Chief Keef’s criminal record spans roughly eight years and at least four states. Between a 2011 heroin-related juvenile charge and a 2019 no-contest plea in South Dakota, Keith Cozart was arrested on gun, drug, traffic, and alleged robbery charges, violated probation, failed court-ordered drug tests, missed hearings in multiple jurisdictions, and accumulated outstanding warrants in Illinois, Florida, and California. The pattern eventually cost him his major-label deal with Interscope.
Early Juvenile Charges in Chicago
Cozart was first arrested on January 27, 2011, at around fifteen years old, on a Class X felony charge for manufacturing and delivering heroin near a school, public housing, or park. He was found delinquent in juvenile court and served the time on home confinement.1DNAinfo. Cops Shot at Chief Keef in 2011 After Teen Rapper Pointed Gun, Police Say
On December 2, 2011, police responding to a shots-fired call on Chicago’s South Side chased the sixteen-year-old near 61st Street and Michigan Avenue. Officers said he pointed a handgun at them during the chase and fired at him but missed.2TheGrio. Chicago PD Officers Shot at Chief Keef After He Pointed Gun at Them in 2011 He was charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. In January 2012, he was sentenced to eighteen months of probation with conditions barring firearms, drugs, and contact with gang members, and requiring him to complete a GED.3ABC7 News. Chief Keef Sentenced to Probation He served much of that probation on house arrest at his grandmother’s home.4NBC Chicago. Teen on House Arrest Scores Kanye Remix
The Gun Range Probation Violation
In June 2012, while still on probation, Cozart filmed an interview with Pitchfork Media at a New York gun range, holding and firing a rifle on camera.5The Guardian. Chief Keef Faces Jail for Gun Range Video Cook County prosecutors used the footage to argue he had violated the firearms ban in his probation. On January 15, 2013, Cook County Juvenile Court Judge Carl Anthony Walker ruled he had shown “willful disregard of the court” and took him into custody.6Chicago Tribune. Chief Keef Jailed After Judge Finds Probation Violation Two days later, Walker sentenced him to sixty days in juvenile detention.7New York Times. Chief Keef Sentenced to 60 Days for Probation Violation He was released from the Illinois Youth Center in St. Charles on March 14, 2013.8Time Out Chicago. Chief Keef Rap Sheet
Traffic, Trespass, and a Florida Warrant
Within weeks of his release, the arrests resumed. In May 2013, Cozart was arrested for disorderly conduct after smoking marijuana at a Dunwoody, Georgia hotel. That same month, Illinois State Police clocked him at 110 mph in a 55 zone on the Edens Expressway.8Time Out Chicago. Chief Keef Rap Sheet He pleaded guilty on June 17, 2013, drawing a $531 fine, eighteen months of conditional discharge, sixty hours of community service, random drug testing, and eight hours of traffic safety school.9HuffPost. Chief Keef Trespass Arrest As he left the courthouse that day, police arrested him on a misdemeanor criminal trespass charge from an earlier incident at the Parkway Gardens housing complex.10Rolling Stone. Chief Keef Ties Up Illinois Legal System
A Florida case was also hanging over him. In August 2012, Miami Beach police stopped him in a stolen rental Ferrari on his seventeenth birthday and charged him with misdemeanor marijuana possession. He missed his January 2013 Florida court date because he was locked up in Chicago on the probation violation, and the warrant sat open for years.11Orlando Sentinel. Chief Keef Gets 20 Days in Jail After Testing Positive for Pot
Failed Drug Tests, Jail, and Rehab
The random drug-testing condition from his speeding sentence quickly turned into another legal problem. On October 15, 2013, after a positive marijuana test, Cozart was sentenced to twenty days in Cook County Jail.12ABC7 News. Chief Keef Gets 20 Days in Jail He served roughly eight or nine days before early release.13DNAinfo. Chief Keef Headed to Jail After Violating Probation
He failed another test soon after. On November 6, 2013, a Skokie judge ordered him into a ninety-day residential drug treatment program, initially at the Haymarket Center in Chicago.14Rolling Stone. Chief Keef Ordered to Spend 90 Days in Drug Treatment Program He completed the program at Promises Treatment Center in Malibu, California, in March 2014.15NBC Chicago. Chief Keef DUI Arrest
DUIs and Outstanding Warrants
Weeks after rehab, on March 5, 2014, Highland Park, Illinois police stopped Cozart for expired registration. Officers said he smelled of burnt marijuana and appeared impaired. He was arrested for DUI and posted bond.16NBC Chicago. Chief Keef Wanted on Warrant After Missing DUI Court Hearing He pleaded not guilty and was allowed to travel out of state.17Chicago Tribune. Chief Keef After DUI Hearing: It Is What It Is When he missed his August 22, 2014 hearing, Lake County Judge Veronica O’Malley issued a $50,000 bench warrant.
A second DUI arrest came in April 2017 in Miami Beach, after police watched him step out of a green McLaren and hand a bag of a leafy substance to someone in another car. Officers reported he had “bloodshot, watery, droopy eyes” and a cup of what they called “sizzurp.”18Billboard. Chief Keef Arrested for DUI in Miami Beach A urine test detected eight substances, including morphine, codeine, promethazine, THC, and hydrocodone.19Fox 32 Chicago. Chief Keef Had 8 Drugs in System During DUI Arrest The charge was briefly dropped on a scheduling issue and then refiled; when Cozart missed the next court date, Florida issued another arrest warrant.20Chicago Sun-Times. Warrant Issued for Chief Keef’s Arrest in California
A California warrant was also issued in 2017 after he failed to appear on a citation for driving on a suspended license following a fender-bender in Hollywood.20Chicago Sun-Times. Warrant Issued for Chief Keef’s Arrest in California
Los Angeles Armed Robbery Allegation
The most serious adult accusation against Cozart came in January 2017. Music producer Ramsay Tha Great alleged that Cozart and an accomplice, Darron Rose, broke into his San Fernando Valley home on January 19, that one of the men was armed with an AK-47, and that they assaulted him and stole cash, rings, and a Rolex.21San Diego Union-Tribune. Rapper Chief Keef Arrested in Armed Robbery at Producer’s Home LAPD officers arrested Cozart at his Tarzana home on January 26 on suspicion of home invasion robbery. He was held on $500,000 bail and posted the next day.22Complex. Chief Keef Free on $500,000 Bail in Robbery Case
After a sixteen-month investigation, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office declined to file charges, citing “significant issues with key witnesses.” The accuser was by then serving a ten-year prison sentence for pimping and human trafficking, and another key witness had stopped cooperating.23Pitchfork. Chief Keef Home Invasion Charges Dropped24Complex. Chief Keef Will Not Face Criminal Charges in Armed Home Invasion Case
South Dakota Felony Drug Case
In June 2017, airport security in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, found marijuana blunts and THC edible candy in Cozart’s carry-on. He was booked into Minnehaha County Jail and charged with possession of a controlled substance, a Class 5 felony carrying up to five years in prison.25Chicago Tribune. Rapper Chief Keef Accused of Drug Possession in South Dakota He initially pleaded not guilty.26Afro. Rapper Chief Keef Pleads Not Guilty to South Dakota Charges
On April 26, 2019, Cozart entered a no-contest plea. Judge Jon Sogn granted a suspended imposition of sentence, meaning no conviction would be entered on his record if he committed no Class 1 misdemeanors or above for one year. He was ordered to pay a $500 fine, $104 in court costs, and $99 in testing fees. Additional charges, including marijuana possession, were dismissed.27Argus Leader. Rapper Chief Keef Marijuana Charge South Dakota28Boston Globe. Rapper Chief Keef Won’t Serve Jail Time After Being Caught With Marijuana Edibles
Child Support Warrant
A separate civil track produced its own warrant. Cozart signed an acknowledgment of parentage for a daughter born in November 2011 to Jasmine Woodford, and in April 2013 a court ordered him to pay $2,600 a month in child support plus $500 for daycare.8Time Out Chicago. Chief Keef Rap Sheet By October 2013, Woodford had filed a contempt motion and Cook County Judge Mary Trew ordered him to turn over the owed funds. A second paternity suit was filed in June 2013 by Erica Early.296ABC. Chief Keef Child Support Cases After he failed to appear at a child support hearing, a statewide warrant was issued on July 14, 2014 with a $10,000 cash bond.30NBC Chicago. Arrest Warrant Issued for Chief Keef The Cook County sheriff’s office reported it still active as late as December 2017.20Chicago Sun-Times. Warrant Issued for Chief Keef’s Arrest in California
How the Record Affected His Career
Cozart signed with Interscope Records around 2012 in a deal reportedly worth at least six million dollars over three years.31WBEZ. Chief Keef Reportedly Dropped From Interscope32BET. Report: Chief Keef Dropped From Interscope33Pitchfork. Chief Keef Dropped From Interscope He has continued releasing music independently since.