Suge Knight Just Hired Michael Jackson's Lawyer to Defend Him from Murder Charges

A Los Angeles judge decided to delay former hip-hop mogul Suge Knight's murder trial on Friday when celebrity lawyer Thomas Mesereau took over as his counsel. Now the court proceedings over the January 29 incident for which Knight has been charged with murder, attempted murder, and hit-and-run will resume on July 7.

By that point, Mesereau, who is best known for getting Michael Jackson acquitted of child molestation charges in 2005, should be ready to go.

It's been a busy week for Knight, the co-founder of Death Row Records, who refused to even show up for a separate robbery hearing Wednesday by insisting he wasn't healthy enough to make it to court. During the Friday hearing, Knight's legal team was expected to argue for a motion to dismiss the murder charges in hopes of focusing on the robbery charge, which Knight faces with co-defendant Katt Williams. (The two are accused of stealing a celebrity photographer's camera.)

The basis of Knight's motion to dismiss the murder charges is that Cle "Boan" Sloan, one of the alleged victims of the hit-and-run, gave remarks to the police that were instrumental in charging Knight, but then refused to testify, telling the court, "I will not be used to send Suge Knight to prison."

Knight's alleged history of violent witness intimidation was part of the basis for his bail initially being set at a whopping $25 million, according to The Daily Beast. (Bail was subsequently lowered to $10 million.)

Mesereau did speak in court on Knight's behalf Friday, according to the Associated Press, arguing that his new client isn't "being treated humanely" in jail.

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