Suge Knight to stand trial for murder for hit and run deaths

  • Published
Suge Knight in CourtImage source, Irfan Khan

A judge in Los Angeles has ruled that Suge Knight will stand trial for murder.

He's accused of a hit-and-run killing of a man at a burger stall in January.

The record label boss has pleaded not guilty to charges including murder and attempted murder. It followed an argument on the set of an advert for the film Straight Outta Compton.

Knight is accused of deliberately running over the victim and another man with his pickup truck.

If found guilty, the co-founder of Death Row Records would face a sentence of 25 years to life in prison.

Judge Ronald Coen made his ruling after a preliminary hearing to consider evidence in the case.

Judge Coen said: "It appeared to me it was not an attempt to escape. It was an attempt at murder."

He reduced Knight's bail to $10m from $25m, which Knight said had been excessive.

Image source, AP

Prosecutors say Knight fought with one of the two men through the window of his vehicle before putting the truck into reverse, knocking both of them to the ground.

They then claim he pulled forward to run over both men.

Knight's legal team says it was an accident as their client fled what he believed to have been an ambush attempt.

The case has taken a long time to get to this point because Knight collapsed in court on a previous hearing and in another was hospitalised after complaining of chest pains.

He also says he's now blind in one eye and has only 15 per cent vision in the other.

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