Chris Brown will reportedly be entitled to a new dog attack trial if his former housekeeper rejects her award being reduced to $9.5 million.
On Tuesday (Sept. 29), Judge Huey P. Cotton reversed the previous ruling that awarded Maria Avila $12.9 million, according to Rolling Stone. Judge Cotton cited the amount as excessive based on the evidence presented at trial over the summer.
Judge Cotton has given Avila the option of taking a lesser payout of $9.5 million or retrying her case. He did, however, uphold the $855,000 award by the jury to Avila’s sister, Patricia Avila, for past economic damages and emotional distress, as she was present during the attack.
Maria sued Chris for negligence in April of 2021, claiming she was mauled by his 200-pound Caucasian Shepherd while taking out the trash at his California home in 2020. She suffered lifelong scarring and physical injuries due to the incident.
Initially, Maria was reportedly seeking $90 million in damages. During the trial, Chris reportedly testified that he warned Maria and her sister that the dogs were not friendly and that they should not go outside unless escorted by a member of his security team.
The first trial in the matter ended in a mistrial after one of the jurors looked up information related to the case on the internet and shared it with other jury members. The second trial took place shortly afterward, with a verdict being reached two weeks after the initial mistrial.
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