FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — After nearly 23 months in courtroom 1C, Quamarvious Nichols' portion of the YSL RICO trial came to an emotional end on Tuesday.
"He is an intelligent young man who I believe has a future," his attorney Bruce Harvey said, getting choked up on the stand. "I think this is in his best interest."
Nichols comes "a very humble beginning," Harvey told the court. His mother died in prison; his father was shot and killed by police officers when he was just four years old.
This plea deal will give him a second chance at life. A grand jury had initially indicted him on seven charges: conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), murder, two counts of participation in criminal street gang activity, two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon previously convicted of a felony involving the use or possession of a firearm and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
Nichols pleaded guilty to the RICO charge in exchange for the state dropping the rest. He accepted a 20-year sentence, with seven years in prison and the remainder on probation.
Two of his attorneys — Harvey and Nicole Westmoreland — spoke with 11Alive at length after the court accepted his deal.
"It's an exceptional result for the following reasons: no murder charges, no gang charges, no factual acknowledgments required by the state," Harvey said. "No other charges, except for one conspiracy charge that was factually underpinned by convictions that Mr. Nichols already had from almost six years ago."
Harvey, Westmoreland and Nichols bonded during Georgia's longest trial. The attorneys picked a word every day and taught Nichols its meaning and pronunciation.
"He's intelligent, and he's so much more than, unfortunately, what comes out during a trial process," Westmoreland said. "Two, three weeks later, he'll use a word... that he learned two or three weeks before, and he keeps it going. He's a great individual and we're glad that this is over for him. It's been two years too long."
The attorneys said they're glad to have a sense of finality rather than a mistrial without prejudice, which could have allowed the state to prosecute Nichols again.
"This ends the case... I think we're in the best posture at this particular point with this particular judge and the two years that we've been litigating this and everything that has happened," Harvey said. "We were able to resolve our case in a different fashion than what I understand has been put on the table for others."
The state did not require any factual acknowledgments or testimony from Nichols as part of his plea, which was a key factor in his acceptance of the state's offer.
"If you have been following this closely, every other person in this case who has pled has signed a plea agreement with factual acknowledgments. YSL, I'm a member, it's a gang, I did this, I would do this on behalf of the gang," Harvey said. "We were able to resolve our case without... any of that, and that's the distinction."
Harvey said attending court daily had become almost "ritualistic" with his fellow attorneys and defendants.
"We're relieved because the result of Mr. Nichols was the right result. Now, we have to deal with the rest of the world (because) they can release us from our kidnapped status," he said. "I wish the very best for every one of those young men, including Jeffery Williams, who's been sitting in jail for years now. He is an incredible, talented and a wonderful young man, so I wish the best for all."