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Chris Brown’s Legal Troubles Over the Years: From Assault to Hit-And-Run to New LAPD Investigation

Chris Brown has a long history of run-ins with authorities dating back to his 2009 assault of then-girlfriend Rihanna. With his latest accusation of striking a woman — sparking a Los Angeles Police Department investigation —  take a look back at his timeline of legal woes.

The singer was just 19 at the time of his first arrest. He was charged with two felonies stemming from an attack inside of his car on then-girlfriend Rihanna on the eve of the 2009 Grammy Awards. In June of that year, Brown agreed to plead guilty to a felony assault charge.

His plea deal came with some big strings attached. It put Brown under five years’ probation and required him to complete 1,400 hours of “labor-oriented” community service. He also had to attend a yearlong domestic violence counseling program.

In early 2013, Brown was accused of faking his community service hours, with then-L.A. District Attorney Jackie Lacey saying he had given no “credible, competent or verifiable” proof. Prosecutors asked a judge to decline accepting the entertainer’s community service due to “at best sloppy documentation and at worst fraudulent reporting.”

Brown’s lawyer Mark Geragos told the Los Angeles Times, “Apparently the District Attorney’s office has completely lost their minds. They are making scurrilous, libelous and defamatory statements and apparently have lost their ability to read their own reports.” He added that Brown spent time “scrubbing floors, painting walls and other forms of community labor,” and the D.A.’s Office “should be embarrassed” by its claims.

The alleged faked community service hours came into play following a July 2013 incident, in which Brown was allegedly involved in a hit-and-run accident. While the charges were eventually dropped related to the crash, another 1,000 hours of community service were added to Brown’ probation requirements.

Brown was arrested again on October 27, 2013, following an altercation with two men outside of his Washington, D.C., hotel. He spent 36 hours in jail after being charged with felony assault and was subsequently brought back to California to face a judge there. On November 20, Brown was ordered by a Los Angeles judge to spend three months at an anger management rehabilitation facility.

The “Go Crazy” singer didn’t make it through the full 90 days, as he was kicked out of Passages Malibu on March 14, 2014, for violating the facility’s rules. As a result, a judge on May 9, 2014, sentenced Brown to 131 days in county jail due to his violating probation once again. He ended up getting an early release in June of that year and subsequently pled guilty to the assault in Washington D.C. that September.

Brown remained on probation while being investigated by Las Vegas Metro Police on January 2, 2016, for allegedly striking a woman and taking her cell phone, while partying at the Palms Casino Resort. His reps called the allegations “unequivocally untrue,” and charges were never filed in the case.

In June 2017, Brown’s ex-girlfriend Karrueche Tran was granted a five-year restraining order against the singer. The model accused him in court of sending her violent texts, including, “Bitch I will beat the s–t out of you,” and “I promise you I will make your life hell.”

“I’m so sick of these thirsty adults,” Brown responded in a lengthy Instagram post. “Her team is trying their best. For what? No one has served me and the lengths they are going, I should call them stalkers.” He went on to add, “I want nothing to do with her. You think I wanna chase or still be with someone who would try to destroy me??? She doesn’t need a restraining order from me. I need one from them.”

Brown got in trouble abroad in January 2019, when a woman in Paris accused him of raping her in his room at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel between January 15 and 16. He was subsequently taken into custody by Paris Police. “We confirm the detention in custody of Mr. Chris Brown and two other individuals on charges of aggravated rape and narcotics offenses. Police custody is still in progress,” the Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office told People in a statement. “The judicial action that will be given will not be communicated before the end of the custody.”

He was later released, with no charges filed against him. Brown then took to Instagram and professed his innocence, writing, “This Bitch Lyin.” He added,  ”I WANNA MAKE IT PERFECTLY CLEAR…… THIS IS FALSE AND A WHOLE LOT OF [CRAP]! FOR MY DAUGHTER AND MY FAMILY THIS IS SO [DISRESPECTFUL] AND IS AGAINST MY CHARACTER AND MORALS!!!!!” in all caps.

Click below for our gallery of Chris’ legal woes over the years

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