Young Thug’s racketeering court case has been ongoing since he was indicted in May 2022. The rapper (real name Jeffrey Williams) has received several charges, including involvement in a criminal organisation, possession of illegal firearms, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of schedule V drugs such as codeine and morphine.
However, the trial, which has been delayed and changed for over a year, has now come to a head, but Young Thug’s lawyer has already filed for a mistrial on day one. Throughout Williams’ time behind bars, different charges have been added to his case, and new evidence has been obtained.
Thug’s legal team have filed a motion calling the trial a mistrial as the Fulton County District Attorney Andrian Love was an hour late to the proceedings. Furthermore, Love did not finish her opening statements and used evidence that she had been previously told she could not.
Thug’s musical crew, Young Stoner Life (YSL), according to the prosecution, is a front for a well-known Atlanta street gang, Young Slime Life. Through his lyrics, the police have deduced that Williams has been participating in criminal street gang activity, thereby violating Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organisations (RICO) Act.
According to music publication Billboard magazine, during the trial, Love stated, “For ten years and counting, the group calling itself ‘Young Slime Life’ dominated the Cleveland Avenue community. They created a crater that sucked in the youth and innocence and even the lives of some its youngest members.”
The motion filed was rejected. However, the judge, Ural Glanville, did castigate Love for her late entrance and framing of Williams using a Jungle Book analogy. This proceeding was merely the start, and the trial could last for more than a year, according to legal outlets.
Williams’ lyrics will be used in court, including lines such as, “I just beat a murder rap, paid my lawyer 30 for that / Me and my slimes above the law” from 2018’s ‘Just How It Is’ and “Honestly truth be told YSL won’t fold / Pick his ass off from the balcony / YSL wipe a n*gga nose” from 2014’s ‘Eww.’
