Convicted Rihanna-beater Chris Brown was back in court today to give the judge a progress report on his probation for felony assault. The disgraced R&B star was sentenced to undergo counseling and must perform six months of community labor in Virginia.

Lawyer Mark Geragos earned his hefty fee by convincing probation officials that Brown had already done 100 hours of community service. Whoopee. Isn’t that like, two and a half weeks out of six months? He does less than a month out of six and gets an “extremely favorable” report? Brown’s now doing a “comeback” tour and releasing a new album. When will he get back to VA and finish picking up trash off the highway?

Chris Brown is finding that some people just aren’t going to forgive and forget what he did to Rihanna. TMZ reports the disgraced singer was posing with fans in NYC Wednesday night when a woman went up to him and shouted “****ing beater” and “I hope someone beats the ****ing crap out of you!”

All those anger management classes must be working, because Chris just smiled and walked on by. And ignored the fans who yelled, “Smack that bitch up.” Uh, wasn’t that what got him in all this trouble in the first place?

In an effort to salvage what’s left of his career, disgraced crooner Chris Brown will be embarking on a “Fan Appreciation” tour. The AP reports the jaunt will begin in Houston Nove. 14 and play small venues.

Uh, isn’t he supposed to be in the middle of doing six months of all-day labor back in Virginia for the Rihanna beatdown? Is the court letting him out to do a tour? I certainly hope they don’t consider returning to the concert stage to be “community service,” even though a portion of the proceeds from the tour are supposed to go to charity.

Maybe someone in the justice system will note that only two months ago, Brown was sentenced to five years’ probation, six months of community labor and a year of domestic violence counseling. Let him finish all that, then go back on the road.

f you’re one of the many who’ve been dying to see Chris Brown in an orange jumpsuit, you’ll be getting your wish.

The AP reports Virginia police as saying the disgraced singer “will remove graffiti, pick up trash and wash cars” as penance for his vicious beating of former GF Rihanna. Brown will be doing his six months of labor near his home of Richmond. Too bad he won’t be doing any of that grunt work in SoCal, where there would be plenty of paps to capture images of his downfall.

Somehow, I doubt that any of the “friends” who have tried to excuse Brown’s actions will be out there with him in the hot southern sun, helping him pick up trash.

Chris Brown claims to be “depressed” over being sentenced for assaulting Rihanna, but you certainly couldn’t tell from his actions after leaving court on Tuesday. A few hours after being sentenced to six months of community labor, plus five years probation and a year of domestic violence classes, Brown was out on the town, getting his party on.

People reports the disgraced singer joined a posse of his buds at the trendy Guys & Dolls Lounge in West Hollywood, where the group ordered several bottles of champagne. While being sentenced to hard labor seems like an odd thing to celebrate, this little party may lead to more trouble for Brown. The stipulations of his probation include no drinking or frequenting establishments where liquor is sold.

So what is the under-21 Brown doing in a bar? His probation office in Virginia may be having a talk with the singer about his conduct, since it could land him behind bars instead of inside one.

Disgraced R&B star Chris Brown will have to wait a little longer to learn his fate—talking to kids or picking up trash?

E! reports that Brown’s sentencing for assaulting former GF Rihanna has been delayed until August 27. This time lapse is supposed to allow authorities in California and Brown’s home state of Virginia to work out the details of his punishment. Brown prefers to serve his six months of community labor in VA, probably because there will be fewer paps to gleefully record images of him in his orange suit, sweating by the interstate.

L.A. Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg is determined that the crooner not be allowed to get off with cushy duties, saying, “I did not favor community service, I wanted it to be community labor.” Good for her! Maybe some of Brown’s teen fans would think twice about emulating his treatment of women if they saw photos of him doing hard labor for his crime.

Chris Brown may have gotten off without jail time for assaulting Rihanna, but his tarnished image can’t be repaired with a plea bargain. 

Gatecrasher reports that the producers of Sunday night’s BET Awards pulled Brown’s performance on the Michael Jackson love-fest. Sources finger Rev. Al Sharpton and mogul Jay-Z for nixing the singer’s performance. “Al made such a fuss to the BET executives that they pulled Chris. Jay is a big name in the BET community, and he was very vocal about his displeasure with Chris attending the ceremony. He didn’t want Chris anywhere near the awards so close to the court’s ruling.”

Brown is furious over the snub, but he might as well get used to it. He’s likely to face more rejection, unless he truly devoted himself to convincing the public that he’s genuinely sorry for what he did.

As most of us predicted, “Celebrity Justice” has prevailed, and Chris Brown won’t do a single day behind bars for the alleged beating of Rihanna. That is, unless he decides he’s too big a star to pick up trash.

TMZ reports the singer’s legal team worked out a last-minute plea deal that saves Brown a term in the slammer, but doesn’t let him off too easy. For pleading guilty to felony assault, the formerly pampered superstar was sentenced to spend 180 days doing community labor—which really means hard labor. Putting in eight-hour days cleaning trash off the highways in his home state of Virginia will probably put a crimp in his late-night partying, poor thing.

He also gets five years get supervised probation, which includes a return to court every three months, and must enroll in a domestic violence counseling program. Finally, Brown must stay away from Rihanna, even at public events, for five years. That’s going to make seating them at future awards shows a lot of fun.

What happens if the spoiled singer doesn’t feel like getting up in the morning for work, or getting his manicured hands dirty? It could be four years in the slammer, so it will be very interesting to see if Brown is man enough to take his punishment.

No wonder this summer’s TV is such a snoozefest—they won’t let us watch the good stuff.

If Chris Brown has to face his alleged victim Rihanna in a Los Angeles court on Monday, there will be no TV cameras present to record the reunion. E! reports lensmen are barred from the preliminary hearing, where evidence is to be presented which will determine whether the singer will go to trial for assault charges. The defense, led by lawyer-to-the-stars Mark Geragos, has tried in vain to have the hearing delayed. They have also failed to track down the LAPD leak that allowed a post-beatdown photo of Rihanna to hit the internet.

Wonder which sneaky tabloid will succeed in smuggling a stealth camera into the hearing? 

Chris Brown’s high-priced lawyer is working hard for his money, but he can’t keep the singer from having to face a judge to answer for his alleged assault on former girlfriend Rihanna.

According to Reuters, the California Supreme Court has denied a request by Brown’s attorney Mark Geragos to delay next week’s hearing on the case against the R&B singer. Geragos has been searching in vain for the source behind the leak of that infamous photo of Rihanna’s bruised and bloody face following the attack in February.

This means Brown will  have to be in court Monday—and so will Rihanna, provided her presence is requested. Obviously, Brown’s legal eagles are doing everything possible to avoid having the evidence against their client presented in court. Which just makes me wonder how damning the truth really is. Can Geragos pull off a plea deal in only two days?

Pop star Rihanna has been keeping a low profile since allegedly being beaten by former BF Chris Brown in February, but she’s going to forced to recount the incident very soon.

The AP reports Rihanna is on the list of potential witnesses who will be subpoenaed to testify at Brown’s preliminary hearing June 22. The singer’s lawyer, Donald Etra, says that his client will comply with the order. This hearing will determine whether there is enough evidence against Brown to continue the case.

In a hearing today, a judge turned down a request by Brown attorney Mark Geragos to examine police and investigative records on the case, and pertaining to the leak of a photo showing Rihanna’s battered face.

Brown did not attend today’s hearing, but is required to appear at the preliminary hearing next month. This will be the first time he’s had to face Rihanna in public since the beating.

What’s the first thing a singer does when his career begins to go down the tubes? Dabble in another genre, of course.

The latest desperate loser to try this ploy is alleged Rihanna-beater Chris Brown. According to E!’s Marc Malkin, the troubled crooner plans to include the country-flavored tune “Trapped in a Dream” on his next album—and may be looking for a superstar to duet with him. Brown’s producer Robert Allen says, “Maybe we’ll see an appearance from Carrie Underwood or someone like that. It’s that kind of song.”

Yeah, like squeaky-clean Carrie would bother with him. Besides, did he see what she did to a cheating BF’s ride in that “Before He Cheats” video? I’ll bet she’d take more than a baseball bat to a guy who slugged her.

While this country fan wouldn’t pay a nickel to hear Brown’s song, I would be willing to buy a ticket to see Tim McGraw, Trace Adkins and Toby Keith beat the crap out of him behind the Grand Ole Opry.

At least the guys who loaned the stuff to her back in February will. 

The AP reports L.A. prosectors have agreed to return the $1.4 million in jewels Rihanna was wearing the night of her alleged beating at the hands of Chris Brown. The baubles had been confiscated as evidence in the case against Brown, who faces charges of assault. The pop star will be reunited with the pricey jewels after they are photographed for possible use, if the case comes to trial.

But Rihanna won’t get to enjoy the pieces—they have to go back to the companies that own them. Other stars have been dissed for failure to return borrowed bling, but at least Rihanna has a good excuse.

Chris Brown may be able to walk away from assault charges—all because of leaks by the LAPD.

According to RadarOnline, Brown’s high-priced attorney Mark Geragos plans to file a Pitchess motion seeking access to personnel file of police officers involved in the case, in which Brown is accused of badly beating his girl friend Rihanna in his car on the night before the Grammys in L.A. Geragos claims leaks by the department, including a photo of the battered Rihanna, have prejudiced the public against his client and are grounds for dismissing the case. Geragos is looking for the person who leaked the incriminating photo.

So having the public see exactly what your client did to his victim is grounds for getting him off? A preliminary hearing is set for May 28, if Geragos doesn’t get that plea bargain he wants by then.

It was the worst night of Rihanna’s young life. First, she was brutally beaten by BF Chris Brown. Now, her bruises have healed but she can’t get her pricey jewels she wore that night returned to her.

The AP reports the pop singer wants the LAPD and prosectors to return the pair of earrings and three rings which were seized as evidence. The value of the jewelry is estimated at $1.4 million. Rihanna’s lawyer states that photographs of the items could be used as evidence rather than the actual pieces.

To complicate matters further, the jewels don’t belong to Rihanna—they were loaned to her, and now the four companies who lent them want them back. Since there was blood flying around the inside of Brown’s car that night, those jewelry companies better clean that stuff—if they ever get it back.

Alleged felon Chris Brown went shopping on Melrose Blvd., surrounded by bodyguards and pretending people still like him. That nerd disguise just isn’t working.

It looks like Chris Brown’s highly-paid legal team failed to work out a plea bargain with the Los Angeles D.A.

The AP reports the singer plead “not guilty” to charges of felony assault likely to cause great bodily injury and making criminal  threats against former girlfriend Rihanna. Brown could be facing up to five years in prison if convicted. 

Rihanna is currently in Barbados and did not appear in court. She is rumored to be staying as far away from L.A. and this case as possible, to avoid being called to testify against Brown.

So will Brown actually be tried? I’ll believe it when I see it. That’s what his lawyers are getting paid for —to make this little inconvenience go away.

Pop star Rihanna has plenty to look forward to—and none of it involves her abusive ex Chris Brown.

RadarOnline reports the singer was spotted at Giorgio’s restaurant in L.A., partying with girlfriends and label execs. The happy group raised toasts to the success of her new record—and her breakup with Brown!

A source said, “People close to Rihanna have drilled it into her head that if she stays with Chris her career will be over. At the dinner party there were about 10 toasts made, including one to the fact she’s about to land the cover of a major fashion magazine.”

Glad to hear she’s moving on with her future. Brown has something to look forward to, also—his arraignment on Monday. Let’s hope there’s jail time in his future.

Is Rihanna having second thoughts about testifying against BF Chris Brown? FoxNews claims the pop star is having second thoughts and just “wants the whole thing” to go away.

Fox says Rihanna is angry that the photo of her battered face was leaked and also that she was publicly named as Brown’s victim. Obviously, refusing to cooperate in Brown’s prosecution could prove very damaging for Rihanna’s image and career.  

On the other hand, TMZ quotes Sandi Gibbons from the L.A. County D.A.’s office as saying, “We deal with her attorney who says she is a cooperating victim.” The D.A. already has those post-beating photos and Rihanna’s statement that Brown had battered her before.

So what’s really true? We’ll find out next week, when Brown is scheduled to be arraigned. Provided, of course, his high-priced legal team fails to cut a deal by then.

Rihanna’s looking to make some changes in her life. No, she hasn’t kicked Chris Brown to the curb yet, but she is planning to leave her old home—and its bad memories—behind.

E! reports the pop star has been mansion shopping in the Hollywood Hills. One of the homes that caught her eye is a 5,913-square-foot home once owned by Jerry Seinfeld. The posh pad boasts three bedrooms, five bathrooms, a pool and hot tub, and panoramic views of the city. The price? A cool $6.25 million.

Real estate agent Russell Filice says, “She wants a home with a great view.” Sounds like just the thing for entertaining. Especially entertaining new boyfriends who can make her forget about Chris Brown even sooner than the public does.