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AP/ August 26, 2009, 3:38 PM

Richmond PD Seeking Jobs For Chris Brown

Richmond police say they still are working out what types of chores Chris Brown will perform during six months of community labor a judge ordered him to complete for beating ex-girlfriend Rihanna.


Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg Tuesday sentenced Chris Brown to five years' probation and six months' community labor for the beating of Rihanna and issued a stern admonition to the R&B singer. The judge told Brown that he could be sent to state prison if he violated any terms of his sentence, including an order to stay away from Rihanna for the next five years.

Brown will serve get the required counseling and serve his sentence in his home state - Virginia - and his community labor will be overseen by the chief of police in Richmond.

Police spokesman James Mercante said details of when Brown would start and what he would be doing were not yet determined. The judge wanted 20-year-old Brown to perform physical labor instead of community service, such as mentoring young people.

Commonwealth Catholic Charities would not reveal when Brown will start counseling there.

Rihanna did not attend Tuesday's sentencing.

At one point, Brown, who was accompanied by his mother, agreed to the terms of the sentence before Schnegg had finished going through them all.

The hearing had been planned for Thursday afternoon, but Brown's lawyer, Mark Geragos, asked to move up the singer's sentencing to Tuesday. A previous attempt to sentence Brown was postponed when Schnegg said she hadn't received adequate assurances that Brown would perform physical labor if allowed to serve probation in Virginia.

The judge said she was satisfied with a letter presented by Geragos that Richmond Police Chief Bryan T. Norwood will directly oversee Brown's labor program.

After Brown pleaded guilty to felony assault in June, Schnegg ordered the pair to stay away from each other and to not contact one another. Her order Tuesday essentially extended that for the next five years.

Donald Etra, Rihanna's attorney, has said he didn't think the strict rules were necessary, but that he and Rihanna favored a less-stringent ruling that simply ordered Brown not to annoy, harass or molest the 21-year-old pop singer. Schnegg said she was aware of reports that Brown had been spotted on several occasions in the same places as Rihanna.

"I am not amused with the chatter that has been on the airwaves and any violation of your probation in this case comes with the potential for state prison," Schnegg told Brown.

Brown was arrested Feb. 8, hours after he was accused of beating Rihanna.

The attack occurred in Los Angeles' Hancock Park neighborhood as Brown drove a rented sports car. A Los Angeles police detective described a brutal attack in a search warrant affidavit filed in the case, stating Brown hit, choked and bit Rihanna and tried at one point to push her from the car.

Brown's career suffered after his arrest, with sponsors dropping him and radio stations refusing to play his music. Both he and Rihanna had to cancel several high-profile appearances, including planned performances at the Grammy Awards the day of the attack.

A felony charge of making criminal threats was dropped during Tuesday's sentencing.

AP
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ktgilb1 says:
I thoink Chris got railroaded. We only heard one side of the story, (as usual) I don't think he just out of the blue went ahead and started beating on this girl. She has been known to have a abusive streak herself. but the ( and i can't believe im using this phrase )femanazies don't want you to know that, they say there is no excuse to put your hands on anyone. well i disagree, i don't condone it but at the same time i wasen't there. This mans life is ruined, and women all over the US are happy. I think that sucks,I wonder if the shoe was on the other foot, and it was her in court for beating on him, how many of you out there would say the same about her?
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aggiemariposa replies:
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No one should be putting their hands on a person in a violent manner, no matter the sex. Both of these individuals used violence to communicate their displeasure in a situation. However CHRIS CROSSED THE LINE and he didn't just step over it, he took a flying leap. He beat her to the point where she was visibly bruised and bashed, for reasons too trivial to rationalize this action. He was NOT defending himself, he wasn't fighting another man - he beat on a women that he claimed he loved; beat on her as if he were in the UFC. There is no rationale for this behavior, no excuse, no environmental history that will explain away this fact. What saddens me is that people believe he should not be punished to this severity.
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formrusmcsgt says:
Any man who beats a woman is a punk.

And this punk will never get though five years of probation without proving again what a punk he is.
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platteman says:
You can take the thug out of tha hood, but you can't take the hood outa tha thug.
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platteman says:
No man, black or white need to beat any woman anytime. I have come close now and then myself, but the results are not worth it. Likewise no woman needs to beat any man either.
He should have spent a couple years behind bars, oh that is right CA doesn't have the money to keep a thug in jail. Right he will hit someone again and the old adage is future behavior is predicted by past behavior. Too bad the woman doesn't have enough guts to tell this dolt that she don't need no stupid man like him.
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aggiemariposa says:
I am so tired of these celebrity criminals. This man will keep on making big bucks as usual with barely a disruption. Then there's Vick, though he did go to prison, he'll still be making millions in the NFL...as a felon.

If this would have been you or me that committed crimes like this, guaranteed it would have messed up our life in a much bigger way than this. Just ask all the ex-cons who can't even get a minimum wage job. And then you have clowns like this. Oh well, whoever said life is fair. I don't know what the terms of his probation are, but I think some mandatory anger management counseling is in order.
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John_Merritt says:
Hopefully this sends a loud and clear message to those guys that want to beat on their girlfriends. It is about time this issue was addressed, now for the other 5,000 which are ignored or swept under the carpet.
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woeisme1 replies:
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Huh????
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wwudiver says:
Ok, self report surveys, women commit DV almost twice as much as men. He could be completly wrong, but we are only hearing one side of this.
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micheleisfree says:
The black community should demand better. Black-on-black crime is rampant, and these rappers, whether they like it or not, are role models. And this sentence just told all those kids it's okay to commit black-on-black crime. Go ahead, you'll not be punished harshly.
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novamba says:
Wow, did he get off easy! I wonder what I would get if I beat the snot out of my girlfriend/wife...he should have been locked up for several years, instead hell be sipping on crystal and smoking a blunt tonight...with plenty of willing girls around no doubt.
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jtdev1 replies:
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he can get away with it. He has money.
sabestu replies:
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Novamba is exactly right with his comment. During his community so called service he should be shoveling the crap he piles up against women. What the God $ will do for you. What a joke.
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hennighg says:
God, I hate a bully! Men who act like that make it hard on those of us who would never think of it.
I hope the rest of his hits are records.
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woeisme1 replies:
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Ugh....bullies. Reminds me of the Republicans.
novamba replies:
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I will bet every dollar I have that Mr. Brown voted democrat this last election.
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