split bit
n.— Note: “Bit” is well-established slang meaning “prison term.” «Under the state laws that govern sentencing, grand larceny is considered a non-violent crime, and it carries no mandatory minimum prison or jail sentence. In similar cases, judges often impose sentences that carry a combination of six months” county jail time and five years” probation—an arrangement that’s commonly known as a “split bit.”» —“Prosecutors, judge disagree on sentence for Montgomery cop Barber” Times Herald-Record (Middletown, New York) May 29, 2009. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
High school students in Alabama share some favorite slang terms. If someone tells you to touch grass, they’re telling you to get a reality check — but the last thing you’d actually want to touch is dog water! Also, the history of the word hangover...
Responding to our conversation about the word chat, meaning “the gravelly residue of mines,” Isabella from Marquette, Michigan, reports that where she lives, in the state’s Upper Peninsula, such runoff is commonly called slag. She uses some made-up...