Rapper DMX, shackled and garbed in true jailbird attire in an Arizona courtroom Tuesday, pleaded guilty to animal cruelty, theft and drug possession. The 38-year-old rapper (whose real name is Earl Simmons) sat quietly in his Black-and-white-striped prison uniform as the official charges were read into the record: one misdemeanor count of animal cruelty, one felony count of theft, and one count each of felony possession of marijuana and a narcotic drug. If the case had gone to trial and Simmons had been convicted, he would now be looking at a possible 10-year sentence. Under Tuesday’s plea deal, he is expected to get the minimum 90-day jail sentence, plus probation. The agreement precludes him from owning any animals and possessing any weapons; in addition, he is required to attend an animal-offender treatment program. Violating probation could have him looking again at those 10 years. DMX’s albums include “It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot” and “Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood” and “Year of the Dog … Again.”

Detroit mayor’s former lover pleads guilty. Silent through months of a sex scandal, the woman whose relationship brought down former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick broke her silence Monday, according to the Sun News Service. She shed tears as she pleaded guilty, the news service reports. Christine Beatty, a former aide to Kilpatrick, accepted a four-month jail sentence on obstruction of justice charges for her part in a lawsuit brought by two police officers, according to the news service. Beatty’s jail sentence will begin Jan. 5. With credit for good behavior, she could be free in about 100 days. 

Ethiopian singer found guilty in deadly hit-and-run. Popular Ethiopian singer Teddy Afro was found guilty of manslaughter for a 2006 hit-and-run incident that left a homeless man dead, reports the BBC. The star, whose real name is Tewodros Kassahun, will be sentenced on Friday and faces between five and 15 years in prison. The court found that Afro ran over the man with his car and drove away without stopping. But his fans think the charges are politically motivated. Afro’s music was an anthem for protests by the opposition three years ago, reports the BBC. There had been a mix-up as to what date the accident actually occurred. On the first date, Afro had an alibi. On the second probable date, he said he was with friends, but the judge didn’t believe him and found him guilty on all counts. When the ruling came down, Afro was vocally upset, but was able to give a thumbs-up sign to his supporters while he was leaving the court room, telling reporters, “I never killed anyone, I didn’t get justice from this court.”

Michael Vick is to plead guilty to dogfighting today. Michael Vick is expected to plead guilty to state dogfighting charges Tuesday, a move that would make him eligible for early release. Federal law prevents prisoners from being released to a halfway house if there are unresolved charges pending. So, a plea agreement between Vick’s legal team and Surry County Commonwealth Attorney Gerald Poindexter was brokered, which calls for the former Atlanta Falcons star to plead guilty to two felony counts – beating or killing or causing dogs to fight other dogs and engaging in or promoting dogfighting – in Surry County Circuit Court. Read the rest here.

Death penalty phase begins for Brian Nichols. An Atlanta judge is to begin to weigh arguments this week to determine whether Brian Nichols will be put to death. The Atlanta courthouse gunman was found guilty on Friday of killing four people in a shooting spree that began at a downtown Atlanta courthouse. Nichols, 36, was found guilty Friday in the fatal shootings of a judge, a court reporter, a deputy and a federal agent in the 2005 mêlée. He had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, claiming he was gripped by a delusional compulsion that he was a slave rebelling against authority. But a jury soundly rejected his claims, finding him guilty of all 54 counts against him, including murder and aggravated assault.

The last of six White West Virginians accused of kidnapping, raping and torturing a 20-year-old Black woman last year has pleaded guilty.  On Friday, Danny J. Combs followed the five other defendants, which included a mother-daughter and mother-son pair, admitting his role in one of the most heinous racial crimes in modern history. The case not only shined a spotlight on the backwardness of back-woods West Virginia, but it amplified the vicious racial division that still exists in America some 40 years after the Civil Rights Era. Get the rest of the story at BET.com/News. Has justice been served?