Chris Brown pleads not guilty to assault after allegedly breaking man's nose

The singer and his bodyguard were released from custody and are due to stand trial later in November

Chris Brown leaves the US District Court in Washington DC, 28 October (Reuters)

Chris Brown has pleaded not guilty to an alleged assault that broke a man’s nose.

The singer, 24, appeared in court yesterday following an arrest on Sunday after a man accused him and his bodyguard of breaking his nose.

Brown and his bodyguard, Christopher Hollosy, face a maximum sentence of six months in prison and a $1,000 (£620) fine if they are found guilty.

Both men were released from custody yesterday. The judge set a date for the preliminary hearing on 25 November.

According to a police report, Brown and Hollosy allegedly punched Parker Adams, 20 from Maryland, in the face in a nightclub in Washington DC.

Earlier in the day, Adams told police he had tried to push his way into a picture Brown was taking with a woman and her friend.

The police report states the singer said: “I’m not down with that gay shit. I feel like boxing.”

Brown denied punching Adams, and Hollosy said he intervened when Adams tried to get on Brown’s tour bus, according to a court charging document.

Brown’s lawyer, Danny Onorato, said in a statement: “Christopher Brown committed no crime. We understand that his security acted to protect Mr Brown and Mr Brown’s property as he is authorises to do under District of Columbia law. We are confident that Mr Brown will be exonerated of any wrongdoing.”

Brown is still on a five year probation for attacking his ex-girlfriend Rihanna in 2009 before the Grammy Music Awards.

His probation was revoked over the summer after he was charged with a hit-and-run traffic accident in Los Angeles. It was later reinstated after the judge was satisfied he and the driver had reached an agreement over the case.

In January, it was claimed he was involved in a fight with singer Frank Ocean over a car parking space outside a Hollywood recording studio.

At the time, detectives said Brown was under suspicion for punching the victim but the case was dropped after Ocean decided not to press charges.

His new album, X, is due out in December.