This time around there wasn’t a dental emergency or a courthouse fire to hold up Lil' Wayne’s sentencing. Earlier today the rapper was handcuffed and then sent off to start serving his one-year jail term.
Lil’ Wayne, whose real name is Dwayne Carter, was arrested on his tour bus in July 2007 during a traffic stop. As officers approached the vehicle, they caught the 27-year-old rapper tossing aside a Louis Vuitton bag with a loaded .40-caliber handgun. In October he pleaded guilty to attempted criminal possession of a weapon.
The rapper’s sentencing was initially scheduled for Feb. 9 but the court date was pushed back to March 2 so he could take care of some needed dental surgery. The March 2 sentencing was then rescheduled for March 8 after a fire broke out in the basement of Manhattan’s main criminal courthouse.
As he was being led out of the courthouse in handcuffs, Weezy acknowledged the crowd of fans and supporters, including rapper Birdman, with a brief bow.
The Grammy-award winning artist is serving his sentence in New York's Rikers Island jail complex. If he keeps his nose clean, he could be released in about eight months for good behavior.
"He knew what he had to do, and he's doing it," Lil Wayne’s lawyer, Stacey Richman, said.
Richman said she expects Rikers will house Lil Wayne in protective custody. The city Correction Department said it is still deciding if the rapper will require separation from the general prison population during his time in jail.
After performing a series of farewell shows, Lil Wayne used his postponed sentencing as an excuse to drop by Jay-Z’s March 2 show at Madison Square Garden Arena in New York. The rapper joined Young Jeezy, Nicki Minaj and Drake on stage, according to MTV.com.
"We with you 100 percent," Young told Wayne.
Lil Wayne released his seventh studio album, Rebirth, Feb. 2. The album is a follow-up to 2008’s Tha Carter III, which earned a Grammy for best rap album and the distinction of the best-selling album of the year.
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