Judge orders Da Brat to pay $6.4 million to victim [UPDATE]

ATLANTA, Feb. 27 (UPI) -- A judge has ordered rapper Da Brat to pay $6.4 million to the victim she assaulted in October 2007.

Da Brat, born Shawntae Harris, was sentenced to three years in prison, seven years probation, and 200 hours of community service after the singer hit former Falcons cheerleader Shayla Stevens in the face with a rum bottle during an altercation at an Atlanta nightclub.

The attack left Stevens with permanent facial scars and neurological impairment, and caused her significant mental pain. Harris previously faced charges when she beat a woman with a gun in a separate 2000 incident.

Harris was released early in May 2010 on work-release after being sentenced in August 2008. The civil trial for the case came to a close Thursday. The jury awarded an initial $3.7 million to cover the victim's injuries and lost income, then an additional $2.7 million, bringing the total award to $6.4 million.

Harris was the first female solo rap act to have a platinum-selling album. Her first album, Funkdafied, debuted in 1994 and sold over one million copies. Harris got her big break after she won a local rap contest sponsored by Yo! MTV Raps, and was promoted as the female Snoop Dogg by producer Jermaine Dupri.

[UPDATED to add second portion of award, bringing total from $3.7 million to $6.4 million.]

[TMZ]