Perhaps the most famous J. Prince move of all occurred in 2000 after Scarface released his Last Of A Dying Breed LP, which features taunts at Drug Enforcement Agency officer Jack Schumacher and other agents. A 12-year investigation conducted by DEA agent Ernest Howard, which began in 1988, targeted Prince and Rap-A-Lot Records for involvement in drug distribution concluded suspiciously when then Attorney General Janet Reno canned the probe into the label. A rumor spread that the case had been withdrawn due to political pressure after Prince supposedly donated $200,000 to then-Vice President Al Gore’s presidential campaign, although government officials and Rap-A-Lot spokespeople denied the claim, according to MTV.
Democratic California representative Maxine Waters intervened on Prince’s behalf, writing Reno a letter detailing how Prince and associates feared for their lives due to “police harassment and excessive force,” while Howard, on behalf of the DEA, testified in a congressional hearing that he ended the investigation for fear of agents’ lives and safety.
Political influence is the difference between being a gangster and being a criminal.
