Hit-and-Run Charge Dismissed Against Chris Brown

A misdemeanor hit-and-run charge against R&B singer Chris Brown was dismissed Thursday, with a judge saying a "civil compromise" was reached between the singer and the other motorist involved in a May 21 accident in Toluca Lake.

A deputy city attorney objected to the settlement, who said the singer -- who is still on probation for the 2009 assault of his then-girlfriend Rihanna -- was "aggressive" after the crash and had to be restrained by a passenger in his car.

The singer's attorney, Mark Geragos, insisted that no money exchanged hands between Brown and the other motorist, who was reimbursed through insurance for $800 in damage to her vehicle.

The hit-and-run count was the last remaining charge stemming from the May 21 accident. A misdemeanor count of driving without a valid license was dropped last month, along with an infraction for allegedly failing to have proof of insurance.

Deputy City Attorney Patrick D. Hiscocks said he objected to the settlement based on Brown's alleged behavior after the crash and the fact he was on felony probation at the time.

Brown, 24, "acted in an aggressive fashion after he refused to present his ID" to the other motorist," Hiscocks said.

The prosecutor said the other motorist "felt she was being castigated" on social media and the Internet in the aftermath of the crash and charges against the singer.

Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Christine Ewell approved the settlement and agreed to dismiss the case, despite the prosecutor's objection.

Brown was not present at the hearing.

Geragos conceded that after the accident, Brown gave the other driver an incorrect insurance car, accidentally handing her one for a different vehicle. But he said Brown met with the woman and they both wanted to put the incident behind them.

"Sometimes I get the impression that (Brown is) prosecuted for who he is, not for what he's done," Geragos said.

Brown has another court hearing Friday afternoon in downtown Los Angeles in connection with his probation in the felony assault case. His probation was revoked last month in response to the charges filed against him in the Toluca Lake crash.

Brown, who allegedly rear-ended a Mercedes with his Range Rover, used his Twitter page to insist he did nothing wrong on the day of the crash.

"I did everything I was suppose to do during the so-called hit n run," Brown posted on Twitter last week. "I provided the correct info. There were no injuries or damages. C'mon!!"

On the day the misdemeanor charges were filed, Brown wrote, "It's not a hit and run if u get out (of) the car, exchange information."

"I have a valid drivers license and I gave the woman the right info," he wrote. "She saw cameras and wanted to make a scene. She contacted the cops thinking of a payday from Chris Brown when I followed the proper procedures," he wrote.

Brown pleaded guilty in June 2009 to assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury, admitting that he assaulted Rihanna during an argument that began around 12:30 a.m. Feb. 8, 2009, while they 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. Prosecutors, however, filed papers earlier this year questioning whether Brown had completed his community labor hours, citing "significant discrepancies" in reports about Brown's work in his native Virginia. The discrepancies indicate "at best sloppy documentation and at worst fraudulent reporting," according to the court papers.

Geragos has denied the allegations.