Nick Gordon was ordered to pay Bobbi Kristina Brown's estate $36,250,000 in damages after he was found legally responsible in a civil trial for causing her death, an attorney for the family said Thursday.
The award broke down as follows: $1.575 million for money taken from the account, including alleged stolen rings; $250,000 in punitive damages; $1.37 million for assault and battery; $13.8 million for pain and suffering as a result of assault; $4.2 million in punitive damages; and $15 million for present value of life.
Gordon was found legally responsible for the death of Brown, the daughter of Whitney Houston and Bobbi Brown, in September after he failed to comply with court orders in a civil lawsuit filed against him. Her estate filed a $40 million wrongful death lawsuit against him in October 2015, six months after her death.
Gordon was sued for allegedly causing Brown’s death by injecting her with “a toxic cocktail rendering her unconscious and then putting her face down in a tub of cold water causing her to suffer brain damage” after a violent fight, according to the complaint.
Brown was found unconscious Jan. 31, 2015, in the bathtub of her Georgia townhouse. She died six months later at a hospice surrounded by family at the age of 22.
In March, officials determined the cause of Brown's death to be “immersion associated with drug intoxication.” However, the medical examiner was unable to conclude whether her death was intentional or accidental, and ultimately classified the manner of death as “undetermined.”
A criminal investigation into the death remains ongoing.
Brown's attorney R. David Ware said after the verdict, “There was an urgent need, in my mind, to get justice for Bobbi Kristina Brown and that is why I took the case. We intend to pursue, with all vigor, the full collection of the judgement. The Defendant will not escape justice nor ever profit from his misdeeds. We hope that in some small way this will allow Krissy’s family to continue their quest for peace.”
Ware's co-counsel Glenda Hatchett said "domestic violence is a horrible reality in our society and Bobbi suffered such horrific pain and degradation at the hands of Nick Gordon, the man she loved and trusted. ... No one should suffer the way she did and the Judge sent a strong message in the award of punitive damages that this despicable behavior is inexcusable and will not be tolerated."