Video of Suge Knight plowing into two men with his pickup truck and other key evidence was released Friday (April 17) by a Los Angeles court.
Superior Court Judge Ronald Coen reviewed the items before determining this week that Suge should stand trial. He authorized their release in response to a request from The Associated Press.
Among the evidence made public was a recording of an hour-long interview with the man who survived being struck by Knight’s pickup, and photos of the Death Row Records co-founder after his arrest.
The video of Knight running over the two men in late January was shot by a surveillance camera monitoring the drive-thru at a burger stand. It likely will be used by both sides during Knight’s trial.
Coen ruled Thursday that there was enough evidence for Knight, 49, to stand trial on charges that he killed Terry Carter and attempted to kill Cle “Bone” Sloan during the parking lot confrontation.
Knight has pleaded not guilty. His attorney has said Knight was fleeing an ambush by Sloan and others when he hit the men outside a Compton burger stand.
The nine-minute video played by a prosecutor in court shows Knight’s pickup truck pulling up to the driveway of the burger stand and Sloan approaching the driver’s side window.
A struggle ensues, and Sloan told detectives he repeatedly punched Knight in response to insults by the former rap mogul. Knight’s pickup is seen backing up, throwing Sloan to the ground before the truck drives over his legs and then plows over Carter.
The entire incident took approximately 30 seconds. The video continues until a paramedic arrives.
Knight’s attorney, Matt Fletcher, has said the footage appears to show an associate of Sloan’s taking a gun off of him after he is run over, and jurors likely will be shown an enhanced version of the video.
Knight turned himself in to authorities the morning after the incident. Detectives took pictures of him to try to show he had no serious injuries from the attack.
Sloan’s interview with detectives also will be crucial to the case since he is unlikely to repeat the lucid account of the event that he gave investigators. In court Monday, Sloan repeatedly said he didn’t remember what happened and refused to identify Knight as the person who injured him, saying he didn’t want to be a “snitch.”
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