Justin Bieber insists he was acting in self-defense when he got into a fight at the NBA finals in 2016.
The ‘Believe’ singer was caught on camera two years ago when he engaged in a heated confrontation with Rodney Tobias Cannon whilst in Cleveland after Game 3 of the tournament, and he has been subjected to a lawsuit that claims he used "racial slurs" and was responsible for injuries sustained by Cannon during the brawl.
However, in new court documents obtained by The Blast, the 24-year-old singer has denied any wrong doing and claimed anything that may have happened between them was Cannon’s fault.
The documents state: "Bieber reasonably believed Plaintiff was going to harm him and any force he used was only the amount reasonably necessary to protect himself."
Justin is seeking to have the case dismissed and wants his attorneys’ fees paid but a judge has yet to rule.
The filing comes a few months after the ‘Love Yourself’ singer’s manager, Scooter Braun, insisted the allegations were all "completely false" and accused Cannon of blackmail.
He tweeted: "Justin Bieber has done a lot of stupid things in his past but what he has also done is apologize and own those mistakes. This most recent claim against him is completely false and a fabrication from a man who tried to push for money for the last several years.
"It is disgusting to me to see this man lie and try to bring race into a situation to scare us into a payment again. He never said these things before because they never happened. This is a smear tactic to get money and it’s gross.
"So I repeat… these statements again justin are completely false and we won’t be scared or blackmailed. This man should be ashamed of himself. Real racism exists.. but it doesn’t apply here. Just horrible.(sic)"
In the lawsuit, Cannon claimed Justin "suddenly became irate" after he took a picture with the singer and "aggressively threatening harm to [him] if the photograph was not deleted."
He also alleged Justin made "threatening communications made in public in front of a number of people included the use of racial epithets."
Justin Bieber claims self-defense
