California therapist, 26, allegedly groomed and raped teen after he left juvenile hall where she worked

A California clinician is facing felony charges after she allegedly groomed a teenage boy from age 14 — before raping him for three months after he left a juvenile hall where she was assigned as his therapist.

Bay Area prosecutors on Monday hit former behavioral health clinician Sofia Drotts, 26, of San Francisco, with shocking charges including unlawful sexual intercourse in connection with the case.

The mother of the victim, who has not been identified, said Drotts betrayed her family.

“We trusted this professional with our son’s healing and well-being, and that trust was fundamentally shattered,” the teen’s mother said. “Our focus now is entirely on our son’s recovery and protection.”

Drotts was employed at John A. Davis Juvenile Hall in Martinez, where she was assigned the 17-year-old victim as her client, according to investigators.

After the boy was released, he was raped by Drotts between April 1 and July 14, prosecutors charge.

Drotts was arrested by Concord Police on July 14, after cops received a tip from a supervisor at the probation department, prosecutors said. The boy’s family has filed a separate civil case against the county over the matter. 

Drotts has since been released, according to the Contra Costa Sheriff’s office.

The boy’s mother said the family came forward to protect other victims of abuse.

“We are speaking out to ensure that no other family has to endure this pain, and to encourage anyone else who may have been harmed to find the strength to come forward,” she said.

Attorney John Burris, who represents the boy’s family, said Drott began grooming the teen in 2024 when he was 14 or 15 years old.

At the time, the boy — identified as John Doe in court papers — was serving two years in a Contra Costa County Juvenile Hall, where Drotts was assigned as his therapist.

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“During the two years in which Doe was incarcerated at the juvenile Hall, Drotts abused her position as his therapist to establish an inappropriate emotional connection with Doe, ‘grooming’ him with the objective of sexual abuse,” court papers state.

After the boy was released on probation, Drotts continued to serve as his therapist through Contra Costa Health and allegedly had “unlawful sexual contact” with him, the court papers say.

The papers also say a “team of County agents and supervisors failed to identify the red flags or supervise Drotts, and so the sexual abuse continued.”

Burris said the county’s system failed to protect his client from Drotts.

“Whatever protocols were in place to monitor young probationary employees did not work, and as a consequence of this, my young man was vulnerable to her conduct,” he said.

“We hope the criminal process will go forward expeditiously, and we will go forward in our civil case.”

According to posts made on social media and content published to a college publication website, Drotts is a graduate from the University of Wisconsin at Madison.

The college singled Drotts out for praise in a 2022 Instagram post that identified her as a psychology major with certificates in criminal justice, gender and women studies, and chicano/a latino/a studies.

“After graduation, she’s off to the Golden State to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at Palo Alto University,” read the post. “Way to go, Sofia!”

Drotts identified herself as a Spanish speaker and Chicago native on an author page for publication where she contributed a number of articles on college life.

She faces other charges including sexual penetration by a foreign object, sending harmful matter to a minor, oral copulation of a person under 18 years of age and possessing child pornography. 

The Contra Costa Superior Court will set an arraignment date for Drotts, where she will hear the charges against her, the Contra Costa District Attorney’s office said in a statement.