Britney Spears will not be charged with any crimes based on a complaint that the American pop singer struck her housekeeper’s phone out of her hands during a dispute, Variety reported.
The decision to not charge Spears has been made due to insufficient evidence. The Ventura County District Attorney noted the lack of injury to the housekeeper or any damage to the phone as per the housekeeper’s complaint.
“During the argument, Spears was alleged to have slapped a phone out of the housekeeper’s hand. The housekeeper indicated that the screen protector to the phone was damaged. The housekeeper had no visible injuries,” the DA’s office said.
After a fight over the veterinary care received by Spears’ dog, on August 16, the housekeeper had called the authorities accusing the singer of striking her during the dispute at her Southern California home.
In the complaint, the employee alleged that Spears also slapped her phone out of her hands. Initially, the housekeeper called deputies to the house and later went to a sheriff’s station to file a complaint. The employee was not hurt.
At the time, the sheriff’s office had said that they would forward the results of their investigation to the Ventura County District Attorney’s office for potential consideration of misdemeanour battery charges.
Calling the incident “tabloid fodder” and hinting at the media’s previous coverage, Spears’ attorney Mathew Rosengart said, “If this involved Jane Doe rather than Britney Spears it would not have been pursued or covered at all. Anyone can make an accusation, but this should never have made it this far and we are glad the DA’s office has done the right thing.”
He further added, “We sincerely hope the media and others will be more respectful of Ms Spears in the future.”
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Meanwhile, 39-year-old pop singer has also been embroiled in a prolonged legal battle over her conservatorship under her father, Jamie Spears. In 2008, at the age of 26, Spears entered into a temporary conservatorship or guardianship with her father following several public meltdowns. It gave her father control over her financial affairs, estate, and her personal life. In June this year, Spears called the conservatorship “abusive” and pleaded for it to end.
After objecting to his daughter’s requests and denying her claims throughout, Jamie Spears finally agreed to step down from the conservatorship in August. But, on Tuesday, Spears’ attorney said that her father was demanding a $2 million pay-off for his exit. He added that his exit from the conservatorship needed to happen as soon as possible and without a price tag.
The matter is scheduled to be heard next on September 29.