Dr. Dre has been accused of harassment by the marriage counsellor who mediated for the rapper and his ex-wife during their costly divorce in 2021.
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Dr. Charles J. Sophy, a psychiatrist and the former medical director for the County of Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services, filed a lawsuit in LA alleging rapper and record exec Dr. Dre of a “malicious campaign of harassment” during the dispute mediation between him and ex-wife Nicole Young.
After 24 years of marriage, Young filed for divorce from Dre (real name Andre Young), citing abusive behaviour. Dre has denied these allegations. Just over a year later, the divorce was finalised in December 2021 with a $100 million (€91.5 million) settlement.
Sophy, who has worked with multiple famous clients such as Paris Hilton, Michael Jackson and Mel B, was employed by the couple in 2018 in a joint psychotherapist-patient relationship to provide therapy and marriage counselling. He continued to work with the couple through the divorce proceedings.
“Rather than treating the mediation process as an opportunity for healing, [Dre] decided to take his frustrations about the mediation out on Dr. Sophy — frustrations that manifested themselves in the form of a nearly year-long sustained campaign of late-night texts, threats of intimidation and violence, and homophobic rhetoric,” Sophy’s lawyer wrote in the filing.
Sophy claims that Dre started texting him in 2023, months after they had ended contact, with threatening messages. Dre allegedly wrote that: “You’re going to have to pay for that”, in reference to accusations that Sophy had convinced someone to speak negatively about Dre to the media.
In response to Dre’s accusations over the doctor’s “ethical breaches”, Sophy has said there is “no truth behind these baseless and far-fetched accusations”. While Sophy had originally tried to just ignore the barrage of messages, he began to fear for his safety.
Sophy’s lawsuit against the rapper and producer seeking compensatory damages of at least $10 million (€91.5 million).
“Dr Sophy lives in constant fear,” the lawsuit reads. “The egregiousness of Young’s persistent harassing behaviour has compelled Dr Sophy to seek redress and protection. Nobody should have to live in constant fear. But Dr Sophy does – ironically for no other reason than he tried to help Young to resolve his own family’s conflict.”
Dre’s attorney has said Sophy’s lawsuit is in response to Dre’s confidential complaint to have the doctor’s medical licence revoked.
“In gross violation of all applicable standards of care, Dr Sophy inserted himself into a contentious divorce while he simultaneously ‘treated’ not only Mr and Mrs Young, but their children,” Howard King, Dre’s lawyer wrote. “He was terminated when it was revealed that he was encouraging one of their children to take sides against Mr Young, even encouraging his son to go to the press with false allegations in order to force a financial settlement that he recommended. Dr Sophy has consistently rebuffed Medical Board attempts to investigate these claims, but has now filed this desperate suit while the noose of the Medical Board is tightening.”
