Boosie Badazz is headed to federal sentencing in San Diego on a felon-in-possession gun case, with prosecutors asking a judge to hand down a two-year prison term while the Baton Rouge rapper reportedly lobbies Donald Trump for a presidential pardon, according to AllHipHop and court filings cited by Rolling Stone.[1][2] The sentencing is scheduled for Friday before U.S. District Judge Cathy Ann Bencivengo, capping a federal case that stems from a 2023 traffic stop where authorities say they found firearms in the rapper’s vehicle.[2]
Federal prosecutors have recommended a sentence of 24 months in prison plus three years of supervised release after Boosie, born Torence Hatch, pleaded guilty in August 2025 to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm as part of a plea agreement that resulted in a second gun charge being dismissed.[1][2] In their sentencing memorandum, prosecutors cited his “extensive criminal history” — including prior convictions related to assault, firearms, drug offenses, and resisting arrest — while still acknowledging mitigating factors such as his difficult upbringing, his consistent employment, and his decision to accept responsibility by entering a guilty plea.[2][3]
Boosie’s legal team, led by attorney Meghan Blanco, is asking the court to spare him any prison time, requesting instead two years of structured probation and 300 hours of community service.[1][2][3] In their memorandum, his defense argues that the San Diego incident represented a single “lapse in judgment” after roughly a decade without criminal conduct and stresses that the federal gun offense was nonviolent, isolated, and involved no identified victims.[2][3] The case originated after San Diego police reportedly identified Boosie holding a firearm on Instagram Live in June 2023 before stopping his vehicle and recovering two loaded 9mm handguns, with DNA evidence later linking him to both weapons.[2] State charges tied to the incident were dismissed in 2024, but the U.S. Department of Justice pursued federal charges because of his status as a convicted felon.[1]
As the sentencing approaches, Boosie has remained publicly defiant about the prospect of returning to prison, telling The Breakfast Club he is “confident” he will avoid incarceration and emphasizing that the final call rests with the judge.[1] At the same time, he has reportedly retained Washington, D.C. lobbying firm J.M. Burkman & Associates to petition Donald Trump for a pardon and has personally appealed to the former president on social media, framing his situation in the context of Trump’s past clemency for rappers like Lil Wayne, Kodak Black, and NBA YoungBoy on similar federal gun cases.[1] The outcome of Boosie Badazz’s sentencing will not only determine his immediate future but could also signal how federal courts continue to treat firearm cases involving high-profile artists with prior records in the post-Trump clemency era.
