Chris Brown has narrowly escaped prison time. The “Run It!” singer was handed an eight-month sentence in a London courtroom on October 26, but the judge suspended it for 12 months, meaning Brown won’t serve time in prison.
The sentence stems from an attack in a nightclub on February 19, 2023, at Tape nightclub in London’s Mayfair neighborhood. According to the charge, music producer Abraham Diaw was attacked and hospitalized. Brown had pleaded guilty to the charges.
Surveillance footage caught Brown and his vocal coach, Omololu Akinlolu, chasing down Diaw on the dance floor. Brown then struck Diaw twice over the head with a bottle of Don Julio 1942 tequila, followed by punching and kicking from Brown and Akinlolu while Diaw was on the floor.
While neither Brown nor Akinlolu will see prison time, they were told their sentence should still be considered a “punishment.” Both men must also each pay £1,500 towards the prosecution’s costs, according to BBC.com, which is approximately $2000.
At the hearing, through his lawyers, Brown issued a “profound apology” for the actions that night. No one has publicly acknowledged a motive for the attack, but sources report that Brown and Diaw were former friends.
Of course, this isn’t Brown’s first experience with law enforcement and sentencing. In 2009, he pleaded guilty to felony assault following a highly publicized domestic violence incident involving his then-girlfriend, Rihanna, receiving five years of probation, one year of domestic violence counseling, and 180 days of community labor.
In 2013, he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of simple assault for punching a man in the face outside the W Hotel in Washington, D.C. Brown was sentenced to time served.