Chris Brown Faces Criminal Charges After Rihanna Allegedly Injured: A History of Domestic Violence?
R&B singer Chris Brown and pop star Rihanna were no-shows at Sunday's Grammy Awards, despite the show's listing them both as performers in its intro. It turns out that Chris Brown might have been busy getting charged with "a felony in connection with a domestic violence incident."
Although earlier news reports indicated that police had not yet identified the alleged victim, an L.A. Times story indicates that "[t]he victim, who was later identified by sources familiar with the case as Rihanna, suffered visible injuries and identified Brown as her attacker, according to the police report." The incident reportedly arose after the pair attended a pre-Grammy's dinner on Saturday, drove off in a rented Lamborghini, and ended up getting into an argument a few miles from there. CNN, which did not identify the victim as Rihanna, reported that:
"'After stopping his car, Brown and the woman got out and the argument escalated,' police said.
After receiving a 911 call at about 12:30 a.m. Sunday, officers found the woman at the scene of the alleged fight, but Brown had left, the department said."
However, after rounding up attorney Mark Geragos (of Michael Jackson, Scott Peterson, and similar high-profile defendants' fame) and an investigator, Brown turned himself in at an L.A. police station later on Sunday evening where he was booked and posted $50,000 bail.
Although the nature of this incident and its causes are unclear, the L.A. Times noted that in an earlier interview Chris Brown described a history of domestic violence at home:
"In a 2007 interview with Giant magazine, Brown said his mother had been physically abused by his stepfather. "He used to hit my mom," he was quoted as saying in the Giant article.
"He made me terrified all the time, terrified like I had to pee on myself. I remember one night he made her nose bleed. I was crying and thinking, 'I'm just gonna go crazy on him one day . . . ' I hate him to this day."
The effects of domestic violence on children can be varied, and any speculation as to the Chris Brown case would be premature, but studies have noted that an individual's future dating relationships may reflect violence learned or witnessed in the home. Below are some links with more information and resources for domestic violence.
- L.A. Times: Chris Brown facing legal woes
- CNN: R&B singer Brown faces felony charge after alleged assault
- Blog: R&B singer Chris Brown booked on suspicion of making felony criminal threats (L.A. Times)
- Domestic Violence (FindLaw)
- Domestic Violence Statistics (American Bar Association: Commission on Domestic Violence)
- The Effects of Domestic Violence on Children (Alabama Coalition Against Domestic Violence)
- Domestic Violence Organizations (FindLaw)