Young Thug, YSL RICO Trial: No jury in court on Wednesday while motions, evidence reviewed
FULTON COUNTY, Ga. - Deputy District Attorney Adriane Love spent hours on Tuesday questioning defense attorney Derek Wright, who represents Antonio Sledge, a witness who took a plea deal earlier in the case.
Wright testified that Sledge, also known as "Mounk Tounk," lacked the resources for a prolonged trial. The questioning focused on the accuracy of Sledge's plea agreement, which included factual statements Sledge later claimed were incorrect.
Wright revealed that he and Sledge only saw the plea agreement draft a day before signing and that the state refused to amend statements Sledge believed were inaccurate.
Despite their concerns, Sledge accepted the terms to finalize the deal. The defense's Doug Weinstein and Young Thug’s attorney, Keith Adams, also questioned Wright about the plea agreement, leading to objections from the prosecution.
After Wright's testimony, a representative for Infiniti took the stand to help identify a car linked to the night Donovan "Nut" Thomas was murdered, which the state is trying to connect to Young Thug.
In an unexpected twist during an ongoing trial, Deputy District Attorney Love spent hours questioning defense attorney Derek Wright, who represents Antonio Sledge, a witness who took a plea deal earlier in the case. Wright testified that Sledge lacked the resources for a prolonged trial. The questioning focused on the accuracy of Sledge's plea agreement, which included factual statements Sledge later claimed were incorrect.
Wright revealed that he and Sledge only saw the plea agreement draft a day before signing and that the state refused to amend statements Sledge believed were inaccurate. Despite their concerns, Sledge had to accept the terms to finalize the deal. The defense's Doug Weinstein and Young Thug’s attorney, Keith Adams, also questioned Wright about the plea agreement, leading to objections from the prosecution.
After Wright's testimony, a representative for Infiniti took the stand to help identify a car linked to the night Donovan "Nut" Thomas was murdered, which the state is trying to connect to Young Thug.
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There is no testimony expected on Wednesday and the jury will not be in court while the judge and lawyers address several issues.
One of those includes a motion filed by Rodalius Ryan, who is also known as "Lil Rod." The motion is related to autopsy photos of Jamari Holmes. According to the motion, they are questioning the relevancy and probative value in the current trial. The motion says that Ryan "appreciates" that his role in the present case is to cause the jury to be "inflamed and unduly prejudiced" against the other defendants because of his conviction (life sentence) for his role in the murder of Jamari Holmes.
Before court adjourned for the day, attorney Doug Weinstein once again asked the court to limit the time that the state is taking for the trial. Weinstein argued that the state said that it would only need approximately 3 hours to question Antonio Sledge, but he was on the stand for several days.
However, Judge Paige Reese Whitaker declined to place any limits on the case because of the size and complexity of the indictment and the belief that the state thought Sledge was going to be a cooperative witness when he was not. Judge Whitaker did say that the state's examinations should be more "targeted and focused" and no one, including the defense, should be rehashing things that have already been established.
Young Thug and 27 others were indicted in 2022 for violating Georgia's RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) law and committing multiple violent crimes. Following the longest jury selection in history (10 months), the trial for Young Thug and several co-defendants began in November 2023. It is now the longest trial in Georgia history. Prosecutors are attempting to prove that YSL (Young Slime Life) is a criminal street gang responsible for numerous offenses, including murder. The defendants maintain that YSL stands for Young Stoner Life and is the name of a record label founded by Young Thug. Young Thug is facing eight criminal charges. The trial has been plagued by various disruptions, including illnesses, the arrests of a juror and a lawyer, the stabbing of defendant Shannon Stillwell, the removal of the judge originally assigned to the case, and more.