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T.I.'s arrest for drug possession on Wednesday could get the hip-hop icon back in jail, says Steven Knowles, a lawyer not representing the "Got Your Back" rapper.
 T.I. and his wife, Tameka Cottle, were arrested in West Hollywood, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department told the Associated Press. Deputies pulled their car over after smelling marijuana and arrested them on suspicion of possessing methamphetamines.
The trouble comes at a pivotal moment in T.I.'s career and personal life. His film Takers, which he acted in as well as co-executive produced, opened in theaters at No. 1 last weekend. His album, ironically called King Uncaged, is scheduled for a September 28 release. He just married Cottle in July, and was released from a halfway house in March.
This could put his life on hold.
Lawyer Steven Knowles suspects that, if convicted, T.I. could face a multiple-year jail sentence. "This is big-time," Knowles told Yahoo! Music. "I really don't envy his defense lawyer."
Prior to serving three months in the halfway house, T.I. spent seven months in a federal prison in Arkansas for illegal firearms possession and possessing a gun as a convicted felon.
 According to the Associated Press, as a condition of his three-year-parole, he was forbidden from committing another federal, state or local crime, or illegally possessing a controlled substance. Drug tests and participation in a drug and alcohol treatment program were also required.
The new allegations will not be taken lightly, said Knowles, a family attorney who has represented Britney Spears and Nicole Kidman, among others. "[T.I.'s] celebrity is not likely going to get him off of this," he said. "This is now a repeated offense. That's when even the celebrity get-out-of-jail card is not going to work."
Knowles believes T.I.'s celebrity will probably ensure a more stringent ruling. "In fact, for them to take it light on him now would look like over-favoritism because he's a celebrity, and I think, if anything, his celebrity may actually backfire."
Knowles believes that Cottle, co-star of BET's Tina & Toya and a member of the ‘90s R&B group Xscape, could avoid jail time because of their children. "That is a big factor when it comes to sentencing," he said. "I can tell you from my experience as a family lawyer that celebrity or not, courts loathe to jail moms, particularly if there's not going to be a dad at home to care for the kids as well. This would mean kids would have no parents."
One important factor in determining a potential sentence will be the quantity of drugs in possession. "If [the] quantity is large enough to be selling or even sharing with third parties, that could make a big difference," Knowles said.
Before the his lead-up to his 2009 jail term, T.I. starred in an MTV reality series, Road To Redemption: 45 Days To Go, which documented him speaking to kids about his regrettable decisions.
 While incarcerated, T.I. taught a course on self-enrichment to inmates who were unsure how to prepare for life after prison. In a recent interview with Yahoo! Music, T.I. said it was too early to tell whether his course was helpful for the attendants because the real challenge of discipline arises after release.
"It's easy to be on the straight and narrow when you in the joint because it ain't no temptation," he said. "You don't really got too much room to roam. Now, once you leave up out of them gates, walk back out there in that free world, breathe that air, your mentality then -- that's what counts."
In July, he told AP he was more focused on positivity. "Right now, it's all about moving forward, and just acknowledging the blessings that are here today. ... Just moving past the regrets of yesterday - the things that could've been done better," he said.
Unfortunately, for now, T.I.'s immediate future looks grim. |
