Chris Brown's bodyguard gets probation after punching fan

[December 17, 2014]  By Tom Ramstack

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Reuters) - The bodyguard of R&B singer Chris Brown was sentenced to one year of probation in a Washington, D.C., court on Tuesday after being convicted of assaulting a fan.

Christopher Hollosy had argued he was trying to protect Brown when he struck a 25-year-old man outside a downtown hotel last year, breaking the man's nose.

The victim and two friends said they were trying to have their pictures taken with Brown when the singer became angered by the man's aggressiveness in crowding into the photo.

Brown pleaded guilty on Sept. 2 to misdemeanor assault for punching the man.

"In that moment, Christopher Brown was the aggressor," Kendra Briggs, an assistant U.S. attorney, said during the sentencing hearing Tuesday.

After Brown hit him, "Mr. Hollosy stepped in and punched him," Briggs said.

Hollosy, 36, did not speak during the hearing.

Seeking a light sentence, his attorney, Bernard Grimm, emphasized to the court Hollosy's lack of a prior criminal record and his charitable work that included volunteering at a homeless shelter in California.

He also said that a back injury Hollosy suffered in a vehicle accident in September would prevent him from doing heavy labor.

In addition to probation, D.C. Superior Court Judge Patricia Wynn ordered that Hollosy be given a 90-day suspended jail sentence, that he do 24 hours of community service and pay $50 into a crime victims' fund.

Hollosy, who appeared noticeably thinner than in previous court appearances, declined to comment after the sentencing.

He and Brown reached a settlement agreement of the lawsuit filed by Parker Adams, the alleged victim, in October for about $100,000, according to celebrity news website TMZ.

(Editing by Jonathan Allen and Eric Walsh)

[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.