Suge Knight Pleads Not Guilty to Murder, Hit-And-Run
Suge Knight will have his day in court.
Infamous music producer, Marion "Suge" Knight is no stranger to the court system. FindLaw has an amazing amount of articles detailing Knight's many illegal escapades. Soon, he'll stand trial once again, this time for murder, attempted murder, and hit-and-run. Knight has pleaded not guilty to all three charges.
The trial will start July 7, 2015 and is expected to last 16 days.
The Crime
In this latest incident, Knight allegedly got into an altercation with Cle "Bone" Sloan. Sloan admits that he hit Knight through the window of Knight's truck. Surveillance video showed Knight reverse his truck, clip Sloan, run over his legs, speed through the parking lot, and hit Terry Carter, killing him. Knight did not stop to help the injured men.
Bail
When this whole legal saga started, Knight was ordered to pay $2 million bail. However, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department claimed that Knight was a flight risk and that he might try to intimidate witnesses.
Judges have discretion to revoke bail or set a higher bail amount, usually, when the defendant commits a second crime while on bail, becomes a flight risk, or may be a danger to others.
While Knight didn't commit any other crimes while on bail, the judge agreed that $2 million may not be enough to prevent Knight from running to avoid a life sentence. Knight's bail was raised from $2 million to $25 million, and he promptly fainted from despair, or blood clots, depending on who you believe.
The judge recently lowered Knight's bail to only $10 million. Apparently the music mogul doesn't have the money, because he asked for bail to be reduced again to $5 million but was denied. It looks like he'll be waiting for trial in jail.
Reluctant Witness
It's probably a good thing that Knight stays in jail. The Sheriff's Department's fears of witness intimidation may not be far from the mark.
Sloan has proven to be an uncooperative witness for the prosecution even though he was allegedly injured in the hit-and-run. He refuses to state that Knight actually ran him over, saying "I don't want it to get misconstrued that I told on this man. I'm no snitch. I will not be used to send Suge Knight to prison."
Without a witness' testimony, the prosecution may find it hard to prove murder beyond a reasonable doubt.
So, will Knight be convicted, or will he be given yet another "chance"? We must wait and see.
Related Resources:
- Suge Knight pleads not guilty to murder in hit-and-run case (CNN)
- Suge Knight Arrested Over Marijuana in Vegas (FindLaw's Celebrity Justice)
- Suge Knight Arrested on Warrant After Traffic Stop (FindLaw's Celebrity Justice)
- Suge Knight Charged: Assault with a Deadly Weapon (FindLaw's Celebrity Justice)