Dr. Drew Stands By His Lindsay Lohan Arrest Comments: ‘It Would Kill Me, But I Would Do It’

Dr. Drew Pinksy is standing by his comments that if Lindsay Lohan were his daughter, he’d set her up to get arrested as a means of getting her into rehab.

“When I was asked as a father, if I were in Michael Lohan’s position, what would I do to help my daughter, I am clear that I would go to any lengths to get her to and retain her in treatment. Bringing legal consequences to bear is often the only alternative,” Dr. Drew wrote in a letter on the Huffington Post Web site on Saturday. “It would kill me but I would do it.”

In an interview published on Radar Online’s Web site last Friday, Dr. Drew, the doctor behind “Celebrity Rehab” and radio’s “Love Line” first suggested he would take drastic measures to help out Lindsay if she were his child.

“If she were my daughter, I would pack her car full with illegal substances, send her on her way, call the police, and make sure she was arrested. I would make sure she was not allowed to get out of jail,” he told the Web site. “I would then go to the judge and make sure she was ordered to a minimum of a three year sobriety program.”

While Dr. Drew maintained his position in his letter on Saturday, he did concede that his stance may have been affected by the stress that comes with an interview.

“Perhaps I surrendered my equanimity to a flight of journalistic excess by even suggesting that he plant drugs. But if I was in his position and I knew she was addicted (which I personally do not) and all else had failed, I suspect I would contemplate even this as a last resort,” he wrote.

Dr. Drew went on to clarify that the idea he shared to Radar last week wasn’t a usual tactic those in the drug and alcohol treatment world usually take.

“Let me be clear I am not suggesting this as a routine intervention but we frequently enlist law enforcement when we have exhausted other measures,” he continued. “To those of you who reacted in outrage when I made this suggestion, I will remind you that millions of you watched the first season of Sober House when as difficult as it was for her, the house manager, Jennifer Gimenez, summoned police to contain Steven Adler. We then advocated for long-term treatment as an alternative to imprisonment; an enlightened judge granted this, and today as a result Steven is sober and thriving. Were it not for this intervention, as miserable as it was for Steven, I believe he would have soon succumbed to his addiction.”

He went on to note that he recently gave his own children a stern warning should they ever become addicts.

“I explained to them that as a result of my experience treating addicts, I wanted them to know that I would go to any lengths to combat this disease should one of them ever fall victim,” he added. “Family members have to be willing to go to any lengths and unfortunately this often means bringing about circumstances that restrict that individual’s freedom. As the parent of an addict you must be prepared to bring consequences to bear. I am talking about painful interventions that save lives.”

Copyright © 2024 by NBC Universal, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

This material may not be republished, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Read More

‘90 Day Fiancé: Love In Paradise’ Returning With Dramatic & Wild New Season