Jacksonville rapper Ksoo denied new trial following murder conviction
Jacksonville rapper Ksoo was found guilty of first-degree murder earlier this summer. He requested a retrial, which was denied by the judge.
The Florida artist (real name Hakeem Robinson) was convicted of killing 23-year-old Lil Buck (real name Charles McCormick Jr) in 2020.
Robinson was accused of murder alongside his cousin, Leroy Whitaker Jr. The killing took place at a shopping centre in the Arlington neighbourhood at around 11am on January 15th, 2020.
An off-duty police officer witnessed the incident, claiming the gunman stood over the victim and shot him with a rifle before driving off in a Nissan.
The officer chased the car until it crashed, prompting three people to exit the vehicle and run away. Two people allegedly ran into a house and held the homeowner hostage.
According to News4Jax, Robinson appeared in court on September 9th to argue that he deserved a new trial, but the judge denied his request.
Lawyers claimed that iCloud notes used in the trial were “highly prejudicial” and unrelated, while criticising an officer for changing his testimony “on a critical identification issue,” relating to the height of the suspect.
His team said, “This was not harmless. The change erased one of the defence’s most powerful exculpatory points and instead bolstered the State’s identification theory.”
Robinson’s appearance in court came after he was expected to receive a sentencing date on September 8th, but that has yet to be determined. His cousin is also requesting a new trial.
He released his debut album, Violent Child, in 2020. One of his biggest singles, ‘Ksoo Bitch’, has over 9.4 million views on YouTube. Other big tracks include ‘Been Dead’ with 9.5 million views and ‘Step on Sum’ with 5.6 million views.