Nick Lachey has been ordered to attend anger management classes and Alcoholics Anonymous meetings after accosting a paparazzo.
Police records obtained by Page Six show the 98 Degrees member was charged with assault and battery against Jody Santos in March 2022 but did not receive any formal punishment until the photographer hassled the Beverly Hills Police Department for months.
“Mr. Lachey has not been charged with misdemeanor assault and battery. Instead he is participating in LADA’s Prefiling Diversion program, which was established in 2017,” the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office told us in a statement Tuesday.
“As part of these conditions he must participate in anger management classes and attend Alcoholic Anonymous meetings. Successful completion of the Prefiling Diversion Program will result in no criminal charges being filed.”
Lachey’s rep didn’t immediately return Page Six’s request for comment.
On March 27, 2022, Santos spotted Lachey, 49, and his wife, Vanessa Lachey, leaving Mastro’s restaurant in Beverly Hills.
The “What’s Left of Me” singer spotted the paparazzo sitting in her car across the street taking photos and went ballistic, running over to her car and trying to grab her camera and phone through the passenger window.
“In all my years of photographing celebrities, no one has ever tried to hit me,” Santos told the DailyMail, who was the first one to report the news. She added that she tried to roll up the window “as fast” as she “could.”
“He then started punching the window. I thought he was going to break his hand; that’s how hard he was hitting the glass,” she recalled.
“I am surprised he didn’t shatter the window.”
Santos said she has “no doubt” Nick would have “knocked” her out had she not raised her window in a timely fashion. However, she claims he only received a punishment after she accused the district attorney’s office of providing him with “preferential treatment.”
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“Finally they called me back and said, ‘No, he’s not getting preferential treatment’ and explained that they have a program with the courts where they don’t let misdemeanors just walk; they have to attend anger management classes and AA meetings,” she shared.
The day after the altercation, the “Give Me Just One Night” crooner claimed he had been “harassed” by the photographer but admitted he “overreacted.”
“Last night, after enjoying a great dinner with my wife and our dear friend, the paparazzi harassed us as we walked back to our hotel,” he tweeted at the time.
“I clearly overreacted. I’ve been in this game long enough to know that their antics are sadly part of the deal. Stupid of me. Done.”
