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Nov 18, 2008 12:14 pm US/Central
'Suge' Knight Facing Drug And Battery Charges
LAS VEGAS (AP) ―
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Police allege they saw the founder of bankrupt Death Row Records beating his girlfriend while brandishing a knife in a parking lot near the Las Vegas Strip in August.
AP
The Clark County district attorney's office is seeking charges against Marion "Suge" Knight in the alleged beating of his girlfriend in August.
A criminal complaint being processed Tuesday in Las Vegas Justice Court charges Knight with two counts of felony drug possession and one count of misdemeanor battery.
Police say they arrested Knight, 43, after officers saw the founder of bankrupt Death Row Records beating the woman while brandishing a knife in a parking lot near the Las Vegas Strip.
Authorities said the woman wasn't stabbed, but was treated at a hospital for injuries. The complaint alleges that Knight was carrying Ecstasy and hydrocodone when he was arrested.
Knight was later released after posting $19,000 bail.
Court spokeswoman Esther McElhaney said the district attorney's complaint had been received by the court, which would process it, issue a summons for Knight and set an arraignment date.
"Whenever we have the opportunity to appear before the court and enter a not guilty plea, that's what we'll do," said Richard Schonfeld, one of Knight's attorneys in Las Vegas. "We're going to vigorously defend him against these charges."
Knight's Death Row Records was known for releasing seminal gangster rap albums by Tupac Shakur, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. It sold tens of millions of albums in the heyday of early 1990s rap.
In 2006, a federal judge ordered a bankruptcy trustee takeover of Death Row Records, saying the label had undergone gross mismanagement.
Knight's decision to file for bankruptcy protection staved off a move by the court to appoint someone to take control of the record label and his assets.
The record company was auctioned for $24 million to New York-based Global Music Group Inc. in June.
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