Wednesday, March 2nd, 2011

The New York Post reports that a second couple has come forward with a lawsuit against an Upper West Side marriage counselor alleging that he attempted to destroy their marriage.  Jeffrey Mechanic, a social worker, has been accused by Sandro Romano, 41, and Christine Pappas, 37, of trying to destroy their marriage, not save it, with unorthodox practices that allegedly include belittling patients and encouraging them to have affairs.  They seek $5 million for malpractice.  The suit is the second in less than a year against Mechanic, with Guido Venitucci, 44, and Heather Aldridge-Venitucci, 39, having filed an $8 million lawsuit in May 2010 claiming similar malpractice.  The Venitucci lawsuit alleged that Mechanic encouraged the men in counseling to go outside of their marriages for sex, belittled Guido Venitucci’s wife, and called him names for putting up with the marriage.  Meanwhile, a lawyer for the Romano/Pappas suit declines to discuss details in the new case but said his clients’ claims “will make [the prior lawsuit] look like child’s play.”

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Tags: Christine Pappas, Claim, Counselors, Court, Guido Venitucci, Heather Aldridge-Venitucci, Jeffrey Mechanic, Marriage Counselor, Sandro Romano, Social Worker, Therapist