Lil Wayne had a perfectly good reason for missing his court date in Arizona today -- he's currently behind bars in New York. But Yuma County didn't care ... and issued a bench warrant for his arrest.
Wayne pled not guilty in the past to a litany of drug charges related to a January 2008 arrest, where DEA agents found 105 grams of marijuana, 29 grams of cocaine and 41 grams of ecstasy pills and a 40-caliber pistol on his tour bus.
Wayne had a court date today, but missed it cause of the whole "already in jail" thing.
Lil Wayne's signature move in jail won't have anything to do with his actual signature -- TMZ has learned he's been instructed not to sign a single autograph during his stint at Rikers Island.
A rep for the Correction Officer's Benevolent Association tells us officials issued the no autograph mandate because "Lil Wayne is not a celebrity in here."
The rep also tells us Wayne isn't getting any special treatment while at Rikers -- but we're told the rapper really hasn't requested anything out of the ordinary.
Weezy is nearly a week into the yearlong jail sentence he received for a gun-related crime -- but he could get out after 8 months if he stays on his best behavior.
Lil Wayne has arrived at Rikers Island jail in New York -- which means he only has 364-and-a-half more days to go.
Weezy arrived to the NY jail in a corrections van -- we're told because the rapper is a "high-profile inmate," he was not transported with any other prisoners.
As of now, we're told the rapper is still undergoing the admissions procedure at the jail -- which entails a physical & mental health exam & questionnaire.
It has yet to be determined whether Lil Wayne will be in the general population at Rikers -- or if he will be given his own cell.
And since moving can make any convicted felon hungry, the jail chef has the perfect dish for Wayne's first night -- noodles with beef sausage & marinara sauce, steamed greens, a mixed green salad, whole wheat bread, sliced peaches & a fruit drink or tea.
Weezy was sentenced to a year in the big house for a gun charge -- but he could be out sooner if he stays on his best behavior.
Lil Wayne just got a judge to agree to place him in protective custody while he serves one year in jail for a gun conviction.
The judge asked Wayne before sentencing if he wanted to make a statement but Lil just shook his head no.
After he was sentenced, Lil Wayne was cuffed, turned to his fans in the courtroom and bowed his head.
Lil Wayne also asked for special medical attention while in the pokey because of his dental problems.
Lil Wayne's mentor, Birdman, was in court to bid him farewell.
This is the fourth time Wayne was supposed to be sentenced. The first time was postponed because of dental surgery and the second and third times were because of a fire in the courthouse.
If Lil Wayne actually goes to jail today on weapons charges (like he's scheduled to), Food Network chef Paula Deen has the perfect suggestion for his last meal -- Collard greens ... to "clean his butt out."
Lil Wayne scored an extra weekend of freedom before reporting to jail -- and he's not sticking around NYC on his borrowed time.
We got Weezy leaving his New York hotel yesterday with his entourage, baby mama Nivea and their three-month-old son, Neal.
The fam took off for New Jersey's Teterboro airport -- destination unknown -- but, pending another ridiculous stroke of luck, he'll be back Monday for sentencing.
For all the conspiracy theorists out there who thought the court fire that kept Lil Wayne out of jail yesterday was a lil suspicious ... it wasn't.
According to the New York City Fire Department, the fire at the Manhattan Criminal Court building was caused by "electrical wiring for temporary construction lighting in the basement."
There were also no diamond-encrusted teeth, lollypop sticks, or handguns stuffed in Louis Vuitton bags found at the scene of the fire either ... so Lil Wayne was obviously not involved.
He's still set to go back for sentencing on Monday.
Lil Wayne will not be going to jail today -- dude's check-in date was just pushed back again ... for the 3rd time!!!
If you've been following the saga, Wayne was originally supposed to go to jail a few weeks ago ... but the judge cut him a break so the rapper could swap out his diamond teeth for a less expensive set.
Then -- he was supposed to check in yesterday, until a fire broke out in the courthouse and everyone was sent home.
Now, the judge has decided to once again push back Wayne's court date so more repairs can be made to the courthouse.
According to the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, Wayne will be back on Monday ... unless some other crazy, unexpected thing delays the case again.
Which means there's still time to bake Weezy another going away cake!
Lil Wayne was supposed to be behind bars last night -- instead, dude was in front of a crowd of roughly 20,000 people ... rocking out a surprise performance at Madison Square Garden.
Wayne, who was unable to be sentenced on attempted weapons possession charges yesterday because of a freak fire in the courthouse, appeared at the Jay-Z concert to perform a song along with Young Jeezy, Nicki Minaj and Drake.
The ironic name of the song Weezy performed -- "I'm Goin' In."
Provided there's no other fires or dental emergencies, Lil Wayne will actually be going into jail today.
Lil Wayne won't be going to jail today after all -- his hearing was just postponed due to a fire in the courthouse where he was scheduled to be sentenced.
We're told the fire occurred in the basement of the Manhattan Criminal Court building at 10:29 AM ET sending smoke throughout the building and causing a complete evacuation.
The fire was under control by 11:55 AM ET -- but the damage was done ... because Lil Wayne's attorney says the courthouse has now been shut down for the rest of the day.
Wayne -- who pled guilty to attempted weapons possession last year -- was supposed to be sentenced last month ... but the rapper was able to delay the hearing until today so he could have dental surgery on his grill.
Wayne's attorney tells TMZ the rapper has no idea his sentencing has been postponed, because he's on a plane right now.
UPDATE 2:12 PM ET: A court official tells TMZ Wayne will be sentenced tomorrow ... unless the hand of God comes down and saves him yet again.
Two days before starting his one year jail sentence for a gun charge, Lil Wayne showed off his refurbished, replacement teeth at his going away party at LIV in Miami on Sunday.
As TMZ previously reported, the NY judge allowed Wayne to visit the dentist a few days ago -- so the rapper could swap out his $150,000 diamond teeth for some less expensive chompers before he checked into the slammer.
At his going away party, Weezy got a cake that read "Keep Ya Head Up" -- unfortunately, it doesn't mention anything about keeping his mouth shut.
Lil Wayne just had one of the gnarliest oral surgeries in the history of dentistry. We're told it was a marathon session that included a stomach-turning eight root canals at one time.
Our sources say Wayne went under the drill on Tuesday.
We're told during the eight hour procedure, Wayne had his grill worked on, several tooth implants redone, more implants added and had the few real teeth he had left repaired.
This is the critical dental surgery that kept Wayne from being shipped off to the big house last week.
The judge allowed the rapper to put his sentence for felony attempted gun possession on hold until March 2 -- enough time for Wayne to get his mouth prison-ready.
Lil Wayne mouthed off to the judge in his weapons possession case -- and it actually won him his freedom ... at least temporarily.
Lil was scheduled to be formally sentenced today ... to begin serving 1 year in jail, but it didn't happen because Weezy has a date with the dentist to fix all the crap in his mouth.
Turns out Weezy's grill is going under the knife on February 12 so the judge won't throw him in the slammer until the surgery is complete.
But this will be the last oral argument in the case ... the judge said no excuses on March 2, when Weezy shows up with his freshly fixed mouth.
Lil Wayne had a perfectly good reason for missing his court date in Arizona today -- he's currently behind bars in New York. But Yuma County didn't care ... and issued a bench warrant for his arrest.
Lil Wayne's signature move in jail won't have anything to do with his actual signature -- TMZ has learned he's been instructed not to sign a single autograph during his stint at Rikers Island. 
Lil Wayne has arrived at Rikers Island jail in New York -- which means he only has 364-and-a-half more days to go. 
For all the conspiracy theorists out there who thought the court fire that kept Lil Wayne out of jail yesterday was a lil suspicious ... it wasn't.
Lil Wayne will not be going to jail today -- dude's check-in date was just pushed back again ... for the 3rd time!!! 
Lil Wayne just had one of the gnarliest oral surgeries in the history of dentistry. We're told it was a marathon session that included a stomach-turning eight root canals at one time.
Lil Wayne mouthed off to the judge in his weapons possession case -- and it actually won him his freedom ... at least temporarily.
