Summary: Singer Louis Tomlinson will find out in a few days whether or not he will be charged for allegedly assaulting a paparazzi.
In a few days, One Direction star Louis Tomlinson will find out whether or not he’ll face prosecution for getting into a fight with a paparazzi at LAX. Earlier this month, the 25-year-old was arrested for the March 3rd brawl, and the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office said that they’ll make a decision on the case sometime next week.
“It is still technically under review by the prosecutors in this office and they are conducting some follow up with various law enforcement agencies. We have to go through the proper channels of our office before we make the final decision,” Frank Mateljan of the City Attorney’s Office told The Sun.
Earlier this month, 1D singer Tomlinson and his girlfriend Eleanor Calder arrived at Los Angeles International Airport when they were confronted by paparazzi at the baggage claim. Tomlinson and photographer Karl Larsen got into a heated argument before Tomlinson allegedly slammed the photographer into the ground, making him lose consciousness. An eyewitness gave the The Daily Mail an account that seemed to back up that story.
Meanwhile, Ana Becerra Herrera tried to secretly film the incident on her phone and Tomlinson’s girlfriend Calder allegedly tried to smack the phone out of the onlooker’s hand. Then Calder allegedly attacked Herrera, according to The Daily Mail’s witness.
Other women also said that Tomlinson had assaulted them in the fray. It’s been reported that the victims had subdued the singer and performed a citizen’s arrest before the LAPD had arrived.
The scene was so chaotic that Tomlinson said he didn’t know what was going on.
“I may have taken him down, I’m not sure, but I remember we both fell to the floor,” Tomlinson said to the police at the time.
A police report revealed that Tomlinson had injuries on his knuckles, The Belfast Telegraph stated.
The “Night Changes” and “What Makes You Beautiful” singer was taken to jail and booked for battery. He was released in the morning on $20,000 bail. If convicted, Tomlinson may face up to six months in jail.
Tomlinson’s attorney, Martin Singer, said that the alleged victims were actually the attackers and that Tomlinson reacted in self-defense.
“The paparazzi provoked and caused the altercation that occurred with Louis. It’s not the first time that a paparazzi has created an altercation with a celebrity,” Singer said. “While the altercation was going on with the paparazzi, three other individuals were attacking his girlfriend during this incident and he came to her defense.”
Tomlinson has remained out of the spotlight since his arrest, but this Saturday, he wrote a sweet birthday message to his deceased mother, Johannah Deakin, who died in December of leukemia. She would have been 44 years old.
Tomlinson emerged on the scene after he auditioned for the British reality show, X-Factor. Simon Cowell felt that he was a good singer but not good enough to stand alone so he partnered him with Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, and Zayn Malik to create the boy band, One Direction. The band which is now on hiatus reportedly made over $200,000 a day in 2015.
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Photo courtesy of BBC