Rapper T.I. Headed Back To Prison For 11 Months

A federal judge revoked rapper T.I.‘s probation Friday and ordered him back to prison for 11 months.

The Atlanta native, whose real name is Clifford Harris Jr., was
in federal court following his arrest last month in Los Angeles on
suspicion of drug possession. He was on probation after serving 10
months behind bars on federal weapons charges.

“I think Mr. Harris had had about the limit of second
chances,” U.S. District Court Judge Charles Pannell Jr. said,
according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

During the hearing, T.I. begged Pannell not to send him back to
prison, saying he needed to get help for drug addiction. He told
the judge he “screwed up” and pleaded for mercy.

“I want drugs out of my life. If I can get the treatment and
counseling I need … I can beat this,” T.I. told the judge,
according to U.S. attorney spokesman Patrick Crosby. “I need help.
For me, my mother, my kids, I need the court to give me mercy.”

The Associated Press was relying on information from the
spokesman because the judge closed the courtroom after it was
filled and several media outlets including AP were not allowed in.

Pannell wasn’t swayed by the rapper’s plea.

The judge had said T.I.‘s sentence was an “experiment” he
hoped to replicate if it worked. The rapper was allowed to stay out
of prison while performing 1,000 hours of community service, mostly
talking with schoolchildren about the dangers of gangs, drugs and
violence.

“You certainly dumped a lot of smut on the whole experiment,”
Pannell told T.I.

After the hearing, U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said she
was disappointed with T.I.

“We had hoped that this would be a new, innovative
opportunity,” she said. “We’re not giving up on Mr. Harris, but
… if you veer off the road of redemption, there are
consequences.”

The Grammy Award-winning artist walked out of court with family
and friends, leaving the building through a back exit without
speaking to reporters.

Yates said the rapper is expected to surrender voluntarily to
authorities Nov. 1.

As a condition of T.I.‘s release earlier this year, he was
ordered not to commit another federal, state or local crime while
on supervised release, or to illegally possess a controlled
substance. He was also told to take at least three drug tests after
his release and to participate in a drug and alcohol treatment
program.

“While he was telling kids to obey the law, he was breaking
it,” Yates told the judge Friday, according to Crosby. “There has
to be a significant consequence for undermining the (plea)
agreement.”

Yates urged the judge to consider a sentence of two years in
prison. She said T.I. submitted diluted urine samples and told his
probation officer he had used ecstasy at least three times since
leaving prison.

T.I’s attorneys argued that after reviewing nearly 250 cases
with similar charges, none of those people were put back behind
bars for violating probation, Crosby said. Additionally, the
attorneys told the judge that Harris was addicted to drugs and has
attempted to turn his life around since leaving prison.

Earlier this week, Atlanta police said T.I. helped them talked a
suicidal man down from a skyscraper. The rapper heard about the man
on the radio and drove over to see if he could help.

The man agreed to come down from the 22-story building in
exchange for a few minutes with the rapper, authorities said. They
added he recorded a cell phone video of himself that was shown to
the man by rescue workers to prove he was really there.

T.I. rejected suggestions that his intervention was a stunt to
gain advance favor with the court.

Atlanta Police Department spokesman Officer James Polite
testified at Friday’s hearing about being present when T.I. lent
his assistance.

“We believed it was genuine,” Polite said of Harris’ offer to
help. “He gave words of encouragement and was an intricate part of
having that situation safely and quickly resolved.”

Copyright © 2024 by Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

This material may not be republished, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Read More

'Hannah Montana' Star Mitchel Musso Arrested On Charges Of Public Intoxication & Theft