American singer, Chris Brown has been found liable in the Chris Brown dog attack lawsuit over an incident that left his housekeeper, Maria Avila, seriously injured at his California home in 2020.
After a two-week trial in Los Angeles, a jury ruled in favour of Avila, who was attacked by a 200-pound (90kg) Caucasian shepherd named Hades while she was taking out the rubbish at Brown’s home in Tarzana.
According to Billboard, Brown and his company, Black Pyramid LLC, have been ordered to pay Avila $12.9 million in damages for negligence.
During the trial, Avila told the court that the attack left her with permanent facial disfigurement, scarring, vision loss and nerve damage after the dog tore off “large chunks of her skin.”
Brown argued that the dog was kept by his security team to protect the property and was not his personal pet.
The jury also heard testimony that Brown left the property after the attack instead of calling emergency services or helping Avila.
According to Rolling Stone, Brown said he feared there would be a “media circus” if his voice was heard on the 911 call or if he remained at the scene.
Brown told the court he had been preparing to take a shower when he heard the dog growling and found Avila lying on the ground covered in “a lot of blood.”
“The blood kind of freaked me out,” he said, adding that he was “in shock” when he followed his manager’s advice to leave before emergency responders arrived.
Before the trial, Brown admitted some responsibility for the incident but disputed the extent of Avila’s injuries. He also argued that she was partly responsible for what happened.
The singer testified that he had warned Avila and her sister Patricia, who also worked at the house, that the dogs were “absolutely not” friendly and that they should only go outside when security personnel were present.
Both sisters denied that such a conversation ever took place, saying a language barrier would have made it unlikely.
Brown also told the jury the dog had been purchased and cared for by his security staff because, “I get a lot of stalker-type situations.”
Speaking through a Spanish interpreter, Avila said she underwent skin graft surgery using skin from her abdomen to repair injuries to her arm.
She also told the court she has been unable to return to work as a housekeeper because of reduced arm strength and post-traumatic stress that prevents her from being around dogs.
The court also awarded Patricia $885,000, while Maria’s husband, Oscar Olivo, received $50,000, according to Patricia’s lawyer, Michael C Murphy.
“After more than five years of litigating against Chris Brown, we are thrilled that we were able to get justice for our client, Patricia,” he said.
“We are so happy for her and her family after everything they went through on that horrible day.”
Brown is currently touring the United States with R&B singer Usher. He is also scheduled to stand trial in the United Kingdom in October over an alleged 2023 assault involving a music producer at a nightclub.
Brown appeared in court in January alongside co-defendant Omololu Akinlolu, and both were granted bail.
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