Nick Lachey will reportedly attend anger management classes and Alcoholics Anonymous meetings to avoid being prosecuted for a confrontation with a paparazzo last year.
DailyMail.com reported Tuesday that Lachey was facing one count of battery.
Under California law, the district attorney can choose not to prosecute if an accused agrees to certain conditions.
Paparazzo Josephine Santos said she was sitting in her car outside Mastro’s Steakhouse in Beverly Hills on March 27, 2022 when she noticed Lachey with his wife Vanessa.
According to Santos, the 98 Degrees singer spotted her and approached her vehicle and punched the driver’s side window. When she lowered the window as he walked away, Lachey returned to the car, reached inside and tried to grab her phone.
The altercation was captured on video both by Santos and by another paparazzo who was nearby.
Santos filed a complaint with Beverly Hill Police on March 29. An officer who watched the video footage noted: “I did not observe [Lachey] actually make physical contact with [Santos].”
Santos told officers she suffered “felt pain on both sides of her neck and upper back due to jerking back and away from [Lachey].”
In a tweet the next day, Lachey wrote: “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. I clearly overreacted. I’ve been in this game long enough to know that their antics are sadly part off the deal. Stupid of me. Done.”
There has been no comment from Lachey or his reps.