Now That Trump Has Pardoned Him, When Will Kodak Black Be Released From Prison?

After pleading guilty to illegal firearms possession in early 2020, Kodak Black began serving out a 46-month sentence in federal prison. He had been found guilty of both lying on federal paperwork and bringing an unregistered gun over the United States border from Canada, and both cases are said to run concurrently with one another, meaning his federal prison sentence is likely to be for both charges.

But because Kodak is also a rapper with a far reach in terms of his fan base and music, his fans have been trying to figure out when he will be released. In some cases, you almost expect celebrities to be given lighter jail sentences, especially if history tells you anything about claims of overcrowded cells. But in Kodak’s case, there were no excuses to let him off lightly and he was still going to have to serve out his full sentence in federal prison.

Kodak’s release date was originally set for Aug. 14, 2022. Apparently, his release could have come a few days earlier than that since the date lands on a weekend, but he was definitely looking at a summer of 2022 release. When Kodak pleaded guilty to second-degree criminal possession of a weapon in March 2020, he faced two to seven years in prison.

Before that, he had been sentenced to 46 months in federal prison for lying on federal documents to purchase four firearms in Miami, Fla. It looks like those 46 months will include the charges stemming from the Canada / U.S. border gun case. So even though Kodak faced more than three years in prison, it could have been even worse.

In a move that not many people saw coming, Former President Trump elected to commute Kodak's sentence on the former's final day in office as U.S. president. Kodak was one member of a last-minute slew of 143 pardons that also included Lil Wayne, former Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, and Steve Bannon.

Now that his sentence has been commuted, does that mean Kodak gets to leave prison immediately? Not quite. Technically, Kodak's sentence was commuted. Whereas a full pardon removes all consequences of a conviction, a commutation (which Kodak received) does not erase the conviction. It does, however, mean that the sentence will probably be shortened. With that in mind, fans can expect that Kodak will be out of prison well ahead of what was originally expected.

Although Kodak’s federal prison sentence is arguably the most extreme he has ever faced, he has dealt with the legal system before. Over the years, he has been arrested for marijuana possession, robbery, and possession of a weapon by a convicted felon.

He’s also still facing charges relating to a 2016 sexual assault case. For now, though, Kodak and his fans are celebrating the good news of his presidential pardon.