Chris Brown is never without drama. And so the drama continues in the Chris Brown assault trial saga. Chris Brown’s bodyguard’s trial ended on Friday. Early on Monday, April 21, 2014 D.C. Superior Court Judge Patricia Wynn found Brown’s bodyguard guilty of assaulting Parker Adams. The incident stemmed from a October 26, 2013 incident outside the W Hotel. The victim alleges Brown hit him as he tried to photo bomb a picture with two young women. Chris Brown denies hitting the victim.
Chris Brown and his bodyguard have said on prior occasions the victim was trying to board Chris Brown’s bus when the bodyguard punched him to protect Chris Brown. A limo driver had a different version which Judge Wynn found credible. The limo driver testified in court that Brown hit the victim as he attempted to take the picture and then the bodyguard threw punches. Brown’s bodyguard intends to appeal his conviction which could take a year to decide.
Now the legal maneuvering begins on how the Chris Brown trial will play out. Brown wants his bodyguard to testify in his case. However, the bodyguard’s attorney says he will appeal the bodyguard’s conviction. Chris Hollosy, the bodyguard, will not waive his right to self-incrimination to testify in Chris Brown’s case. Without immunity, anything that the bodyguard says in Chris Brown’s case can be used against him in his case—either sentencing or appeal. And no one can compel him to testify if he does not receive immunity from the government. Immunity would prevent anything he says from being used against him in his case. The Brown case was delayed until Wednesday morning for the lawyers on both sides to reach an agreement on Hollosy and immunity, if possible.
There’s no guarantee the government will offer Hollosy immunity. The real problem for Chris Brown is that he is on no bail status. An appeal could take one year. So Brown and his attorney want Hollosy to testify for Brown but they obviously don’t want Brown to wait a year in jail for his testimony. It is up to the government as to whether or not they will grant immunity to Hollosy. Of course, if the bodyguard is not offered immunity and thereby effectively prohibited from testifying on behalf of Chris Brown, more legal drama could occur. At the end of the day, this is a trial before a judge. And the same judge who heard the limo driver and found him credible will be the same judge to hear Chris Brown’s case. I find it doubtful that she will change her opinion of the limo driver if the bodyguard testifies.
At present, Chris Brown’s trial is scheduled to begin in D.C. Superior Court on Wednesday morning at 10:00 AM. He is represented by Mark Geragos. We’ll see if it goes off without a glitch. Stay tuned for updates.