Courthouse Fire Ruled an Accident, Lil Wayne to Be Sentenced Monday

The fire that postponed Lil Wayne's sentencing earlier this week has been ruled an accident, said a report in the New York Daily News. With the main courthouse closed, Lil Wayne will not be able to return for his sentencing until the start of next week.

The smoke that shut down the Manhattan Criminal Court building was caused by an electrical misfire in the basement on Wednesday. The courthouse was evacuated and closed for the remainder of the afternoon, causing a number of hearings to be postponed. Most notable among those was the hearing for Lil Wayne, who plead guilty last year to felon gun charges.

The rapper was arrested after police found a loaded .40-caliber semiautomatic gun in his tour bus in July 2007.

Courthouse operations were moved to a small building across the street pending the building's reopening. "For losing the biggest courthouse in the state, we're doing pretty well," a spokesman for the Office of Court Administration told the Daily News. "We expected it to be a bit messy, but we're still up and running."

Lil Wayne will return on Monday to face charges. He has agreed to serve a one-year prison term and is expected to turn himself in immediately after formal sentencing.