Judge calls man 'fixated,' orders him away from Britney S.
Posted: Wed Oct 15, 2003 7:38 am
I thought my friends told me that Britney Spears wasn't that popular anymore, or Is she?
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP) — A judge ordered a Japanese businessman to stay away from pop idol Britney Spears, ruling Tuesday he was "was abnormally obsessed and fixated with Spears."
"It was an obvious pattern of harassment and emotional harm done to a person of notoriety," Superior Court Judge Alan Haber said in issuing the permanent injunction.
Spears, 21, first sought a restraining order against Masahiko Shizawa in December 2002, alleging that he "tracked and attempted to contact" her at her home in Los Angeles, as well as at her second home and one of her parent's homes, which are both outside California. He also allegedly sent photos of himself and notes reading, "I'm chasing you."
Shizawa, whose visa expired, has been back in his native Yokohama, Japan, since last December.
The judge said the evidence showed that Shizawa was mentally "off."
Shizawa's lawyer, Simon Robert Hiller, said his client was a law-abiding citizen.
"He was in love," he said.
The injunction calls for Shizawa to stay 300 yards away from Spears for three years.