Dawn Holland was already fired by the Betty Ford Center for talking about her melee with Lindsay Lohan to the media. Might criminal charges be next?
She is accused of selling documents and an interview about her fight with Lindsay to celebrity gossip site TMZ for at least $10,000 before she got fired.
For most people, this would be shady behavior, but legally a non-issue. The fact that she's a health care worker could land her in big trouble, though.
DAWN BREAKING: Did Holland violate privacy laws?
The cash-for-comment scandal could be considered a violation of HIPAA laws and lead to criminal probes into both Dawn Holland and TMZ.
In an (unpaid) interview with Radar Online, Holland said she had not yet decided whether she would legally challenge her sudden dismissal.
“I’m not quite sure [what my next step is]... I’m working on that,” she said. As for what TMZ paid her? “I’m not going to say (how much).”
Asked if “it was somewhere between $10,000 and $15,000,” she “If I give you a ballpark then... well, then... yeah (it was between that).”
In a statement released Tuesday, Betty Ford said: “Regrettably, on December 21, one of our employees violated strict confidentiality guidelines and laws by publicly identifying patients in a media interview and by disclosing a privileged document.”
"The employee has been terminated by the Betty Ford Center.”
Holland was fired in the aftermath of the confrontation with Lohan, who returned to her sober house after her curfew back on December 12.
The two parties' accounts of what transpired differ greatly, but it's clear that the altercation was physical and that the police were notified.
TMZ said Holland spoke “because the story was already out there, Lindsay was publicly trashing her and Betty Ford did not have her back.”
It will be interesting to see how this plays out in terms of the battery allegation against Lindsay and the accusations against Holland.
As the Lohan Saga Turns ...