A Houston therapist faces multiple felony charges after allegedly threatening to kill a patient who attempted to end their personal relationship, highlighting serious ethical violations and legal concerns within the mental health profession.
The disturbing case involves Thaddeus Tolbert, a licensed therapist who first met Jhyah Scales in October 2023 when she sought therapy for her son.
After several months of her son’s treatment, Tolbert recommended that Scales begin therapy sessions with him as well.
During these sessions, Tolbert reportedly initiated inappropriate advances, including sending personal texts and requesting physical contact. By March 2024, the therapist-patient relationship had escalated into a romantic and sexual relationship.
However, in April 2024, Scales uncovered that Tolbert was living a double life—he was married and expecting a child with another woman.
Shocked by this revelation, Scales decided to end the relationship and confronted Tolbert at his office. Instead of accepting the breakup, Tolbert allegedly responded with violence, pulling out a gun and pinning Scales against a wall while threatening her life.
Scales managed to escape the immediate situation when someone knocked on Tolbert’s office door. However, the danger escalated later that day when Tolbert appeared at her home after she picked up her son from school.
A physical altercation ensued, during which Tolbert allegedly choked Scales, kissed her against her will, and declared that he would rather die than let her leave him.
“He pointed the gun at my head, hit me with it, and said he was going to kill us both,” Scales recounted. “I never imagined that a mental health professional, someone trusted in the community, could be capable of such violence.”
Tolbert is now facing serious legal consequences, including charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and burglary.
This case underscores the importance of ethical boundaries in the mental health profession and serves as a stark reminder of the potential legal ramifications when those boundaries are crossed.
