Update!

Brown's Dad: Chris Is Home and "Very Remorseful"

Clinton Brown tells People his son "wants to make sure that [Rihanna] is OK"

By Natalie Finn Feb 14, 2009 8:00 PMTags
Chris BrownJeffrey Mayer/Getty Images

A rendezvous with mom may have been first on Chris Brown's itinerary, but a heart-to-heart with dad apparently wasn't too far off.

"Just know that he's home," Brown's biological dad, Clinton Brown, who says he spoke to his son Thursday, told People. "He needed some time to get his thoughts together and regroup."

The 44-year-old corrections officer spoke to the magazine from outside his home in Tappahannock, Va., not far from where Brown's mother, Joyce Hawkins, lives.

E! News learned yesterday that after spending a night at Las Vegas' Hard Rock Hotel and Casino with friends, Brown had left to go see his mother. The 19-year-old was booked Sunday by Los Angeles police on suspicion of making criminal threats and is being investigated for allegedly beating up girlfriend Rihanna.

But Clinton Brown says that his son is "very remorseful."

"He's very concerned about the situation and he wants to make sure that [Rihanna is] OK. This is unfortunate—this stumble, this situation. Hopefully, he will get past it. We all have our shortcomings. We all trip."

Rihanna, 20, was released from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on Monday after being treated for injuries that Brown has been accused of inflicting. She postponed concerts scheduled for Thursday and tonight in Jakarta, Indonesia and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Law-enforcement sources told the Los Angeles Times earlier this week that the "Umbrella" singer was cooperating with their investigation. Meanwhile, the L.A. District Attorney's Office has asked police to compile more information before they determine whether to press charges against Brown.

A source close to the investigation told E! News that Rihanna told police Brown threatened to kill her and then choked her until she lost consciousness. His camp never responded to repeated requests for comment on the allegations.

But Clinton Brown predicts that Chris' true fans will stick by him through what could understandably be thought of as the beginning of the end of his rampant popularity.

"If you are on his side, you are on his side," he said. "Just because someone trips, if you are truly a fan, you are not going to demonize him instantaneously."

But he added, "This music industry is very unforgiving when it comes to having indiscretions. He will continue to be a good person. He loves people. And like most of us, most humans, things will occur. And hopefully a person won't be judged simply on that alone."

Gum maker Wrigler pulled all Doublemint ads featuring Brown earlier this week, and the avid basketball fan also canceled his scheduled appearances at the NBA All-Star Game festivities this weekend. He was supposed to play in tonight's Celebrity All-Star Game and then introduce the players with Shaquille O'Neal before Sunday's main event.

(Originally published February 13, 2009, at 4:45 p.m.)