A Fulton County judge has ruled that Nick Gordon is legally responsible for the 2015 death of Bobbi Kristina Brown.
According to NBC affiliate WXIA, Gordon failed to show up again for a civil hearing in superior court, which prompted Fulton County Superior Court Judge T. Jackson Bedford’s ruling. As a result of Gordon’s second no-show in court, Judge Bedford ruled that anything alleged in the wrongful death lawsuit by Brown’s conservator would be admitted through omission.
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Bobbi Kristina, the 22-year-old daughter of late entertainment icon Whitney Houston and R&B singer Bobby Brown, died last year after being found unresponsive in a bathtub as a result of drowning and drug intoxication.
The lawsuit, first filed in July 2015, alleged that Gordon abused Brown consistently and plotted to steal her inheritance before drugging and then drowned her. Gordon has not been criminally charged.
Bobby Brown has since responded to say that he is pleased with the judges ruling, but still seeks answers.
“I am pleased with the outcome of today’s court proceedings,” Brown said in a statement to US Weekly. “All I ever wanted was answers relating to who and what caused my daughter’s death. Today’s judgment tells me it was Nick Gordon. Now I need to process all the emotions I have and lean on God to get me and my family through this.”
A jury will determine the amount to be given to Brown’s conservator. The lawsuit is seeking $50 million in damages.