A judge in Washington rejected Chris Brown's request to drop the assault case and said the trial is going forward, according to Reuters.
Lawyers for the Grammy-award-winning singer had argued the case should be dismissed because prosecutors abused the grand jury process to prepare for trial, Reuters reported.
Brown's lawyer, Mark Geragos, said prosecutors used the grand jury to "freeze" the testimony of the alleged victim in the case, a man who says Brown and his bodyguard punched him outside a Washington hotel in October, according to Reuters.
Washington judge Judge Patricia Wynn agreed with prosecutors that they had a right to use the grand jury to assess the strength of their case, Reuters reported.
Wynn said on Monday that Brown and his bodyguard, Christopher Hollosy, will be tried separately after he testified during Brown's trial that he is the one who punched the man, according to Reuters. The U.S. Marshals Service is in the process of transporting Brown to Washington for trial and neither Brown nor Hollosy were present in court Monday.
Hollosy told police he struck the man when he attempted to get onto Brown's tour bus, Reuters reported.
Prosecutors say Brown first punched the man when he tried to get in a picture Brown was taking with two women and that Hollosy then struck the man again, according to Reuters.
A court document says the man Brown and Hollosy are accused of hitting was treated for a fractured nose and injuries to his face and head, Reuters reported. At the time of the alleged assault in Washington, Brown was on probation in California for a 2009 attack on singer Rihanna, his then-girlfriend.
If convicted in the Washington case, Brown could face additional penalties, including time behind bars, under the terms of a court order in the Rihanna case, according to Reuters.
