Rap producer Marion “Suge” Knight has pleaded guilty to misdemeanor battery on February 17 for beating a woman in a Las Vegas parking lot last year.
Knight entered the plea in Las Vegas Justice Court in a deal that dismissed two felony drug charges and one felony coercion charge. The plea deal came a day after Knight was treated in an Arizona hospital for facial injuries suffered during a fight following the NBA All-Star Game. Knight was not charged in the incident.
Las Vegas police arrested Knight in August. Officers said they saw the 43-year-old co-founder of Death Row Records striking Melissa Isaac while holding a knife in a parking lot near the Las Vegas Strip.
Isaac, who identified herself to police as Knight’s girlfriend, was not stabbed, and was treated and released for her injuries. Knight was found to be carrying Ecstasy and hydrocodone, police said. Knight was facing mandatory probation and up to four years in a Nevada state prison on each of the drug charges.
Knight’s attorneys, David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld, have said they had evidence that would have defended Knight against the charges.
Justice of the Peace Eric Goodman ordered Knight to receive counseling and pay a $340 fine. He was ordered to report back to court in August for a status check.