No Charges Filed Against Brown

By
ABC News
January 6, 2006, 2:18 AM ET
2 min read

B E E C H  I S L A N D, S.C., Aug. 1, 2000 -- Investigators say they could not findenough evidence to charge James Brown who was accused of swinging aknife at a utility worker in the soul singer’s South Carolina home.

“The facts of this case do not establish probable cause and sothe Aiken County Sheriff’s Office will not seek a warrant for thearrest of Mr. Brown,” Sheriff Howard Sellers said today.

South Carolina Electric & Gas worker Russell Eubanks had filed acriminal incident report with the sheriff’s office on July 13, morethan a week after the alleged incident at the Beech Island home ofthe 67-year-old singer.

Brown Didn’t Let Eubanks Go

According to the police report, the singer’s security gate wasunlocked when Eubanks responded to a July 3 complaint of “nolights” at Brown’s home. There were no security guards around andBrown answered his own bell.

Brown approached Eubanks with a steak knife and said “that thiswould be his last day at the power company, that he was going to befired,” the report said. “Mr. Brown told Mr. Eubanks to contacthis supervisor and that he couldn’t leave.”

When Eubanks called his supervisor, Clayton Quattlebaum told himto leave the residence. Then Brown’s security guard walked up andtold Eubanks that Brown had been acting strangely recently and thatEubanks should leave.

Quattlebaum said there was nothing wrong with Brown’selectricity service and the company is not sure who reported thewere lights out.

Share of Legal Troubles

Brown has had his share of legal troubles, including athree-year sentence from 1988 to 1991 for assault and weaponsconvictions.

More recently, Brown spent six days at Charter RiversBehavioral Health Systems in Columbia in January 1998 afterofficers found marijuana and guns at his home.

Brown told reporters he used the marijuana for medicinalpurposes to treat eye ailments. He completed a 90-day drugtreatment program to avoid a two-year prison sentence on thecharges.

Also, a former female employee of his has sued the Godfather of soul for more than $1 million, alleging repeated sexual harassment, saying that Brown is well-known for “smoking marijuana and for demanding sex from his female employees.”

Brown is best known as the “Godfather of Soul.” His songs include“I Got You (I Feel Good),” “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag,” and“(Get Up I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine.”