Chris Brown’s probation was revoked Thursday, but the singer will remain free while officials explore the circumstances surrounding his appearance last week at a San Jose nightclub where five people were shot.
During a generally favorable progress report hearing for the R&B singer, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge James R. Brandlin said Brown should have received permission from his probation officer before leaving Los Angeles County for the Jan. 11 show in the Bay Area.
Brandlin said Brown signed a document last month agreeing not to leave town without prior approval.
However, defense attorney Mark Geragos told the judge that his office had “wrongly” advised one of Brown’s managers that approval was not required for travel within the state.
“The failure to seek permission … appears to be more of an oversight,” Brandlin said.
Still, Brandlin followed the Probation Department’s recommendation to revoke the singer’s probation, and immediately released Brown on his own recognizance.
Another progress report hearing was scheduled for March 20.
Brandlin said Brown was otherwise in compliance with the terms of his probation, but still had 202 hours of the 1,000 hours of agreed-upon community labor requirements to complete.
“It’s a favorable report,” the judge said, adding that Brown was testing negative for drugs, had been attending therapy regularly and was showing a “cooperative attitude.”
Police say all five people injured in the San Jose club shootings are expected to survive.
Brandlin said there was “no indication” that Brown was involved in the incident.
Brown pleaded guilty in June 2009 to assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury for assaulting Rihanna during an argument that began about 12:30 a.m. Feb. 8, 2009, while the singers were in a rented Lamborghini in Hancock Park after attending a pre-Grammy Awards party.
Brown was sentenced to five years probation, a yearlong domestic violence program — which he completed — and 180 days of community labor.
Brown’s probation was first revoked in summer 2013 after he was charged with a pair of misdemeanors and an infraction stemming from a traffic crash in Toluca Lake. Those charges were later dismissed.
His probation was reinstated in August 2013, when Brandlin ordered the singer to perform an additional 1,000 hours of community labor.
It was revoked again after he was accused in Washington, D.C., of punching a 20-year-old man who was trying to get a photo with him a year ago. Last March, Brown was arrested after he was tossed out of a Malibu substance- abuse and anger-management facility, where he had been for about four months.
Brandlin previously said the singer made troubling remarks during a group therapy session, discussing his use of guns and knives.
Brown admitted violating his probation and was ordered to spend another 131 days in county jail, but he was released after less than a month, and his probation was reinstated.
