Keith Richards

When the Rolling Stones stopped performing 'Brown Sugar' on their 2021 American tour, Richards expressed surprise at some criticism and maintained that the song was about the horrors of slavery.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

The Rolling Stones repeatedly demanded that Donald Trump stop using their songs at rallies. In 2020, the band and BMI strengthened their warning by expressly raising the possibility of legal action.

State of the evidence

Documented

In his 2010 memoir, Richards made numerous personal attacks on Jagger. In 2018, he also said that Jagger should have had a vasectomy after becoming a father at 73.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Richards caused a media storm by recounting that he had mixed his father's ashes with cocaine and snorted them. His spokesperson initially described the story as a joke.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Richards reacted angrily to Mick Jagger's knighthood, considering that acceptance of an establishment honour betrayed the Rolling Stones' rebellious history and recalling that the same establishment had once sought to imprison them.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

After heroin was discovered in Toronto, Richards was initially charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking, an offence carrying a potentially very severe sentence. The case was ultimately reduced to simple possession.

State of the evidence

Established by a court

Attribution

Directly implicated

'Some Girls', credited to Jagger/Richards, prompted protests over its racial and sexual stereotypes. Jesse Jackson and other critics denounced the song as degrading.

State of the evidence

Documented

A search of Richards's London home led to numerous charges. British records indicate that he was ultimately convicted of drug possession and possession of a firearm and ammunition without a certificate, among other offences.

State of the evidence

Established by a court

Attribution

Directly implicated

Richards was a member of the band at the centre of the free Altamont concert, marked by serious violence and the death of Meredith Hunter, killed by a Hells Angels member. The use of the Hells Angels and the lack of appropriate security arrangements became central to the debate.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Shared responsibility

Following the Redlands police raid, Keith Richards was sentenced to one year in prison for allowing cannabis to be consumed on his property, a sentence that prompted substantial public controversy over the trial's severity.

Attribution

Accused

Course of the proceedings

1. Formally charged — Formal charge before the current outcome