Lauryn Hill Begins Prison Sentence For Tax Charges

    Lauryn Hill began serving her three-month prison sentence today (July 8) for not paying about $1 million in taxes, according to abcnews.com. The Grammy-winning singer-rapper reported to federal prison in Danbury, Connecticut, today according to Ed Ross, a spokesman for the federal Bureau of Prisons, as per ABC.

    Hill will be serving her sentence in a minimum security facility. Inmates at minimum security prisons often live in open, dormitory-style housing and typically work maintenance, food service and landscaping jobs while incarcerated, according to the story. 

    Upon her release from prison, Hill will be under parole supervision for a year, the first three months of which will be spent under home confinement, according to ABC.

    Hill pleaded guilty last year to failing to pay taxes on more than $1.8 million of income generated from 2005 to 2007, as per ABC. Her sentencing also considered unpaid state and federal taxes in 2008 and 2009 that brought her total earnings to about $2.3 million.

    In May, Hill was sentenced in Newark, New Jersey. Hill had said that she did not pay the outstanding taxes because she was no longer in the music industry and that she left the music industry in order to protect her six children and herself, according to reports.

    At her sentencing in May, Hill’s attorney sought probation, claiming that Hill’s charitable works, her family circumstances and the fact she paid back the $900,000 in taxes she owed should merit consideration, according to ABC.

    Nonetheless, the court handed down Hill’s three-month sentence and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sandra Moser said that Hill’s explanation for her failure to pay the taxes was “a parade of excuses centering around her feeling put upon” that did not relieve her of her tax responsibilities, as per ABC.

    In April, Hill wrote a letter addressing her tax problems on her Tumblr page. In June, she posted another piece criticizing “America’s particular brand of hypocrisy” on her Tumblr page.

    Hill rose to prominence in the mid-1990s as a member of the Rap group The Fugees. Her 1998 album, The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill, is one of the most acclaimed albums of all time.

    RELATED: Lauryn Hill Writes Open Letter Addressing IRS & Racism

    29 thoughts on “Lauryn Hill Begins Prison Sentence For Tax Charges

    1. OK, tell me why some hip hop luminary hasn’t paid that fine for the most godly woman in hip hop… THIS is a moment of judgement… sort it the f*ck out.

      1. How about because she sold enough records to be able to pay it herself, this is all her own doing, and she is racist as fuck.

      2. meanwhile many white people say a bunch of racist things on this website and you don’t say shit

    2. Since when is it anyone else’s responsibility to pay someone else’s debts? Unfortunately, that’s not how life works.

      1. You can say fuck taxes all you want, fact is you don’t pay, you get locked up. They dont give a shit about opinions.

    3. can’t wait till she’s out. the greatest rapper to touch a mic, u think I’m lying listen to her verse on everything is everything

    4. Noone cares. You haven’t been relevant in music since the Miseducation. Jail time might teach you to get your taxes in order in future.

    5. she’ll be out before thanksgiving, moving on with her life, and you suckers will still be here saying the same things

      1. so bec people are one rap sites they got nothing to do with their lives? so i guess when people go the news from newpapers before comps were ever around that means their lives were shit just reading news huh?

        its 2013 if you dont use the internet for news i got to have a convo w you

      2. not to mention, your the one who started this article- which means you in the same exact site we are- which means, according to you..your broke with no life

        see how ignorance is bliding to many people who dont think above middle school kids levels?

    6. Like Kweli said on City playgrounds”…one thing I know for certain, just because you know all about the artist don’t mean you know the person…”. Do your time Ms.Hill,the miseducation of Lauryn Hill persists. Timeless, as relevant as it was 15 years ago.

    7. she needs to put that call in to Officer William Roberts and he can have his people look out for her and give her some extra juice!

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