Atlanta-based rapper T.I. has been arrested outside of his home in Georgia for assault, disorderly conduct, and public drunkenness on Wednesday, May 16.
T.I.'s Arrest
According to reports, the 37-year-old came back home into his gated community at 4 in the morning, but apparently did not have his key with him. The security guard, therefore, denied him access to the property, and the two argued.
The situation escalated when T.I. phoned a friend for back up. At that point, the security guard called the Henry County Police Department. Both the "Live Your Life" rapper and his friend were arrested.
He has since been released after posting a $2,250 bond.
In Defense Of T.I.
In a statement to CNN, the hip-hop star's lawyer Steve Sadow insisted that T.I., whose real name is Clifford Joseph Harris Jr., was wrongfully arrested on Wednesday morning. In his account of what happened, the Grammy-winning artist arrived at home to see the security guard sleeping in his post.
Sadow said that it took some time for T.I. to wake up the security guard, and when he did, the rapper was barred from entering the gated community where his wife, singer Tameka "Tiny" Cottle, and their children reside.
Instead of a friend, the record producer phoned Cottle to confirm his identity, but the security guard still refused him entry.
"Words were exchanged and apparently the guard and/or a supervisor called the police," continued Sadow. "When the police arrived, they were not interested in hearing Tip's side of the story and wrongfully chose to end the situation by arresting Tip."
Minutes after his release, T.I. spoke to The Blast about his arrest. The rapper insisted that while he did argue with the security guard, it never became physical. Furthermore, the police that responded to the scene were "white cops in a very white area."
The self-proclaimed "King of the South" also wants to pursue legal action against his homeowner's association for the incident.
Immediately after his release on Wednesday, T.I. was able to spend some time with his family and even celebrated his son's 10th birthday party at home. On an Instagram video, he once again addressed his arrest and said that the issue was "nonsense" and "small potatoes."
This is not the rapper's first brush in with the law. The Ant-Man and the Wasp star was sentenced to one year in prison in 2009 for a weapons charge. T.I. was arrested after trying to purchase unregistered machine guns from undercover federal agents back in 2007.
