ATLANTA — When rapper Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffery Williams, was arrested on May 9, 2022, it sent shockwaves through the entertainment community.
Two years after being arrested, Young Thug and his five remaining co-defendants are still undergoing a trial. Jury selection began in Jan. 2023. Since then, it’s become the state’s longest-running trial leaving many to wonder when it will end.
“We don’t see an end in sight and that’s not good because most criminal cases, most trials are two or three days at the most, not two or three years,” said Attorney Darryl Cohen, who is not affiliated with the case.
Cohen has experience both a criminal defense lawyer and a prosecutor. He thinks using RICO - the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act -- to bring this case to trial could backfire on prosecutors.
“Scares me to death that it's going to be a mistrial because when you have a criminal case, the DAs office, the prosecution normally zeros in and goes straight to it. Here they are not doing that,” said Cohen.
Prosecutors claim members of the alleged gang Young Slime Life or YSL is responsible for a series of violent crimes with Young Thug being YSL’s leader.
Young Thug's attorneys maintain YSL is simply the artist's record label. The rapper and co-defendants have requested bond to leave jail while on trial but have repeatedly been denied.
“It’s not unusual to be denied bond, and once its denied -- unless you can show some extenuating circumstance that’s brand new that says the defendant should have bond -- then it stays the same way,” said Cohen.
Cohen said this case and how it's being handled point to larger, widespread issues within Fulton County Courts.
“There’s a tremendous backlog. Some of its due to COVID, some of its due to other reasons,” he said.
Judge Ural Glanville rolled out some new rules last month for this trial in an effort to streamline and speed up the process.
Those changes include earlier start times three days a week and possible weekend court days.