Death Row Records co-founder Marion "Suge" Knight suffered a blow in his bid to get out of jail, as his motion to be released on bail while awaiting a new sentencing hearing was denied last month and the opinion granting that new hearing was withdrawn by the California Appellate court.

Supervising Deputy Attorney General Steve Matthews says that after being shown some specific facts in the transcript of the trial over Knight's assault plea bargain in 1995 that were left out, the court vacated their previous opinion concerning the nine-year sentence for violating probation during a later assault in 1996 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

According to Matthews, the judge says in the transcripts, "I am imposing sentence today and suspending execution." This means that during the original case, the judge sentenced Knight to nine years in prison, but suspended execution of the sentence. Then, during the 1996 probation violation hearing, another judge had to enforce the previous

ruling.

Death Row attorney David Kenner disagrees and says that the wording was unclear and that Knight could have been sentenced to any number of terms, including probation. Kenner furthers states that Knight could still get out of jail on bail, and that the process to do so has just been delayed. Matthews, on the other hand, says that until the appellate court submits a new opinion, it is unlikely Knight will be released.