A Manhattan Criminal Court has brought to an end one strand of the feud between R Kelly and Jay Z which began during that Best Of Both Worlds tour in 2004. As previously reported, the tensions that grew between the two stars on that tour led to an incident where one of Jay Z's entourage attacked R Kelly back stage with pepper-spray. Following the incident the two singers completely fell out, with Jay-Z completing the tour without Kelly.
It is the pepper-spray incident that the Criminal Court hearing related to. Jay-Z affiliate Tyran 'Ty Ty' Smith has admitted involvement in the attack in a deal which will ensure he avoids jail time. Smith has pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct, in doing so avoiding charges of assault in the third degree, which could have left him with a 12 month prison sentence. As it is he has been ordered to attend a two day anger management course and to complete four days community service. Once he has done that he'll have his record wiped clean.
Although closure of sorts, the criminal case relating to the Best Of Both Worlds tour is just one part of the legal wranglings between Kelly and Jay-Z's people. Kelly's most recent lawsuit against Jay is still ongoing, though Kelly's people say they are optimistic an out of court settlement can be reached.