Remy Ma served approximately six years in prison following her 2008 sentencing.

Sentencing Details

In May 2008, Remy Ma (real name Reminisce Smith) received an eight-year prison term from a New York Supreme Court judge for assault, weapons possession, and attempted coercion after shooting her acquaintance Makeda Barnes-Joseph in July 2007 over a suspected $3,000 theft from her purse. The altercation unfolded outside a Manhattan nightclub, where a struggle led to the gun discharging and injuring the victim's colon and rectum, requiring weeks of hospitalization. Despite facing up to 25 years and claiming the shooting was accidental, the judge described her as an "extremely angry young woman whose rage is entirely out of control."

Time Served Breakdown

  • Sentence length : 8 years imposed on May 13, 2008.
  • Actual incarceration : Around 6 years, with release in mid-2014 after good behavior credits and time served pre-trial; a planned July 31, 2014, exit was briefly delayed due to a disciplinary issue.
  • Key events during : She gave birth to her son while imprisoned, planned (but canceled) a wedding with fiancé Papoose at Rikers Island, and maintained her music career plans via appeals.

Release Aftermath

Remy Ma emerged in 2014 to rebuild her career, collaborating again with Fat Joe on hits like "All the Way Up" and reflecting on prison as "the worst thing that's ever happened to me." She's since called the experience a low point amid her Terror Squad fame from tracks like "Lean Back," but it fueled her resilience in hip-hop.

TL;DR : Sentenced to 8 years in 2008 for a shooting; served ~6 years until 2014.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.