Lawyer for Man Accused of Murdering Hollywood Sex Therapist Amie Harwick Claims She Fell from Balcony by Accident

Harwick, 38, wrote in an email that ex-boyfriend Gareth Pursehouse, 45, was “obsessive and scary.” Now he is on trial accused of murdering her in 2020

On Feb. 14, 2020, therapist Dr. Amie Harwick enjoyed a night out with friends at a burlesque show, before returning to her Hollywood Hills home to get ready for bed.

However, the 38-year-old successful therapist who was once engaged to comedian Drew Carey had no idea that her life was about to end.

Unbeknownst to her, Gareth Pursehouse, the obsessive ex-boyfriend she’d obtained two restraining orders against, was lying in wait for her inside her three-story home, prosecutors alleged in court documents obtained by PEOPLE.

At about 1 a.m. on Feb. 15, Pursehouse, 45, of Playa del Ray, allegedly attacked Harwick, strangling her in her bedroom on the third floor, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors claim that when Pursehouse heard Harwick’s roommate screaming for help, he threw her over the wrought-iron balcony in her bedroom.

Harwick fell 20 feet, landing on the patio in her backyard. Barely alive – police officers on the scene said they could hear her shallow breaths — she died two hours later at the hospital.

The medical examiner later ruled that Harwick died in a homicide from blunt force injuries to the head and torso she suffered by falling from her balcony, as well as manual strangulation.

Arrested in 2020 and charged with murder and burglary, Pursehouse is now on trial for her slaying, facing life in prison if he is convicted. In opening arguments on Aug. 29, Deputy District Attorney Victor Avila told the court how DNA collected from blood found on doors and on the floor of the home matched Pursehouse’s DNA, Law & Crime reports.

DNA collected from under Harwick’s fingernails also matched Pursehouse’s DNA, Avila said, Law & Crime reports.

Outside on the balcony, police found a syringe that FBI chemists said was filled with a lethal dose of nicotine, Avila said, Law & Crime reports.

“It was poison,” he told the court.

Harwick had dated Pursehouse more than a decade ago but he allegedly remained obsessed with her, court documents show. When Harwick ended the relationship in 2012, Pursehouse allegedly began stalking and harassing her, prompting her to file the two restraining orders against him, according to court documents obtained by PEOPLE.

She went on to become a licensed marriage and family therapist with a thriving practice in West Hollywood. Author of the 2014 book The Sex Bible for Women, Harwick was also an advocate for domestic violence victims.

Harwick didn’t see Pursehouse again until January 2020, when she ran into him by chance at an adult film industry awards show in downtown Los Angeles.

Pursehouse, a photographer who was taking pictures at the event, approached Harwick on the red carpet and began loudly berating her, witnesses testified.

Dr. Hernando Chavez testified that she heard Pursehouse say to Harwick, “You ruined my life, you b—-,” Court TV reports.

She tried to calm him down but he remained angry, adult film star Aspen Jamieson testified, according to Court TV.

He began texting her after the event, but she told him she didn’t want to talk to him further, prosecutors told the court, Law & Crime reports.

He persisted, at one point leaving a voicemail in which he was crying, Avila said, Law & Crime reports.

Fearing him, Harwick got new locks on her windows and had security cameras installed at her house, according to Court TV.

“She rejected his advances, she cut off all communication with him, so he punished her, broke into her house, and killed her,” Avila said.

The Defense Hits Back

In his opening statements, defense attorney Evan Franzel told the court that Pursehouse felt depressed after running into Harwick at the January 2020 event.

“The evidence will show that running into her at that event sent him into a thick fog of depression and made him feel that the only way he could get relief from that pain was to go and talk to her,” Franzel said, Law & Crime reports. “The evidence will show he never intended on killing her”

He broke into her house to talk to her and planned to use the nicotine-filled syringe to kill himself, Franzel said, Law & Crime reports.

He also argued that Pursehouse did not throw Harwick over the balcony, saying she fell while trying to get away from him, Franzel said, Law & Crime reports.

 “He set a chain of motions into actions that led to her death,” Franzel said, according to Law & Crime.

The trial is on hiatus because of Covid but is expected to resume on Monday.

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.