James Brown has filed papers seeking an annulment from his wife, claiming she never divorced from a previous marriage.
Brown was arrested last week in South Carolina on a domestic violence charge involving 33-year-old Tomi Rae Brown.
The 70-year-old Godfather of Soul allegedly pushed the woman to the floor during an argument in a bedroom of their Beech Island, S.C., home and threatened to kill her while holding a chair over her, according to an Aiken County sheriff’s report.
She had scratches and bruises on her right arm and hip and was taken to an Augusta hospital, deputies said.
Brown, who has denied the accusations, was arrested Jan. 28 and released from jail the next day; hours later, he filed for an annulment.
His attorney, Jim Huff, told The Augusta Chronicle that Brown’s wife said she never sought a divorce from Javed Ahmed, whom she married in Houston in February 1997.
If convicted of the domestic violence charge, Brown faces a maximum penalty of a $500 fine and 30 days in jail.