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Judge Says Sierra Can Skip California Rules
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Published: February 26, 2008
Updated: 02/25/2008 11:33 pm
TAMPA - A judge has allowed former "American Idol" finalist Jessica Sierra to remain in a California drug treatment program, despite what her attorney described as ridiculous bureaucracy in that state's probation office.
Florida officials allowed Sierra to go to California for a yearlong stint at an in-house drug treatment facility. She was supposed to transfer her Florida probation to California. West coast officials, however, don't want her to apply for their probation program while living in California, said Sierra's attorney, John Fitzgibbons. They want her to fly back to Florida, apply for California probation status, then return to California.
"It's almost nonsense," Fitzgibbons said after a court hearing Monday.
He told the judge that every progress report and all indications show Sierra is doing well in treatment at the Pasadena Recovery Center.
Circuit Judge Daniel Perry said he didn't see any reason to bring Sierra back and agreed that she seems to be doing well in treatment. He also noted there would be a question of where she would be allowed to stay if she did return to Florida.
Perry put her on "mail-in status," meaning she must check in with a Florida probation office by mail each month. She can complete her treatment program and then return to Florida. At that point, Perry will decide how to handle the remainder of her probation.
Outside the courthouse, Fitzgibbons applauded the judge's decision.
"We did not want her to come back and sit around in Tampa for a couple of weeks," he said. "This is where she's been getting in trouble."
Mail-in status is not uncommon when probationers live out of state under supervision of the court, Fitzgibbons said. In Sierra's case, a court order requires her to remain in treatment where she is under 24-hour supervision. If she violates any of the terms of probation, the facility would report her and she would return to court, Fitzgibbons said.
Sierra's father, Joseph Sierra, said he also prefers for her to remain in treatment rather than on her own in Tampa. He said he has spoken to her on the phone. She sounds good, is feeling good about herself, and is 90-days sober, he said.
Sierra was arrested in Ybor City on charges of disorderly conduct and resisting an officer without violence Dec. 1. The arrest came after her taping of the VH1 series "Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew" at the same facility where Sierra is staying.
The Ybor City arrest constituted a violation of Sierra's probation. Initially, her probation stemmed from an April incident at a Hyde Park nightclub and felony charges of throwing a glass at a patron and possessing cocaine.
Treatment at the Pasadena Recovery Center includes psychiatric care, medical care and 24-hour supervision. The facility agreed to pay the cost of her care, estimated at "six figures," Fitzgibbons has said.
Reporter Thomas W. Krause can be reached at (813) 259-7698 or tkrause@tampatrib.com.
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