Chris Brown Probation Hearing: Did Club Brawl Come Back to Haunt Him?

L.A. district attorney cited some discrepancies in the terms of R&B star's sentence that she wants sorted out

By Natalie Finn, Claudia Rosenbaum Jul 11, 2012 1:40 AMTags
Chris BrownJason Merritt/Getty Images

Chris Brown has been a model probationer going on three years now—but, lest we forget, he had a pretty eventful June.

The R&B star wasn't required to appear in person at a progress-report hearing today in Los Angeles, a previously scheduled court date to check up on his behavior while he remains on probation for beating up Rihanna in 2009.

But prosecutors did want to go over something with the judge that had come to their attention since last they met.

Did it have something to do with the nightclub brawl involving Brown and Drake's entourage that resulted in a few lawsuits (none against Brown) and Tony Parker almost losing an eye?

No, it did not.

The throwdown at Manhattan club W.i.P. didn't even come up, in fact!

Instead, Deputy District Attorney Mary Murphy asked L.A. Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg, who has signed off on a number of positive progress reports for Brown over the years, for an accounting of Brown's community service hours, telling her she had noticed discrepancies in the hours he had reported.

Brown was sentenced in August 2009 to five years formal probation, a year of domestic violence counseling (which he completed) and 180 days of community labor.

Schnegg ordered a detailed audit of Brown's service—he was about halfway through by the time of his last hearing—and told the Fortune artist's lawyer that she wants Brown to appear in person next time.

Brown's attorney, Pat Harris, did not object to the audit and didn't appear concerned by the request.

Meanwhile, W.i.P. is scheduled to reopen tomorrow night for the first time since June 16, when the NYPD closed it down following the fight. Greenhouse, which houses the basement-level club, reopens tonight.

"We are thankful to the court for permitting us to reopen and allowing our over 250 employees to get back to work immediately," the clubs said in a statement to E! News. "When we reopen our doors, we will be focused on providing a safe and fun atmosphere for our customers. To that end we are enhancing our security and will continue our practice of exceeding the recommended security protocols for a club of our size."

"Just because the club has been allowed to reopen with a liquor license should not be construed to mean that there was no negligence on the club's part," countered attorney Javier Solano, counsel for two models who suffered lacerations during the Brown-Drake brawl and are now suing Greenhouse and W.i.P.'s owner.

"I just hope the club does everything it can to protect its patrons in the future. It's certainly not my argument that people shouldn't be allowed to drink and have a good time or that clubs should not make money. The clubs should be aware that they have a responsibility to ensure the safety and well-being of their patrons. And they should be held responsible when they don't protect those patrons."

Before Greenhouse was allowed to reopen, the owners had to comply with various security-related stipulations set forth by the NYPD and pay a $20,000 fine.

—Additional reporting by Baker Machado