Paying income taxes could've put Lauryn Hill and her family in danger — so she says. Ms. Hill skipped out on two years' worth of tax bills because she had to go into hiding in order to save her family.

Newly released legal documents filed by the New Jersey native reveal that Hill stopped paying taxes after she "withdrew from society at large due to what she perceived as manipulation and very real threats to herself and her family."

She doesn't specify what kind of threats her family received.

The mother of six offered the explanation in hopes that it might sway a judge to give her probation and not jail time. If she's not allowed to remain free and work, Hill argues that it will hinder her ability to settle the debt.

Hill pleaded guilty to tax evasion charges last summer for failing to pay income taxes on more than $1.8 million in earnings from 2005-2007. She left the spotlight at the height of her fame to raise her children, alongside former partner Rohan Marley.

Her decision to go off the grid was previously blamed on wanting to get back in touch with her love for music.

A judge will decide Hill's fate on April 22.

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(Photo: Eduardo Munoz / Reuters)