Chris Brown allegedly has not paid up on his former housekeeper’s $13 million dog bite verdict — and now the woman says her money should come out of the star’s ongoing stadium tour with Usher.
A Los Angeles-area jury ruled at the end of June that Brown owes $12.9 million to Maria Avila, who was mauled by a 200-pound dog while cleaning the singer’s home in 2020. But according to Avila’s attorney, Nancy Doumanian, Brown and his company “have made no effort to satisfy any portion of the judgment” in the last month.
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“Counsel for Judgment Creditor has repeatedly attempted to communicate with Defendant’s attorneys regarding payment, but those communications have gone unanswered,” reads Doumanian’s Thursday (July 23) court motion, obtained by Billboard. “At the same time, Defendant Christopher Brown is presently engaged in an active nationwide R&B concert tour that is generating substantial revenue.”
Brown and Usher opened the R&B Tour (short for Raymond & Brown) on June 26, with the duo set to play stadiums around North America through December. Avila wants a judge to order that a portion of Brown’s touring profits be earmarked for her unpaid judgment, which she says will only get larger over time because of daily interest.
In the meantime, Avila says a judge should freeze Brown’s touring accounts to preserve her access to the funds. If this amount isn’t sufficient to cover the full judgment, she also suggests that the court could direct it to be paid out of Brown’s music royalties, licensing revenue, merchandising and sponsorship deals.
Reps for Brown did not immediately return a request for comment on Monday (July 27). Live Nation, which is promoting the R&B Tour, did not comment.
Avila sued Brown in 2021, alleging she was attacked by a Caucasian shepherd named Hades while emptying trash outside the singer’s Tarzana, Calif., home a year earlier. The dog — a massive, aggressive breed notorious for their use as guard dogs at Russian prisons — allegedly ripped off “large chunks” of Avila’s skin, leading to permanent facial disfigurement, scarring, vision loss and nerve damage.
The case went to a two-week jury trial in June. Brown accepted some liability for negligence ahead of the trial, but he disputed the extent of Maria’s injuries and argued that she was partially at fault for the incident.
Brown testified that he personally warned Maria that multiple dogs on the property were “absolutely not” friendly, and that she shouldn’t go outside unless accompanied by security staff. He also told the jury that Hades was not his personal pet. Rather, he said the dog was purchased and looked after by his security guards to help protect the house from break-ins.
Jurors ultimately sided with Avila, awarding her $12.9 million in damages for physical suffering, emotional pain and medical expenses on June 30. Her sister, who was also present at Brown’s home on the day of the attack, was separately awarded $885,000 for emotional distress. Avila’s husband won another $50,000 in the verdict.