The judge who sentenced Tekashi 6ix9ine to prison said he would have given the rapper home confinement if he had known about coronavirus at the time.
U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer said Tekashi should be considered for early release in a written order Wednesday, according to a report published by NBC News.
Judge: Tekashi 6ix9ine probably belongs at home, not jail https://t.co/Iglcbz263m pic.twitter.com/OGY1v1m6cq
— News 4 San Antonio (@News4SA) March 26, 2020
Engelmayer claimed he had no legal right to change the sentence of Tekashi, but gave “instructive guidance” to the Bureau of Prisons in the case that the rapper files an application for early release.
The judge cited Tekashi’s asthma in the instructive guidance.
Engelmayer said he “could not have known that the final four months of Mr. Hernandez’s sentence would be served at a time of a worldwide pandemic to which persons with asthma, like Mr. Hernandez, have heightened vulnerability.” (RELATED: Tekashi 6ix9ine Will Not Be Released From Prison Following Government Cooperation)
“Had the Court known that sentencing Mr. Hernandez to serve the final four months of his term in a federal prison would have exposed him to a heightened health risk, the Court would have directed that these four months be served instead in home confinement,” he continued.
Tekashi is currently serving out the last four months of his sentence. He is expected to be released on July 31. Tekashi pleaded guilty to racketeering and other charges. The rapper was sent to prison even after cooperating with the government against the New York street gang Nine Trey Bloods.