Where is Suge Knight now? Former Death Row Records CEO's appeal request denied in a hit-and-run incident

Suge Knight, who was first booked in January 2015 in relation to a fatal hit-and-run accident that resulted in Terry Carter's death, will continue to serve his 28-year prison sentence. HotNewHipHop reported that Los Angeles County Judge Laura F. Priver denied his appeal on March 4, 2025.

According to XXL Magazine, Suge Knight is currently behind bars at Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego, California, and will not be eligible for parole until October 2034.

In a ruling issued on Tuesday, judge Priver argued that the Death Row Records co-founder came across as insincere as he waited too long to file his appeal. Knight claimed that the delay in his appeal was caused by the improper assistance he received from his previous lawyer. Denying his appeal, Judge Priver ruled:

"It is clear that the petitioner was not as isolated or as helpless to act as he wishes this court to believe. He was able to file the writ in a timely manner had he chosen to do so."

Priver also cited other motions that the former NFL player had filed in the past to highlight that he was able to do so. David Kenner, Knight's new attorney, appeared to disagree with the judge's decision, telling Rolling Stone on March 4:

"I find this decision to be shocking and unconscionable. I think the court has grossly erred in the decision it rendered, I think it is legally improper and the court did not follow the law."

His petition was first filed in 2023 and argued that his ability to file the appeal was hindered by his permanent prison housing, the Coronavirus pandemic, and his loss of sight.

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Suge Knight is serving a prison sentence for hit-and-run death of Terry Carter

The prison sentence that Suge Knight is currently serving stems from an incident that took place over a decade ago. Per XXL Magazine, the music executive reportedly got into a fight on January 29, 2015, while he was on the set of the MWA biopic, Straight Outta Compton, which was filming in LA at the time.

According to the same publication, in the wake of the fight, Knight was asked to exit the set by the security guard, who showed him a restraining order signed by Dr. Dre. Apparently upset over being turned away, Suge drove to Tam's Burgers in Compton, where he allegedly got into an altercation with Cle "Bone" Sloan and Terry Carter.

Carter, the Heavyweight Records co-founder, was reportedly a friend of Knight's, while Sloan was a former gang member-turned-actor working on the sets of the biopic as an adviser.

Per XXL Mag, the account of Lieutenant John Corina—an eyewitness to the accident—revealed that Suge Knight started throwing punches at one of the men through the window of his pickup truck. As he put the vehicle in reverse, it hit one of them, knocking them to the ground.

Suge then proceeded to drive forward, he ran over the other. Per an eyewitness present at the scene, as Suge Knight reportedly pulled off to leave, one of his truck's tires ran over Carter's head, injuring him severely in the process.

Both Terry and Sloan were hospitalized later. While Sloan survived from his multiple wounds, including two fractured ankles, a cut to his head, a shoulder injury, and two torn ligaments. Meanwhile, Carter died at the hospital.

Suge Knight surrendered to the police the very next day, on January 30, 2015, and was booked on suspicion of murder, with his bail being set at $2 million. Three years later, on September 20, 2018, before his case went to court, Suge pleaded no contest to manslaughter to avoid a full-on trial.

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In exchange for Suge Knight's plea, prosecutors requested that he serve a 28-year-long prison sentence—22 years for running the victim over, and the 6 added years for it being Knight's third strike under California's three-strike law.