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Addict Expert Pinsky Offers To Help Sierra

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By THOMAS W. KRAUSE, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 13, 2007

Updated: 12/13/2007 12:13 am

TAMPA - Celebrity addictions specialist Drew Pinsky - famous for preppy attire, wire-rimmed glasses and scholarly answers to difficult questions - said he is willing to come to Tampa to help fallen "American Idol" contestant Jessica Sierra.

Before her Dec. 1 arrest, Sierra had completed taping for a new VH1 show, "Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew." The reality show is expected to air in January.

Sierra has remained jailed since her arrest. Her next court date is Dec. 20.

"I have made myself available," Pinsky told the Tribune on Wednesday. "If I can get her to a therapeutic environment, court-ordered, it would be a good thing for her."

Pinsky said he is discussing with Sierra's attorney, John Fitzgibbons, whether his help is necessary. "I haven't got plane tickets yet."

According to police reports, Sierra, 22, was kicked out of Full Moon Saloon in Ybor City and then harassed patrons on the street. When police intervened, she became combative, they said. In a police car, reports state, she vomited, cursed, yelled racial slurs and offered a sexual favor to an officer if he would release her.

The arrest, police said, violated Sierra's probation for an April incident at Hyde Park Cafe. Sierra was charged with cocaine possession and felony battery. Police said she hit a man with a bar glass. At first, Sierra said the man spit on her. She later said she might have mistaken him for someone else. Sierra pleaded no contest.

Pinsky said Sierra was "courageous" as a patient while taping the reality show. Addictions are difficult to overcome, he said. "Sometimes, you have to re-treat and re-treat and re-treat."

Pinsky said the perception of Sierra, and of a reality show based on rehabilitation, will change when people see the show.

Sierra, he said, was "on the street" doing drugs before seeking treatment. He said she made some "very poor choices," including a video he described as symptomatic of her addiction. He and Sierra discuss the video during therapy on the reality show. TMZ.com reports a major porn company is preparing to distribute a Sierra "sex tape."

Pinsky made a name for himself as host of the radio call-in show "Loveline," which became an MTV show. He is a medical correspondent for "The Today Show" and "The View." In Pasadena, Calif., he heads the chemical dependency department at Las Encinas Hospital and runs a private recovery program.

Reporter Thomas W. Krause can be reached at (813) 259-7698 or tkrause@tampatrib .com.

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