Two months after pleading guilty to hitting a California homeowner, DaBaby got a last-minute delay in his related battery lawsuit trial because he hired a new lawyer who needed more time.
The judge granted the delay but warned it wouldn’t last long since the lawsuit has been around for over three years and Kirk’s criminal conviction meant he had no Fifth Amendment concerns left.
Judge Nellon told Kirk’s lawyer Alec Rishwain, “While I appreciate you are new to the case, everyone else is not. So if this is going to go to trial, it’s going to go soon. This is a 2021 case. In the whole scheme of things, I just think this case needs to go to trial.”
Rishwain mentioned that he wasn’t totally new to the case, having worked with Kirk before but not in the past eight months. He admitted, “I’m not prepared at all to try the case, but I will be.”
Fans might be wondering why this keeps getting delayed.
Gary Pagar, the homeowner, filed his lawsuit in February 2021, accusing Kirk of beating, spitting on, and robbing him during an unauthorized video shoot at Pagar’s Los Angeles rental home in December 2020.
Pagar was ready for trial on Monday, with his lawyer Caleb Mason saying they offered a settlement to Kirk, thinking the case should settle because of Kirk’s guilty plea. Rishwain, however, wanted a new trial date.
Leading up to the hearing, both sides were arguing about what evidence should be allowed or excluded at trial. Kirk’s previous lawyers suggested the jury should know Pagar used a racial slur during their confrontation, as it could explain Kirk’s reaction.
In one filing, Kirk’s former lawyer Christina Nordsten wrote, “Plaintiff admits that there is no factual dispute as to whether he yelled the ‘N-word’ to Kirk yet conveniently seeks to argue that such a racial slur is irrelevant to the claim of battery. A jury may find that the alleged battery was the consequence of a sudden heat resulting from plaintiff’s provocation, thus barring any potential award of punitive damages.”
Pagar’s lawyers want the court to exclude the racist remark, arguing it’s irrelevant and would unfairly prejudice the jury against Pagar. They detailed how Kirk and his associates allegedly beat and taunted Pagar, stole his phone, and vandalized his house before Pagar uttered the slur, which was caught on video.
Meanwhile, Pagar’s lawyers are also trying to introduce evidence that Kirk has assaulted others on at least nine occasions, including hitting a woman at a Florida concert in 2020. Kirk’s legal team wants this evidence excluded, claiming it would bias the jury against Kirk by painting him as having a criminal character.
Before this battery case, Kirk had pleaded guilty to carrying a concealed weapon after fatally shooting Jaylin Craig at a Walmart in 2018, claiming self-defense. However, Craig’s family disputes this, suggesting Kirk started the fight leading to the shooting. Video footage supports the family’s claim.
In his lawsuit, Pagar says he rented his six-bedroom home to Kirk in November 2020 with a lease stating no more than 12 people could be there due to COVID-19. But Kirk allegedly brought around 40 people to film a music video, including Stunna 4 Vegas and Jake Paul.
Pagar claims Kirk and his crew disabled the home’s security cameras and attacked him when he showed up to enforce the lease. The lawsuit describes how they knocked out his tooth, bruised and bloodied him, pushed, spat on, and threatened him, tossed his phone around, and scratched his car.
Pagar’s lawsuit includes claims for fraud, breach of contract, and trespassing.
