DaBaby Enters Guilty Plea

Rapper DaBaby pleaded guilty to misdemeanor battery on Thursday as part of a plea deal, according to a report by TMZ. This case started in 2020, when DaBaby – whose real name is Jonathan Lyndale Kirk – assaulted the owner of a home where he was shooting a music video. Kirk was sentenced to one year on probation and to pay $10,000 in restitution.

Kirk was reportedly shooting the music video for “Play U Lay” at the home of Gary Pagar when this whole ordeal began. Kirk claimed that Pagar confronted him on the scene and used racist language which prompted outrage. Video footage obtained by TMZ shows someone pushing Pagar to the ground, but Pagar claimed that Kirk himself punched him in the face, knocking out a tooth in the process.

The criminal case is now settled, with Kirk ordered to pay restitution to Pagar and to stay at least 100 yards away from Pagar at all times. Kirk is forbidden from possessing firearms and deadly weapons during his probation, which accounts for time already served. However, the case is not entirely over yet, as Pagar still has a lawsuit against Kirk on file. He is suing the rapper for fraud, breach of contract and battery.

Kirk is 32 years old, and his career has been on the rise since 2014. This is not the first time violence has landed him in court. In 2018, Kirk shot and killed another man at a Walmart store, claiming he did so in self defense. The serious charges were dropped, but he pleaded guilty to carrying a concealed weapon, which is a misdemeanor. He carried out another shooting in April of 2022, this time at his own property in North Carolina. He claimed the victim was a trespasser, and no one was charged in the incident.

Kirk was also arrested in Miami, Florida in January of 2020. Police sought him out in connection with a robbery investigation at the time, but took him into custody when they realized there was a warrant for his arrest for alleged battery out in Texas. According to TMZ, this was because Kirk and his entourage allegedly assaulted a music promoter who underpaid them, robbing him in retribution.

Kirk has also raised controversy among fans for voicing his social views in recent years – particularly his homophobic beliefs. In July of 2021, an on-stage rant got him removed from Lollapalooza and the Governors Ball, as well as ending his collaboration with fashion brand BoohooMAN, according to a report by Billboard. More recently on the Full Send podcast, Kirk said that he plans on voting for Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election.