Suge Knight Pleads to Manslaughter Over Fatal Confrontation

Former rap mogul Suge Knight has agreed to serve a 28-year prison sentence after pleading to manslaughter over a confrontation that ended up becoming fatal.

According to the Associated Press, Knight entered the plea in Los Angeles Superior Court.

Knight’s new plea stems from a 4-year-old case where Knight was arrested after he was involved in an altercation with two men and ended up hitting them with his car. One of the men died from injuries sustained in the altercation.

After the incident took place, Knight initially claimed that he was acting in self-defense. He claimed that he was attempting to flee the situation out of fear for his life.

In January 2018, two of Knight’s attorneys were arrested in connection to the murder after it was alleged that they attempted to manipulate eyewitness testimony.

Matthew Fletcher and Thaddeus Culpepper — Knight’s lawyers — were slapped with felony charges of “acting as accessories after the fact.”

Fletcher allegedly attempted to pay witnesses to tell authorities that they saw the manslaughter victims in possession of a weapon, and Culpepper allegedly offered an informant money in exchange for the man to claim that he witnessed the incident and that he would testify in a manner that would be beneficial to Knight’s defense.

In a 2017 interview with BET, Knight’s 21-year-old son Suge Jacob Knight spoke candidly about his father and revealed that the last time he saw him outside of prison was “just a week before the arrest” in 2015.

“He had actually dropped me off at the airport to return to school at Fisk University. We were talking about him visiting Nashville, where my school is located because I love it there. I really enjoy the hospitality down there. He was going to come and check out new cars for me that he planned on buying,” Jacob added. “Since then, going to court was the first I’ve seen or heard from my dad for an entire two years. They cut all communication with everybody. No one can speak to him, and he can’t even choose his own lawyer.

“At the court, it was just a whole lot for me. As soon as I walked in there, I got hit with reporters and writers. Even when I sat down in the courtroom, people were writing notes and passing them to me saying not to trust this person and that person. At the same time, all I’m trying to focus on is my dad,” he continued. “Me and him locked eyes, and he’s like, ‘Hey, how are you doing? I love you man, don’t worry.’ But, as soon as he said that, the judge and the D.A. had the police officer in the room block our view of each other. That’s when I felt like it was time for me to make the post and be public about what they’re doing to him.”

Based on the calculations of his new prison sentence, Knight will not be released until he is about 80 years old.