Chris Brown Will Get New Dog Attack Trial — Unless Housekeeper Accepts $9.5M Reduced Verdict
Billboard ·
A judge says the original trial award of $13 million was "excessive."
A judge has ruled that $13 million is an “excessive” number for Chris Brown to pay a former housekeeper who was mauled by a 200-pound dog at the R&B star’s home.
In a Tuesday (Sept. 29) order, first obtained and reported by Billboard , Los Angeles County Judge Huey P. Cotton gave victim Maria Avila the choice to either retry her claims against Brown or walk away with a reduced $9.5 million damages award. Avila’s lawyer did not immediately return an inquiry about which option they’ll choose.
In June, a jury awarded Avila $12.9 million for the physical and emotional wounds she suffered from being mauled by a Caucasian shepherd — a massive, aggressive dog breed notorious for their use as guard dogs at Russian prisons — while working at Brown’s Tarzana, Calif., home in 2020. Brown accepted some liability for the incident but said Avila was partially at fault, testifying during the trial that he specifically warned her not to go outside unaccompanied because of the unfriendly dog, Hades.
Judge Cotton ruled Tuesday that Brown got a fair trial overall, rejecting the singer’s argument that jurors were biased because they heard mention of his infamous 2008 assault of Rihanna . However, the judge said the $12.9 million verdict was too high to match Avila’s injuries.
Avila claims Hades ripped off “large chunks of her skin,” causing long-term facial disfigurement, scarring, vision loss and nerve damage. Judge Cotton said Avila should indeed be compensated for emotional distress and “persistent pain” from the incident, but that there was “insufficient evidence of extensive permanent nerve damage.”
“The court finds that the jury’s award to Maria Avila is excessive,” Tuesday’s order says. “The court elects to issue a conditional order granting a new trial, as to Maria Avila only, on the issue of damages unless Plaintiff consents to a reduction of the jury’s damages to $9.5 million.”
The judge kept intact a separate $855,000 amount awarded by the jury to Avila’s sister, who was also working at Brown’s house during the 2020 dog attack.
Brown’s lawyers, who have previously made moves to appeal the trial verdict, did not immediately return a request for comment on Tuesday.
Brown is currently on the road with Usher for their co-headlining R&B Tour, and a portion of his profits have been earmarked for paying Avila’s judgment .