James Brown Arrested : Rolling Stone

James Brown was arrested yesterday and charged with criminal domestic violence after he allegedly shoved his wife to the bedroom floor at their home in Beech Island, South Carolina.

The singer, 70, posted bond and was released on his own recognizance today. Thirty-four-year-old Tomi Rae Brown, Brown's fourth wife, was taken to the hospital and treated for scratches and bruises on her arm and an injury to her hip.

"I would never hurt my wife," Brown said in a statement. "I love her very much."

Brown and his wife, also one of his backup singers, were married three years ago and have one son, James Joseph Brown II. Last summer, Brown bought a full-page advertisement in the weekly Variety with a picture of the family at Disney World and the bizarre notice: "Due to Mr. James Brown and Mrs. Tomi Rae Brown's heavy, demanding tour schedule, they have decided to go their separate ways."

The arrest isn't Brown's first. He spent more than two years in jail for a 1988 drug and assault arrest. He was convicted on drug charges again a decade later. Last May he was granted a state pardon.

ANDREW DANSBY
(January 29, 2004)