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The judgment against Nick Gordon, who has not been criminally
charged, totaled $36.25 million, according to attorneys David
Ware and Glenda Hatchett, who represented Brown's estate.
Brown's estate, who brought the lawsuit, accused Gordon of
causing her death by giving her a "toxic mixture" and also
stealing from her bank account while she was comatose. Gordon
has denied the allegations and said he tried to save Brown's
life.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge T. Jackson Bedford ruled
against Gordon by default in the lawsuit after neither Gordon
nor his lawyer attended a hearing in the case in September, Ware
said.
"The Defendant will not escape justice nor ever profit from his
misdeeds. We hope that in some small way this will allow
Krissy’s family to continue their quest for peace," Ware said in
an emailed statement.
Representatives for Gordon could not be reached for comment on
Thursday.
Bobbi Kristina Brown, 22, an aspiring singer and the only child
of Grammy award-winning singers Bobby Brown and the late Whitney
Houston, was discovered face down in the bathtub of her north
Atlanta home in January 2015 and died about six months later
without coming out of a coma.
An autopsy found that drug intoxication and the immersion of her
face in the water contributed to her death.
Ware said while he doubts the estate will be able to collect the
full judgment, he added, "Collection is not the issue; justice
is."
Ware provided a breakdown of the award, saying that among other
accounts the judge assessed nearly $14 million for pain and
suffering, about $4.5 million in punitive damages, and $1.575
million for money allegedly taken from her account and stolen
jewelry.
Brown died three years after Whitney Houston drowned in a
bathtub in a Beverly Hills hotel. Authorities said cocaine abuse
and heart disease contributed to Houston's death on Feb. 11,
2012.
(Reporting by David Beasley in Atlanta; Writing by Curtis
Skinner; Editing by Chris Reese)
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