The daughter of a California dermatologist accused of poisoning her husband’s tea with a “Drano-like” substance told a school counselor she feared her mother would murder her if she didn’t lie about it in court, according to court filings.
Dr. Yue “Emily” Yu’s 11-year-old daughter, who appeared distressed and tearful, told her school counselor in a private session last November that she felt that if she didn’t lie about what occurred, she would anger her mother, according to court filings.
When the therapist questioned why, the girl responded, “Because what if she does to me what she did to my father?”
The counselor then said, “Are you afraid your mother will kill you?”
“Yes,” the girl said, according to court filings.
The charges arose as Yu and her husband, Dr. Jack Chen, were going through a divorce and custody fight.
In court records, he and his co-counsel stated that Yu “categorically denies having any violative communications with the children, much less coaching them about facts related to her defense in the criminal matter.”
“Over the past year of Mother’s parenting time, there has not been a scintilla of evidence that Mother, or Grandmother, attempted improper communications with the children,” according to the report. “The monitors have not noticed anything exceptional. Furthermore, the research shows that the children like their parenting time with Mother, and it is clear that a link exists between the children and Mother.”
As previously reported by Law&Crime, Chen claimed his wife tried to kill him by poisoning his hot lemonade with drain cleaner in March and April 2022, after he noticed a chemical taste in it.
His doubts were increased after being diagnosed with two stomach ulcers, gastritis, and esophageal inflammation. He installed a nanny cam in the kitchen, which captured her three times taking drain cleaner from beneath the sink and pouring it into his drink, according to court filings.
Yu was detained after Chen reported the assaults to the Irvine Police Department on August 4, 2022. Prosecutors charged her with three felony counts of poisoning and one felony offense of domestic assault with corporal injury. Yu was released from jail after posting a $30,000 bond, and he will face a criminal court in May.
Chen claimed Yu and her mother, the children’s grandmother, had verbally and physically abused their children and him for years, according to court filings.
According to court filings, the school therapist stated that when the daughter arrived for her appointment, she described her mother typing lines for her on her phone. In one claimed incident involving the drain cleaner used in the residence, the daughter “acted out herself and her mom by changing voices,” according to the records.
The daughter stated that Yu would ask her, “And why did we have Drain-O in the house in the summer?”
The daughter was meant to add, “Because we had ants and dad wouldn’t buy ant traps,” according to court filings.
Later, the therapist wrote, that the daughter stated that her mother grabbed her arm, which hurt. She said she was afraid of making her mother upset and didn’t know what to do when asked to lie.
The daughter stated that while she lived at home with her mother, Yu would keep her up late and wake her up early to study for tests and practice the piano.
According to court documents, she also alleged that her mother would occasionally detach the leg of a baby chair, which she used to “beat” her with.
Her maternal grandmother instructed her and her younger brother to come over so she could smack them with the chair leg, according to records.
“If they ran, grandma would chase and beat them,” the documents stated.