Key Takeaways
- Keke Wyatt was booked in Henry County, Georgia, on Sept. 20 on charges of aggravated assault, terroristic threats and acts, and third-degree cruelty to children.
- Georgia’s third-degree child-cruelty law covers allegations that a child witnessed or heard a violent offense, and the booking record does not identify the child or the alleged act.
- The arrest follows a 2002 assault case involving Wyatt’s then-husband Rahmat Morton that authorities later dismissed; Wyatt said she stabbed him in self-defense because her life was in danger.
Keke Wyatt was booked in Henry County, Georgia, on Sept. 20 on charges of assault, terroristic threats and acts, and third-degree cruelty to children. The booking listing names the R&B singer under her full legal name, Ketara Wyatt Darring, and describes the child-cruelty allegation as a “3rd Degree Witness” offense.
The Georgia Gazette has the booking information about the troubled R&B singer, but details about the circumstances leading to the arrest are limited. Under Georgia law, “child cruelty” does not, by itself, mean an allegation that Wyatt struck a child.
Georgia’s third-degree provision applies when a person alleged to be the primary aggressor allows a child under 18 to witness a forcible felony, battery, or family-violence battery, or commits one knowing the child can see or hear it. The booking listing does not identify the child or say which alleged act the child witnessed.
Furthermore, under Georgia law, a first or second conviction for third-degree child cruelty is a misdemeanor charge. Aggravated assault generally carries one to 20 years in prison, though Georgia law sets different ranges for certain circumstances. A terroristic threat is ordinarily a misdemeanor, but a threat suggesting someone’s death can carry one to five years.
Wyatt has not publicly commented on the arrest.
The arrest brings Wyatt back into the headlines for an assault allegation nearly 25 years after a case that followed her through the early years of her career.
In March 2002, a Kentucky grand jury indicted her on second-degree assault after her then-husband and manager, Rahmat Morton, was stabbed during a Christmas Day domestic dispute. Police said Morton had wounds to his chest, arms and hands, and that part of a knife blade had to be removed from his back. The case was later dismissed.
At the time of that indictment, Wyatt’s debut album, Soul Sista, had reached No. 5 on Billboard’s R&B and hip-hop albums chart. Her duet with Avant, “Nothing in This World,” had climbed to No. 4 on the R&B singles chart.
Wyatt later spoke openly about the stabbing, saying she had experienced domestic abuse and acted in self-defense. “It was a sad situation, and I wanted to protect my kids,” she told Essence at the time.
Asked why she stabbed Morton, she said, “My life was in danger.”
