SPW/Splash NewsEven if Justin Bieber's Ferrari did cross paths with a paparazzo last month, it's likely the pop star was unaware amid all the confusion.
So has determined the L.A. County District Attorney's Office, which is opting to not file hit-and-run charges against Bieber, whom a photographer had accused of taking off after knocking him down while pulling away from The Laugh Factory in West Hollywood.
The entire incident was caught on video that was subsequently reviewed by authorities. And according to the charge evaluation worksheet obtained by E! News, police basically determined that there would be no way to prove that the 19-year-old star left the site of what seemed to be a minor collision on purpose.
Bieber's attorney had previously told police that his client was unaware that he had hit anyone, an explanation police found "reasonable and creditable."
"There were over a dozen paparazzi surrounding his car and on the sidewalk, and it was noisy with camera flashes and bright lights surrounding him," read the notes from Kaarin Axelson, the deputy investigating photographer Damon Walter's complaint.
"Security had motioned for Bieber that it was clear to leave, and the video showed a clear path for the car until Walter suddenly stepped in front of it," Axelson continued in the report. "The Ferrari's engine is loud. The impact was minor and given the chaotic scene and stress of the situation, it is likely that Bieber did not know he had hit Walter."
The report concluded: "Insufficient evidence to prove that Bieber knowingly left the scene of a collision in which someone was injured."
When police went to Bieber's house after the June 17 incident, they observed a scratch on his white Ferrari consistent with Walter dropping his camera on the hood before falling down.
Walter was taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital at the time to be treated for two abrasions on his leg, per Axelson.