Rehab For Boozing Charlie Sheen?
Dec. 28 2009, Published 1:00 p.m. ET
Charlie Sheen's arrest on Christmas has become a public relations battleground, as his team of handlers desperately try to contain the damage and get his wife to publicly recant the allegations that jailed him.
But behind the scenes a bigger problem is looming: reports say that while Brooke Mueller had been drinking heavily before the incident, Charlie also had been drinking - in the morning.
Sheen has been to rehab for drugs and alcohol twice, hospitalized for overdosing on cocaine and alcohol and talked openly about not drinking anymore.
Now the question looms: When did he start drinking alcohol again and will he need professional help stopping?
In a 2002 interview with TV Guide, Sheen described how he started drinking again in the early 1990s after a year of sobriety. "I was at Nic Cage's house and he had to go out, so I found a beer and drank it, celebrating my year. Everything bad the experts told me would happen, happened," Sheen said.
Aspen cops responded to his wife's 911 call at 8:34 am Christmas and sources tell RadarOnline.com that Mueller and Sheen had been up all night partying and drinking. Their tattered marriage exploded in violence, according to Mueller, when Sheen got physical with her and threatened her.
Police Press Release on Sheen's Arrest
Mueller recanted her accusations later in the day to court personnel after heavy pressure from Team Sheen but she has not made a public statement. She has a prenuptial agreement and money has been brought up in discussions with her.
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Several of Mueller's close friends told RadarOnline.com that she wants out of the marriage but is overwhelmed by the pressure of Charlie's various reps, who are concerned about his image as he's in the last year of his contract for the hit TV show Two and a Half Men.
EXCLUSIVE: Wife Has Restraining Order Against Sheen
Charlie's manager told RadarOnline.com that the couple will not divorce and wants to work things out. But behind the scenes, Brooke's friends say that's all spin, as Sheen's people desperately try to stop this incident from damaging his career.
EXCLUSIVE: Charlie Sheen Says He Won't Divorce
Mueller's pals also say she is a hard partier who is fed up with Sheen and wants out of the marriage but may not have the strength to fight his legal and public relations machine.
So far Team Sheen has not addressed the fact that Sheen was drinking before the incident and if he intends to get professional help to stop drinking again as he has in the past.
VIDEO: Cops Show Up At Charlie Sheen's Rented Home In Aspen, CO.
After years of partying, Sheen got off drugs and sober in the late 1990s and eventually resurrected his career.