The saga of Death Row Records has taken another twist, as the woman who won a default judgment that sent the record label into bankruptcy is being sued for fraud and breach of contract.
Harris assigned a $107 million dollar default judgment she won against Death Row Records in 2005 to Conquest Media Group in return for a fee of $3 million dollars.
When she assigned the agreement, Harris told Conquest Media Group that she had never filed for bankruptcy.
Knight’s attorneys are seeking to have the judgment set aside, after finding out the Harris’ filed for bankruptcy in 1998, which they allegedly attempted to conceal.
In the 1998 bankruptcy filing, the Harris’ never claimed Death Row as an asset, despite their contention of owning a stake in the label since its inception in 1991.
Conquest is now suing Harris for fraud and breach of contract because of the 1998 bankruptcy filing and the company is seeking the return of the $3 million dollars.
Lydia Harris won a $107 million dollar default judgment against Death Row Records in 2005, claiming that her then-husband, incarcerated drug dealer Michael “Harry-O” Harris, provided $1.5 million dollars in seed money to start the gangsta rap label.
The Harris’ emerged victorious because Knight refused to appear in court on a number of dates to answer questions about the label’s finances.
Knight filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April of 2006, to avoid paying the default judgment.
Knight lost control of Death Row Records in March of 2006, when a court-appointed trustee was assigned to manage the label’s bankruptcy proceedings, which include auctioning off assets like classic recordings by artists Tupac Shakur, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Tha Dogg Pound and others.
Michael “Harry-O” Harris is a former cocaine kingpin who is serving 28-years in prison for conspiracy to commit murder and drug trafficking.
Harris was known for investing his drug proceeds into a number of legitimate ventures including a 1987 play titled Checkmates that starred Denzel Washington.