As Suge Knight sits in jail facing life in prison and nursing a litany of health problems, a Hollywood jail consultant is questioning the fallen rap mogul’s claims of inadequate health care and his frequent courtroom medical scares.
“I believe he has medical issues,” prison consultant Larry Levine told TheWrap. “But if he was truly [sick], where he needed around the clock medical care, don’t you think they would keep him in the hospital?” said Levine, who advises jail-bound clients who are unaccustomed to the penal system, and has consulted for the CBS drama “The Good Wife” and the new Will Ferrell–Kevin Hart comedy “Get Hard.”
Knight is currently being housed at the Men’s Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles. His attorney, Matthew Fletcher, has gone on the record to say the 49-year-old has glaucoma, diabetes and a blood clot near one of his lungs. The lawyer has also insinuated that Knight is not getting the medical care he needs.
Fletcher claimed on Friday, when Knight collapsed in court, that the Death Row Records co-founder was being held in solitary confinement, without benefit of hot water or a blanket, the New York Daily News reported.
However, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department told TheWrap that those claims were false, and that Knight is “receiving the appropriate treatment.” In addition to multiple blankets, the spokeswoman said, Knight’s hot water is the same temperature as the other inmates’ and he’s been offered new linens, showers and medications.
Levine, an ex-convict and founder of Wall Street Prison Consultants, questioned whether Knight’s courtroom scares were true medical emergencies.
“Does he collapse in the jail all day long? Does he collapse on the way to court?” Levine pondered. “I don’t think so.”
The consultant, who spent ten years behind bars himself, added, “He’s in the Special Housing Unit also known as the SHU, where they are coming by and they are checking on these people constantly… people in the SHU probably get better medical care than people that are in general population because they have a medical section assigned just to them.”
While Levine says the medical care at the jail is not exactly what you would receive at a top tier facility, it is far from inadequate.
“He’s not getting medical care up to par based on what he would get on the outside, but I know that high profile people like him get special treatment,” Levine noted. “Do you think that the L.A. County sheriff wants him to die or not receive medical care on his watch — the kind of shitstorm that would bring? I don’t believe what his lawyer is saying, to be honest with you.”
Knight has suffered medical emergencies on three separate occasions when he had scheduled court appearances in his murder case. In addition to being hospitalized twice before, on Friday he collapsed in the courtroom, after his bail was set at $25 million.
Knight has been charged with murder and attempted murder, stemming from a fatal hit-and-run incident in Compton, California on Jan. 29. Police say he intentionally ran over two men with his truck, after an argument on the set of a commercial for the film “Straight Outta Compton.” Terry
Knight, who faces life in prison because of prior convictions, is scheduled to return to court on April 13. In the meantime, Levine assures that he will receive adequate care and the medication he needs.
“Is he gonna get name brand meds?” Levine mused to TheWrap. “Probably not. Will he get generic? Yes, they’ll do that to save money.”
But, as Levine suggested, a lack of name-brand medication is probably the least of Knight’s worries right now.
“He’s done,” Levine opined, when asked if he thinks Knight will see freedom anytime soon.