When rap lyrics are used against you in court: ‘They silenced me for 21 years’
by Sam Levin in Los Angeles from US news | The Guardian on (#6379G)
Rappers have long had their music used as evidence against them in criminal trials. California could soon limit the practice
In 2000, McKinley Mac" Phipps Jr was a 22-year-old rising rap star when he was arrested for murder.
A 19-year-old had been shot at a Slidell, Louisiana club where Phipps was due to perform, and police quickly zeroed in on the artist as the suspect. A man who was working security at the venue confessed that he had killed the teenager, but still prosecutors pushed forward with a trial against Phipps.
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