Rihana: Thank Goodness for Makeup

If you haven't seen the panel job that a now remorseful Chris Brown did on his beloved Rihana, TMZ has supplied the pictures of Mr. Brown's handiwork:

And here is a picture of Rihana taken when she was better prepared:

Aren't you thankful for the wonders of Beautiful Cover Girl and L'Oreal? Bruises aside, surely you wouldn't recognise the woman in the top picture as the same person in the bottom one!!

Well, this is one story that twists and turns on a dime, doesn’t it. And now that horrific details of the beating that Rihanna received at the hands of Chris Brown have been released, one can not help but keep glued to this story as it unfolds. And this is one story that seems to unfold with every passing minute. For starters, rumors surfaced this weekend that the two got married in a quiet ceremony in Miami, but this does not seem to be the case. This rumor was started when it was feared that Rihanna would not testify against Chris, and getting married would be an easy way to avoid testimony against him. However, this is not the case, and it is questionable even that the two have gotten back together as everyone seems to be saying. They have been seen spending some time together in Miami, but what this was for, either to resolve things, bring closure, keep going, or to just plain move on, we won’t know for some time. What we do know at this point however is that Chris Brown has been charged with two felonies, assault and for making criminal threats, and that Rihanna is the key witness to the case. As it stands right now, Rihanna is co-oeprating completely with the authorities, which is a sign that if asked to testify, she will do so. It is being said that she is doing ‘everything that the law requires her to do’. It is of course hoped that she does testify, as the DA is reporting that her statements to the police about the extensive punching and bruising can only be used against him if she takes the stand. But just about anyone involved in the case will tell you that right now, it’s just too soon to tell if that will happen. She has made it very clear that she wants him to take responsibility for his actions, and the first step to this is with a restraining and protective order, a very wise move in my opinion. With this order, she is assured that he will stay away from her, and violating this order will not bode well for him since he has two felony charges pending. In the protective order, Rihanna has the power to gather evidence against him should he choose to cause some problems for her, and this includes but is not limited to taping phone conversations, or anything in writing. There are currently no restrictions on how physically close he may be to her, and this portion of the protective order was on Rihanna’s choice it seems. But restrictions under this order include:

he may not harass, strike, threaten, assault (sexually or otherwise), follow, stalk, molest, destroy or damage personal or real property of Rihanna’s. He also may not “disturb the peace, keep under surveillance or block movements” of her, and must get rid of any guns he may have by surrendering them to police or selling them to a licensed dealer within 24 hours. And he cannot “dissuade or prevent” anybody from attending a hearing or making a report to police.

The ‘keep under surveillance’ component of this order is interesting, and suggests that perhaps Chris is a little more controlling than we may think, though this is a classic characteristic of domestic abusers, and may well be the reason she has attempted a resolution or reconciliation with him. He is allowed to talk to her by phone, and be near her if she so chooses. This order is in place until March 2012, or until Rihanna changes the order or puts further limitations on it. At this point, we can only sit back and wait to see what happens next, but our hearts do go out to Rihanna during what must be a terrible time for her.