Prosecutors and Defense Meet as Possible Risk of Mistrial

Young Thug‘s long and difficult trial The trial on racketeering conspiracy charges took a dramatic turn on Thursday when defense teams were called to meet privately with prosecutors to discuss possible new plea deals; The judge in the case remained in the background and withdrew his decision on a pending motion for trial.

A source tells Rolling stone He said that the meetings proceeded in a “defendant-accused” manner. Thousands of hearing viewers tuned in to a live stream of the hearing, hoping Judge Paige Reese Whitaker would take the stand at some point and provide an update. The source said news eventually spread that the hearing’s return date had been postponed to Monday.

It was not immediately clear what new terms, if any, prosecutors were willing to discuss with attorneys for Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffery Williams, and his five other defendants, Deamonte “Yak Gotti” Kendrick, Rodalius Ryan, Marquavius ​​Huey and Shannon. Stillwell and Quamarviv Nichols. Six men are accused of being members of a street gang called Young Slime Life, which allegedly terrorized Fulton County with drug sales, armed robbery, shootings and at least three murders. They pleaded not guilty. Williams has been detained for more than two years following his arrest in May 2022.

The new closed-door meetings Thursday came after Judge Whitaker further escalated his anger toward prosecutors the day before. During live testimony Wednesday, rapper Wunnie “SlimeLife Shawty” Lee, a former defendant in the case who took a plea deal, read aloud to the jury part of an Instagram post that needed to be redacted. The redaction was a tag that said “Free Qua”. When Lee read the hashtag out loud, there was an audible reaction in the courtroom. Live broadcast provided daily by Law and Crime.

Defense attorneys had previously won the right to exclude “Free Qua” by arguing to jurors that one of the defendants was in custody for a different, previously alleged crime, which could be counterproductive. Prosecutors said it was unclear to whom the phrase “Quay” in the hashtag referred, but lawyers for Williams’ co-defendants Marquavius ​​Huey and Quamarvation Nichols wanted a mistrial.

“We’re not going to be able to ring this bell,” said Nicole Westmoreland, Nichols’ attorney, adding that this wasn’t the first time jurors heard something about her client that should be off-limits. Judge Whitaker, He scolded prosecutors last month Regarding the alleged mistreatment of a different witness, he said in a statement Wednesday that he considered the incident with Lee “sloppy” but also a “mistake.” If he were to order a mistrial, he said, it would be “without prejudice,” meaning prosecutors could go back and retry each defendant.

“I don’t believe they are deliberately trying to introduce errors into this case,” the judge said Wednesday before turning to prosecutors and scolding them for not narrowing down the “huge universe of evidence” to avoid so many missteps.

“Do you want a mistrial? without prejudice?” Judge Whitaker then asked Westmoreland. The attorney said he would. Under the rules of the current RICO case, all defendants have the right to make such claims unless they specifically waive it.

Deputy District Attorney Simone Hylton attempted to argue Wednesday that “multiple Quays” were involved in the case (either as co-defendants or third parties), so it wasn’t even clear which one the hashtag was referring to. The judge said he still sees the issue as an issue and wants the parties to agree on an instruction he can give to jurors to address what happened.

“What I’m trying to do is correct your inattention so that everybody doesn’t waste 10, 12 months of their life on this trial,” Judge Whitaker responded. “Do it now,” he instructed Hylton regarding the preparation of a proposed instruction.

“Plea negotiations are ongoing, and it appears the judge is taking the mistrial motion upon recommendation,” said Kendrick’s attorney, Doug Weinstein. Rolling stone in a phone interview Thursday. He said he believes the defense deserved a mistrial with prejudice because of what happened Wednesday.

“How many ‘mistakes’ can you give prosecutors before they decide they are no longer mistakes? They made dozens of mistakes and were given the benefit of the doubt throughout. At some point, you are limited in the number of remedial jury instructions you can give before their effects wear off. It can be a lot for jurors to have to juggle in their minds as they testify over the course of a year and a half. “It’s not practical,” he said.

The current trial began with jury selection in January 2023 and opening statements last November, making it the longest trial in Georgia state history. seen before previous judge’s rejection The case filed against his will resulted from numerous allegations and allegations made by defense lawyers regarding prosecutorial misconduct. highly controversial testimony It’s from key state witness Kenneth “Woody” Copeland, whose robotic “I don’t remember” responses on the witness stand have become a popular meme.

Williams was charged along with 27 other defendants in a massive 65-count indictment. Nine defendants, including Leed, entered into plea agreements and 12 defendants were removed from the current trial.

Williams’ attorney, Brian Steel, called the investigation “implausible” and authoritarian nonsense. Claims Copeland was responsible For one of the murders in the indictment. Copeland was not charged in the case and was granted immunity to testify. Meanwhile Steel held in disrespect after complaining about a secret meeting prosecutors had with Copeland that excluded the defense. The contempt decision was overturned on appeal.

When Judge Whitaker He took over the management of the case in JulyHe said his plan was to move forward “efficiently and quickly” following previous setbacks. At this point approximately 70 witnesses had already testified. Prosecutors still have dozens more on their list. If the trial continues, it is expected to last until the end of the year.