The West Los Angeles rapper, Conejo, also known as Jose Martin, was not too long ago imprisoned in LA County jail over allegations of decades old murder.
Murder Details
In 1998, a killing was alleged to have taken place in a house party in Los Angeles, California. Unfortunately, a man brandishing a firearm was disarmed and allegedly shot and killed in the back of the property where the event was taking place. Conejo was branded as guilty through association and was forced to flee south to Mexico. The murder charge was attributed to him and a group of associates and labeled a robbery too.
In fact, for nearly 14 years, Conejo was on the run from the US Marshalls somewhere in Baja California. However, his prolific output somehow was undisturbed and his music would make its way into the LA hip hop scene regardless of his legal dealings. Eventually, the rapper was captured by a special contingent of Baja California state police, then handed over to a federal task force, likely US Marshalls.
Nicholas Rosenberg
Upon his extradition to Los Angeles, Conejo retained the services of criminal defense lawyer Nicholas Rosenberg. The attorney was able to negotiate the murder with special circumstances charges that also contained an accusation of robbery and reduce these into a voluntary manslaughter that was offered by LA prosecutors. However, those charges maintained a certain level of California State Prison time.
Eventually, this plea deal also attached a certain number of years in probation. As of 2021, Conejo’s probation was dropped two years early, making his legal situation next to ideal given the circumstances.