As the history between Dr. Amie Harwick and her ex, Gareth Pursehouse, continues to be examined in the wake of her death, more and more troubling events have come to light. The latest occurred in mid-January when Harwick was doing the red carpet walk as part of an adult industry awards show. It just so happened that Pursehouse, who was re-arrested and charged with Harwick’s murder on Thursday, was working the event as a photographer, which led to a contentious encounter.
Harwick’s friend and fellow Los Angeles-area sex therapist Hernando Chaves told PEOPLE that she was “so thrilled to be on the red carpet” before she crossed paths with Pursehouse.
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“Initially, he reacted with anger and hostility and he was yelling and she kind of jumped into therapist mode,” as Harwick was “taught and trained to deescalate and she had to do her best to deescalate the moment.”
Pursehouse later approached the two at their table during the ceremony, which Chaves says led to “a very tense, very anxious and very fearful night for her in many respects,” adding, “I’m sure it was one of the most difficult nights of her life.”
Harwick was discovered by police on Feb. 15 underneath a third-floor balcony after her roommate called the police saying she was being assaulted in her home. She later died in the hospital from her injuries, which were consistent with a fall from that height.
Back in 2011, Harwick said that Pursehouse had “choked me, suffocated me, pushed me against walls, kicked me, dropped me to the ground with force, slammed my head into the ground and punched me with a closed fist.” Just weeks later, she accused Pursehouse of pushing her out of a car during an argument and leaving her on the side of a freeway.
Just a year later, Pursehouse broke into her home and broke several picture frames, later texting her “things will get worse.” He broke into her apartment building twice in the two days that followed. Harwick was granted a restraining order that lasted for three years which expired in April 2015.
More recently Harwick had a different restraining order against Pursehouse, which expired just a few weeks before her murder.
Harwick was also engaged to actor and talk show host Drew Carey, though the two had an amicable breakup. Carey has not only offered a touching memorial to his ex but also helped circulate a Change.org petition calling for reforming the laws to include restraining orders that don’t expire.
