ATLANTA — Fulton County's Young Slime Life RICO trial has been playing out in the courtroom for more than a year - so now a judge is changing the rules to help speed things up.
“We’re behind," Fulton County Superior Court Judge Ural Glanville said, "and see if we’re behind I’m going to make you come during the weekends. Otherwise as Mr. Weinstein has said we’ll be here until 2027 and that’s not what I want for this jury."
The trial puts Atlanta rapper Young Thug as the focal point as the Fulton County District Attorney's Office alleges that the icon, whose legal name is Jeffery Williams, is the leader of the criminal street gang Young Slime Life. He and his co-defendants have been officially roped into the trial since November 2023, with few signs that an end is near.
Decatur-based criminal defense attorney Andrew Fleischman says a change is needed when pursuing a speedy trial.
“There’s been a tremendous amount of delays, disruptions and problems in the case. For instance, the eight-month jury selection by itself already makes this the longest case in Georgia history,” said Fleischman.
Glanville had issued eight new rules for the proceedings, including court beginning at 8:45 a.m. on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays. He is also requiring evidence to be submitted in physical and holding court on Saturdays and Sundays at the court’s discretion.
Attorney Fleischman said whether or not these new rules make a difference is anybody’s guess.
“You have seen the State coming in late with discovery and doing last minute things with no consequences. I would be surprised if these rules are rigorously enforced no matter how they’re written down,” said Fleischman.
The court document below lists all of the judge's changes. Scroll below for more on the trial.
More on the Young Thug, YSL trial
Back on May 9, 2022, the hip-hop world was jolted with the news that rapper Young Thug - a Grammy winner, trendsetter and Atlanta icon - had been arrested.
It's been nearly two years now that the artist, whose legal name is Jeffery Williams, has remained behind bars. The central charge against him is that three letters with which his name has become synonymous because of his artistic success in launching the "Young Stoner Life" label, YSL, actually signalize a violent gang: Young Slime Life.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis named Williams, among other metro Atlanta rappers and those with ties to the alleged gang, to bring charges against a total of 28 people in a sweeping 88-page indictment. The case alleges that not only is Young Thug among the gang's members, but he is also its kingpin.
"He is the one they're all afraid of," a prosecutor said at a June 2022 hearing. "He's the one that's King Slime."
A long pretrial process passed to an even longer jury selection process, and across this time, the co-defendant list dwindled with plea deals and other circumstances, keeping some of the individuals charged from remaining on the case.
The trial finally began in earnest in November 2023, already considered the longest in Georgia's history.
Now that it is in full swing, 11Alive is keeping track of key developments in the case and highlighting moments in the courtroom. Follow along in the timeline below.