Justin Bieber is being sued by the guy he got into a street fight with in Cleveland after Game 3 of the 2016 NBA Finals. The victim claims he was injured by Bieber and his bodyguard, and that Bieber hurled a racial epithet at him.
According to the lawsuit filed Thursday (June 7) by Rodney Cannon, he claims he was introduced to Bieber while socializing at the Westin Hotel in Cleveland, Ohio. Cannon says Bieber removed his sunglasses without permission and put them on. Bieber's "demeanor dramatically changed," however, when Cannon took Bieber's picture. He became "irate," "aggressively threatening" to harm Cannon if he did not delete the photograph," according to the suit. Cannon also alleges “threatening communications made in public in front of a number of people including racial epithets.” The N-word is the what was reportedly said.
Cannon alleges that things then turned physical as Bieber grabbed his shirt as he was walking away and then punched him in the face, head, and body. Rather than "engage in mutual combat," Cannon says he subdued Bieber on the ground, at which point a member of Bieber's security detail struck him in the head, causing him to lose consciousness for a brief period of time.
Cannon says he suffered mental, emotional and physical injuries, including a concussion. He was reportedly forced to miss multiple days of work. His sunglasses and clothing were also destroyed which he valued at upwards of $1,000. Cannon is seeking damages which are to be decided at trial.
The incident was initially reported in 2016 after footage from incident leaked online. Bieber was seen squaring off with a man twice his size and after throwing punches to the guy's face, he was taken to the ground. Cannon had filed a police report following the fight and the case was under investigation.
Bieber has previously been in hot water before when he was 14-years-old he filmed a video switching his lyrics for "One Less Lonely Girl" with the "N-word." The video surfaced some years later.
Source: theblast.com
