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Judge Gives Ex-American Idol Contestant Sierra Rehab

Tribune photo by JULIE BUSCH

Former "American Idol" contestant Jessica Sierra spent more than a month in jail before today's court appearance.

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By THOMAS W.  KRAUSE | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 7, 2008

Updated: 01/07/2008 12:42 pm

TAMPA - The Hillsborough County courthouse hosted its own version of a reality program this morning, complete with a gruff judge, big-name lawyers, a dramatically tearful would-be starlet and a celebrity doctor.

At the end of the half-hour hearing, Circuit Judge Daniel Perry agreed to send former "American Idol" finalist Jessica Sierra to a yearlong stint at an in-house drug treatment facility in California, followed by three years of probation. He was not quiet about his reservations, however.

   Jessica Sierra

"I don't want this to be some sort of stepping stone for her to have some sort of a career as a recovering addict," Perry said. "I don't want her giving interviews. I don't want her on TV. I don't want anybody glamorizing the fact that she's a drug addict. I'm over that."

Sierra has been jailed since a Dec. 1 incident in Ybor City, where she was arrested for misdemeanor disorderly intoxication and resisting an officer without violence. The arrest followed Sierra's taping of the VH1 reality series "Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew," which is scheduled to premiere at 10 p.m. Thursday.

The charges also constituted a violation of Sierra's probation. She was arrested in a separate incident this year at a Hyde Park nightclub, where she was charged with a felony for throwing a glass at another patron.

Sierra will remain jailed until she boards a plane for California.

In court, Perry made sure Sierra understood that in-house treatment is her final chance. If she violates probation again, she will head to prison.

"I tell you what," Perry said in a raised voice. "When you come back here, you will not get treated different from anybody else. You will be going to prison, and if you don't think I will, give me a try."

Sierra nodded as she tried awkwardly to wipe away tears with cuffed hands.

Appearing in court on Sierra's behalf was Drew Pinsky, host of the VH1 show and a celebrity himself after years of hosting the radio show "Loveline" as well as making countless TV appearances. Pinsky told the judge he provided Sierra with treatment for three weeks as they taped the show.

Pinsky acknowledged that he could not provide Sierra with the long-term care she needs for recovery but said she has been a willing participant in rehabilitation.

"She needs at least a year," Pinsky said. "My opinion is, after that year, her prognosis would be reasonably good."

Treatment at the Pasadena Recovery Center in California would include psychiatric care, medical care and 24-hour supervision.

Perry said he was concerned about the center because its Web site boasts that it was featured in the 2006 season of the television program "Secret Lives of Women." The center also is where "Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew" was taped.

John Fitzgibbons, Sierra's lawyer, told Perry that Sierra has no money to pay for in-house treatment at a Florida program with Pasadena Recovery Center's reputation.

"This is an incredible facility," he said. "They are footing the bill for her."

Fitzgibbons said he expects the treatment to cost "six figures."

Michael Bloom, co-founder of Pasadena Recovery Center, confirmed in a phone interview with The Tampa Tribune that his operation would pay for Sierra's treatment. He also said Sierra may have a familiar doctor when she arrives. Pinsky, Bloom said, does not traditionally treat patients at the center because he has a private practice.

"But in Jessica's case," Bloom said, "we want him involved."

Outside the courthouse this morning, Sierra's family said they want her to receive the best possible help and they fully support her. Many family members said they hoped Sierra had reached rock bottom and would begin her recovery in earnest.

"She's in jail. She's pregnant," said her father, Joseph Sierra. "What else can go wrong?"

Pinsky said the Pasadena Recovery Center is strictly a chemical dependency facility. Sierra's pregnancy will be handed by other doctors utilizing county programs.

Sierra's older sister, Jennifer, 23, said she never thinks of her sister as a celebrity and is concerned about Jessica's search for fame and the media attention that has followed her problems.

"It's crazy for me to see because my sister, in my eyes, is just another person," Jennifer Sierra said.

Betty Sierra said her granddaughter's addictions stem from a medical condition and she needs help.

"I have a heart condition," she said. "If I don't get treatment, I could die. If she doesn't get treatment, she'll die."

Jessica Sierra's mother, Christine Laura Sierra, died of a drug overdose after years of drug and prostitution arrests.

Since 2005, when Sierra was a top-10 finalist on the show, her life has deteriorated.

After the arrest of a man stalking Sierra in 2006, Sierra had her own run-ins with the law.

In April, Sierra was charged with felony battery at Hyde Park Cafe. Police said she used a bar glass to hit a man. While being booked, jailers found cocaine in her purse and added drug charges.

Sierra initially said she threw the glass because the man spat on her. She later said she might have mistaken him for someone else. Sierra pleaded no contest.

In June, a car rental company filed a complaint that said Sierra failed to return a car.

Then, on Dec. 1, Sierra was kicked out of Full Moon Saloon in Ybor City and began to harass patrons on the street. When police intervened, she became combative. 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. She was charged with disorderly intoxication and obstructing an officer without violence.

While in jail, a distributor of pornographic videos started a Web site offering the sale of a Jessica Sierra sex tape. A free trailer for the tape shows Sierra cursing and yelling as someone off camera asks her questions about other contestants on "American Idol," including 2005 winner Carrie Underwood.

This morning, the judge found her guilty of the two misdemeanor charges and sentenced her to time served.

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

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