Arriving At Court [HQ]:
» LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) – A plea deal has been reached in the assault case against singer Chris Brown, defense attorney Mark Geragos said in a hearing Monday.
Chris Brown will serve five years of probation and 180 days community service.
Under terms of the agreement, Brown will serve five years of probation and complete 180 days of community service.
Brown, 20, had previously pleaded not guilty to felony counts of assault and making criminal threats in connection with an attack on his girlfriend, Rihanna, also a singer.
Rihanna, whose real name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty, was in court briefly for the Monday hearing.
Los Angeles Criminal Court Judge Patricia Schnegg said Brown could apply to have his supervised probation transferred to Virginia, where he maintains his legal residence. He also can complete his community service there, she said, but it would have to meet the court’s standards.
“I want Mr. Brown treated as any other defendant who comes to this court,” Schnegg said.
Brown must also undergo domestic violence counseling, she said. But the judge noted he has no prior criminal record.
Rihanna was in a relationship with Brown for more than a year before the February 8 incident.
Her lawyer told the judge at Brown’s first hearing four months ago that she did not want his bond to bar him from having contact with her.
“Rihanna requested that no such order be issued,” Etra said.
Rihanna did not file a complaint against Brown, but the prosecution’s case was built on what she told detectives and on physical evidence they collected from her, including photographs of her bruised and battered face.
It was not Rihanna who called police but someone who heard her screams for help, according to a sworn statement by Los Angeles Police Detective DeShon Andrews.
The statement, filed with the court to support a search warrant for cell phone records, described a brutal attack against Rihanna, allegedly by Brown.
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Brown issued a public apology for the incident just days after his arrest.
“Words cannot begin to express how sorry and saddened I am over what transpired,” he said in a statement released by his spokesman. “I am seeking the counseling of my pastor, my mother and other loved ones and I am committed, with God’s help, to emerging a better person.”
