Chicago rapper Lil Durk, legally known as Durk Banks, has been released from solitary confinement at the Los Angeles Metropolitan Detention Center.
The 33-year-old artist had been held in a special housing unit since August 2025 following an alleged disciplinary infraction involving the possession of an unauthorized Apple Watch.
His defense team filed a motion on January 6, 2026, challenging the prolonged isolation as a violation of the Eighth Amendment’s protections against cruel and unusual punishment.
The attorneys argued that the Bureau of Prisons failed to conduct a timely review of the incident, which normally occurs within five working days.
During his five months in isolation, Durk was reportedly confined to a small cell for 23 hours a day, denied access to the commissary, and restricted to just one phone call per month with no in-person social visits.
Following a review hearing on January 7, authorities moved the rapper back into the general population. Banks has been in federal custody since October 2024, facing murder-for-hire charges related to the 2022 death of Saviay’a “Lul Pab” Robinson, the cousin of rival rapper Quando Rondo.
While his trial was originally set to begin this month, it has been rescheduled to April 21, 2026.
Prosecutors have also requested an anonymous jury for the proceedings, citing concerns over potential witness tampering and the rapper’s significant influence through his “Only the Family” (OTF) collective.
