Who Is Sofia Drotts? California Therapist Charged After Allegedly Grooming and Raping Teenage Boy in Her Care

A California therapist entrusted with supporting vulnerable teenagers inside the juvenile justice system is now at the centre of a disturbing criminal case. Prosecutors have charged Sofia Ann-Buitron Drotts, 26, with grooming and sexually abusing a teenage boy placed in her care at a juvenile detention facility.

The case has drawn significant attention as investigators detail allegations that the abuse unfolded while Drotts worked with the juvenile at a detention facility. Authorities say the charges stem from allegations that she engaged in an inappropriate sexual relationship that violated both professional boundaries and the trust placed in those responsible for protecting young people.

Who Is Sofia Drotts?

Drotts grew up in Chicago's Roscoe Village neighbourhood and attended Lincoln Park High School, where an online MaxPreps profile lists her as a former Lions athlete. She studied psychology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, later writing for the student platform Her Campus, where she described herself as a Spanish speaker and Chicago native.

Her published pieces included a personal essay reflecting on 2019 and a piece on a same-sex relationship featured on Bachelor in Paradise. She went on to study at Palo Alto University, where in 2023 the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues named her among the recipients of a research grant on procedural justice and Fourth Amendment rights among Black and white youth.

Drotts was working as a temporary behavioural health clinician for Contra Costa County Health Services, assigned to the John A. Davis Juvenile Hall in Martinez, when prosecutors allege the abuse began. She is facing seven felony charges related to sexual acts with a minor.

How a 14-Year-Old Was Groomed Inside Juvenile Hall, Civil Claim Alleges

According to prosecutors, the sexual relationship developed after the boy, referred to in court papers as John Doe, was released from detention. 'After John Doe is released from detention, he and Drotts engage in a sexual relationship between April 1, 2026, and July 14, 2026,' prosecutors said.

But a civil claim filed against Contra Costa County on 27 July alleges the grooming began far earlier, when the boy was just 14, in 2024. '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,' the claim states.

The filing also alleges a 'team of County agents and supervisors failed to identify the red flags or supervise Drotts, and so the sexual abuse continued'. The family's attorney, John Burris, said: '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,' adding, 'We hope the criminal process will go forward expeditiously, and we will go forward in our civil case.'

Drotts was arrested by Concord Police on 14 July after a supervisor at the Contra Costa County Probation Department raised the alarm.

The Eight Felony Charges and What They Mean for Drotts

Drotts faces eight criminal charges, according to the Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office. These include two counts of unlawful sexual intercourse, two counts of oral copulation of a person under 18, one count of sexual penetration by a foreign object, two counts of sending harmful matter to a minor, and one count of possession of child or youth pornography.

Drotts is expected to appear before the Contra Costa Superior Court for her arraignment, where the charges against her will be formally presented, the Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office said.

The case has raised wider questions about safeguarding protocols in juvenile detention facilities. Drotts has not yet entered a plea, with her arraignment expected in the coming weeks.