Bobbi Kristina lawsuit means Nick Gordon could face murder charges

The shocking new lawsuit that Bobbi Kristina’s conservator has filed on her client’s behalf means that Nick Gordon’s legal troubles are just beginning–and that their consequences could be dire.

Bedelia C. Hargrove’s civil lawsuit seeks $10 million in damages from Nick Gordon, for alleged domestic abuse and outright theft. In Hargrove’s words, Gordon manipulated Bobbi Kristina emotionally and physically, pretended to be married to her, and sought control over her inheritance from Whitney Houston:

I filed this lawsuit to pursue justice on behalf of Bobbi Kristina Brown. No human being, male or female, should endure what Bobbi Kristina endured. Pat Houston and Bobby Brown have done all they can to take care of Bobbi Kristina since this terrible tragedy occurred. I have worked closely with both of them and we all want the very best for Bobbi Kristina. This lawsuit represents our collective efforts to get justice for Bobbi Kristina. We pray that justice will be done for her and that it will be swift.

The language in the legal paperwork itself is even more stark:

The misrepresentation that Defendant was Brown’s ‘husband’ was used to control Brown and limit with whom she could interact. For example, Defendant often answered Brown’s personal cell phone, would not allow her to make appointments without his approval, and manipulated her bank relationship so that he could access her money. This was all part of a scheme to benefit from her wealth.

Part of the “substantial bodily harm” for which the lawsuit says Nick Gordon is responsible is Bobbi Kristina’s condition when she was discovered in her bathtub on January 31st. Bobbi was “unresponsive and unconscious, face down in a bathtub, with her mouth swollen and another tooth knocked out.”

The injuries Bobbi Kristina sustained are alleged to have been the direct result of a fight she had with Gordon earlier the same day.

Any criminal charges against Nick Gordon are likely to depend on Bobbi Kristina’s condition, as well as her family’s willingness to press those charges. Yesterday, Bobbi Kristina was moved from a DeKalb County rehabilitation facility into hospice care near her home in Roswell.

The Roswell Police Department, who originally had jurisdiction over the Bobbi Kristina case, handed its findings over to the much larger Fulton County PD last month. (Fulton County is to a large extent synonymous with the city of Atlanta.) According to local media, the Fulton County District Attorney is reviewing the case, and Nick Gordon remains the prime suspect.

Gordon has been lying low in Florida for the past few weeks, ever since his stint in rehab ended.

(Photo credits: WENN)