Jury Clears Snoop Dogg Of Man’s Beating
Snoop Dogg
A civil jury stated that Snoop Dogg, whose real name is Calvin Broadus, did not hit a man who came up on stage during a concert in 2005 near Seattle.
The rapper was not in court on Friday when the jury’s verdict cleared him of civil assault and battery claims. The jury did find that Richard Monroe Jr. suffered major injuries during the concert and he was given $449,400 in damages to be paid by a record label, another performer and others were involved in the concert.
The damages awarded were alot lower than the $22 million Monroe was supposed to get when he sued Snoop Dogg in 2006.
Jurors realized that Snoop Dogg doesn’t personally owe Monroe anything.
During the two weeks of testimony, jurors were shown several times a video of a noisy riotous fight that Monroe said left him unconscious, badly bruised and practically naked.
Brian E. Watkins, Monroe’s attorney, said jurors did believe his client’s arguement, that Snoop Doggs’ people were involved in a wild beating.
“We’re very pleased that the jury found that this incident was not something to be taken lightly,” Watkins said.
Responsibility for paying the judgment falls in the hands of Doggystyle Records, which Snoop Dogg founded, along with rapper Soopafly, whose real name is Priest Brooks, and other unnamed parties.
While Snoop Dogg was not present for the verdict, he attended part of the trial and testified. He denying that he hit Monroe.
Monroe’s attorneys argued that Snoop Dogg hit their client with a microphone during the disorderly fight. But a video was shown during the trial and it didn’t show Snoop Dogg striking Monroe. In addition the performer said he left the stage before the fight was over.
Snoop Doggs’ attorneys attacked Monroe’s remembrance of the events, telling jurors that his story about who hit him changed over time. They concluded Monroe didn’t tell investigators immediately after the incident that Snoop Dogg hit him with his microphone.
The video shows Snoop Dogg and others performing one of the rapper’s signature songs “Gin and Juice” during the concert at the White River Amphitheater near Seattle. Monroe, who said he assumed he had been invited onstage, appears in the video and puts his arms around Snoop Dogg, but is quickly attackled by security.
The noisey quarrel then moves to the back of the stage, where Snoop Dogg is seen standing, but he then disappears from the video.
Snoop Dogg testified that he quickly left the stage and got on his tour bus.
Monroe woke up moments after the incident, confused, in a pool of blood and with his pants ripped off. The photos that were shown to jurors included images of his swollen face hours after the concert.
Monroe told investigators that the men who beat him up, also poured their drinks on him during the beating.
