Singer Chris Brown faces legal action for keeping a pet capuchin monkey illegally.
But authorities took custody of the monkey in Los Angeles, the city where Brown lives, which Brown claims is a coincidence, saying the relative happened to be in town with the monkey. If convicted Brown faces a maximum of six months in prison. A judge will hear the case on Feb. 6, according to TMZ.
“One day they will make a movie about this kid, saying how he was one of the greats and stared adversity in the eyes and stood tall no matter what they threw at him. HE MADE MUSIC THAT MATTERED AND HELPED SO MANY PEOPLE BELIEVE IN THEIR ABILITIES TO MANIFEST THEIR OWN DESTINY. it’s pretty sad that all these things will be recognized when IM GONE! ❤️. BUT FOR NOW, IMA REMAIN HUMBLE/CREATIVE (MYSelf) And ultimately elevate my CONSCIOUSNESS,” Brown wrote in the text area to a black and white photo post of himself kneeling.
“They are destructive. They can tear a house apart. We are talking rip the curtains down, knock everything off every shelf you have. Think about a critter—who is more agile and able to reach places than a cat—having a tantrum. You can’t house train them. They evolve to live in trees,” said Dr. Stephen Zawistowski, executive vice president and science adviser for the ASPCA in New York, told the Associated Press. He said that in the United States less than 100,000 capuchins are kept as pets.
The executive director of Primarily Primates, a primate sanctuary in Texas, saw a rise in capuchins at the sanctuary, which he attributes to a Hollywood trend pushed by movies and TV shows like “Friends,” “Pirates of the Caribbean,” and “Night at the Museum,” according to the Associated Press.
“Can you imagine going into the jungle, grabbing a monkey out of a tree and taking him home? He'd rip your face off—as he should, as he should,” said Lynn Cuny, founder and chief executive of Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation Inc., in Kendalia, Texas.