Popular contemporary rapper Kevin Gates was recently sentenced to 180 days in jail for kicking a female fan in the chest at a concert in August 2015. He was caught on film committing the act at his show Lakeland, Florida. The video shows Gates using excessive force, as the female tried to grab his foot while he was on stage.
Gates pled not guilty, and claimed it was self defense and that he was simply protecting himself from an aggressive fan under Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law, which usually works in favor of the defendant. Gates also said that the fan was repeatedly grabbing his shorts for most of the show. The jury, composed of six white women, didn’t buy his case and Gates was found guilty. The judge wasn’t on Gates’s side either, and rejected the state’s request for 60 days in jail, with one year of probation and mandatory anger management classes, opting instead to triple his sentence.
Fans were clearly upset about the sentence. When one avid fan, Paul Yeomans, was asked about the sentencing, he said, “It is really disappointing because I am such a big fan and he really was on a roll.”
Gates is also required to attend mandatory anger management classes for 60 days after sentencing before he can continue with his music career. So if you were waiting for Kevin Gates’s new album which was scheduled to be released in November, you’ll have to wait longer.
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