.
Police had to taser Donley twice and he stabbed himself again before they were able to handcuff him. He was taken to Leeds General Infirmary before being released into police custody.
Paramedics tended to Liam at the scene, but were unable to save him because of the severity of his injuries.
The drug
The first reports of the synthetic drug 25i-NBOMe were in 2003. It causes paranoia, violence, agitation, seizures and hallucinogens and is also known as 25i, INB-MeO N-bomb, Smiles, Mr Happy, Solaris and Cimbi-5. It was declared illegal in 2010 and in June 2013 was declared a Class A drug, the same category as heroin, LSD and cocaine.
Detective Inspector Mark Pearson said: "Members of the public need to be aware of the potential dangers of this drug. As with all drugs, people may not be aware of what they are taking and the effects it may have.
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"This case must surely be a wake-up call to everyone who experiments with illegal drugs. It is simply not worth putting your life or anyone else's in such grave danger."
