Former rap mogul Marion “Suge” Knight will serve 28 years in a state prison after reaching a plea deal for charges stemming from a 2015 hit-and-run.
Knight, 53 pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter in a January 2015 incident after a vehicle he was riding in struck two pedestrians, a witness Cle “Bone” Sloan and Terry Carter, who was killed in the incident in Compton, California.
People Magazine reported that the deal calls for Knight to serve “22 years in prison on the voluntary manslaughter count, five years because it is a third strike violation and one year for deadly weapon allegations.”
Through the confirmation of this plea deal, Knight resolves two other pending criminal cases against him.
He was indicted for making criminal threats in August 2014 and charged for allegedly stealing a camera from a woman in September 2014, per the People report.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the former rap music mogul contacted the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office about a plea deal on September 19.
The deal, per the Times report, occurred days before jury selection was scheduled to begin in his cast, set to start Oct. 1.
Prior to his deal, Knight faced life without the possibility of parole if convicted.
People reported that in 1992, Knight was charged with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, pleading no contest to the charge in 1995. He was subsequently sentenced to five years probation.
In February 1997, Knight was sentenced to nine years in prison for violating his probation after taking part in a fight at a Las Vegas hotel.
The 1997 incident occurred hours before rapper Tupac Shakur was wounded in a drive-by attack. He would later die on Sept. 13, 1996, at age 25 from his injuries.
Suge Knight to Serve 28 Years After Reaching a Plea Deal for Running Over and Killing a Man https://t.co/1MERxefS0Y
— People (@people) September 21, 2018
The Daily Beast reported in 2017 that through a signed affidavit from his attorney, Thaddeus Culpepper, the former Death Row Records CEO claims that he was the intended target of the drive-by shooting that took Shakur’s young life.
“Knight has known for many years that Reggie Wright Jr. and his ex-wife Sharitha [Golden] were behind the murder of Tupac and attempted murder of Knight.” He also alleges the attack was part of Sharitha’s attempt to gain control over Death Row.
The story alleges that Sharitha was attempting a Death Row Records coup and that she would inherit money and power if Knight was taken out of the picture.
Sharitha allegedly enlisted the help of Wright Jr.
Knight’s accusations regarding Sharitha and Reggie Wright’s Jr.’s involvement in the Shakur murder have yet to be formally confirmed through investigation.