Attorney for Doctor Accused of Poisoning Husband: He Set Her Up

The attorney for the California dermatologist accused of poisoning her husband with drain cleaner says her husband actually set the whole thing up. Jack Chen and his wife, Yue "Emily" Yu, had ants in their kitchen, the lawyer said after a court hearing Tuesday, per Fox News. "Jack Chen tells her to put the Drano into this lemonade or tea in order to bait and kill the ants," he said. "He then sets up what he calls spy cameras to capture her pouring the Drano into the cup then falsely accuses her of trying to poison him." Surveillance cameras set up by Chen captured Yu pouring Drano into a cup and, later, Chen drinking out of the cup. Yu's attorney says it was a set-up intended to give Chen the upper hand in the couple's divorce and custody battle; last week Yu's divorce attorney, who is not involved in the criminal case, made a similar claim, and told the New York Post Chen gave the footage to his divorce attorney before reporting anything to police.

Chen filed for a restraining order against Yu, citing the poisoning allegations, in August, on the same day he filed for divorce and sole custody of their kids. As for the symptoms he said he experienced as a result of allegedly drinking drain cleaner, Yu's lawyer says there's another explanation for those as well, the New York Post reports. "As you know, Drano is a caustic substance. You’d have severe injuries." Chen's injuries, on the other hand, "are consistent with a benign condition called GERD or acid reflux." Chen currently has custody of the couple's children with Yu being allowed supervised custody twice a week. (More California stories.)