R&B singer Chris Brown pleaded guilty Monday to assaulting his former girlfriend, the pop star Rihanna, in a last-minute deal that allowed him to avoid both jail time and another public airing of the domestic violence allegations that have damaged his clean-cut image and promising career.
The deal with prosecutors was finalized in the hours before a hearing at which Rihanna was to tell a courtroom packed with reporters and fans how Brown bit, punched and choked her after a pre-Grammy Awards party in February.
Under the terms of the agreement, Brown, 20, will be on probation for five years, attend a yearlong domestic violence prevention class and complete six months of what the judge termed "community labor" -- a more restrictive form of community service in which he will be required to perform such tasks as picking up trash or removing graffiti.
"He embraces this as an opportunity for him to get his life back on track," Brown's lawyer, Mark Geragos, said after the hearing.
Before his arrest, Brown and Rihanna, whose real name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty, were the music industry's hottest couple. But the night before the Grammy Awards, police found Rihanna bruised and bloodied on a Hancock Park side street. She alleged that Brown attacked her in a rented Lamborghini during a quarrel over text messages that he received from a former lover.
Two weeks later, the gossip site TMZ.com posted what appeared to be a police photo that showed Rihanna with cuts and bruises on her face. The picture of the Cover Girl cosmetics model looking like a boxer after a fight increased public outrage.
Brown's lawyer said later that the performer had wanted to "take responsibility" for the altercation for months, but listened to the advice of his legal team to let the case work its way through the system. Brown wanted people to know that domestic violence was "not acceptable," he said.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg issued a "stay-away" order that bars Brown from contacting Rihanna or coming within 50 yards of her. Rihanna, who appeared briefly before the judge, said through her lawyer that she opposed the protective order as too strict.
"They do attend numerous industry events at the same time and the same place," lawyer Donald Etra said.
The judge agreed to relax the order to a 10-yard buffer at parties and other public events, but said that the protection was "appropriate" and that Rihanna could ask for it to be dropped at a later date.
