Mutulu Shakur, the 68-year-old stepfather of the late Tupac Shakur, has been denied a compassionate release from federal prison, VLAD TV reports. Mutulu Shakur is currently serving a 60-year bid after he was convicted for his involvement in a string of robberies that resulted in the deaths of an armored car guard and two police officers. Shakur filed a motion for a compassionate release on the ground that he's battling cancer behind bars in the midst of a coronavirus pandemic.
Senior U.S. District Judge Charles S. Haight Jr. said that Shakur's condition doesn't warrant an early release in comparison to the severity of his crimes. The Judge said, "Should it develop that Shakur’s condition deteriorates further, to the point of approaching death, he may apply again to the Court, for a release that in those circumstances could be justified as 'compassionate."
Shakur's attorneys said that he'd return home to his son, adding that he's been an exemplary inmate who's not caused any troubles in prison and has been a mentor to other inmates. They added that he'd be released to the care of his son, Mopreme Shakur.
"Beyond Mr. Shakur’s lack of disciplinary incidents, his positive conduct in prison paints the picture of a man who is committed to self-improvement, is not a danger to anyone, and has actually improved the prison environment for others," Mutulu's attorneys petitioned. "Mr. Shakur has expressed empathy for all the direct and indirect victims of his crimes, and this empathy been one of the forces that have led him to embody nonviolent solutions to conflict and teach those lessons to others."
Despite the plea from Shakur's attorneys and the support he received from Congressman Bobby Rush and a former head warden at the federal prison who said he's not a danger to society, the judge evidently disagreed. The son of the guard who passed away vehemently opposed Shakur's release, writing. "Mutulu Shakur must be made to serve out his sentence, otherwise justice will not be served.
Mutulu Shakur is set to be released in December 2024.