LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Pop star Rihanna is prepared to take the witness stand next month if called to testify against former boyfriend Chris Brown, the singer accused of beating her, her lawyer said on Thursday.
Donald Etra said prosecutors told him they will formally request his client, Rihanna, to appear at the June 22 hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court.
“She has always agreed to do whatever the law requires her to do,” Etra said. “She is totally willing to testify if called to do so.”
Jane Robison, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office, declined to comment.
Brown, 20, the singer of hits “Kiss Kiss” and “Run It,” is charged with assaulting Rihanna and making criminal threats in what prosecutors say was an attack on his then-girlfriend on the eve of the Grammy awards in February.
He faces up to four years in prison if convicted, and has pleaded not guilty.
Brown was absent from a hearing Thursday, as his attorney, Mark Geragos, asked Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg for information about police investigations into the leaking of a photo of Rihanna looking bruised and bloodied.
The judge denied the request, saying it was too early to seek information about the leak.
The Barbados-born Rihanna, 21, scored hit songs with “Umbrella,” “Take a Bow” and “Disturbia.”
