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Young Thug Attempts To Get Bond From New Judge In YSL RICO Case

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Young Thug and his attorney, Brian Steele, have filed another motion attempting to get bond as the YSL RICO trial has received a new judge, Paige Reese Whitaker. They argue Thug has strong ties to the community and isn’t a flight risk. Additionally, they say he is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

“In the Great State of Georgia, unlike other States, for purposes of pretrial bond analysis, the presumption of innocence remains with the person accused of an offense, even a capital offense, from arrest and even during trial…” the motion reads. “That means, prior to and during trial, Courts view the criminally accused to be innocent of the charges waged against him/her. It has been written that the most fundamental premise of our criminal justice system is that the criminally accused cannot be punished for an offense until the prosecution proves guilt beyond a reasonable doubt… Thus, the granting of a reasonable pretrial bond must be preserved. Otherwise, the presumption of innocence, secured only after centuries of struggle, would lose its meaning.”

Read More: Young Thug & YSL’s New Judge Suggests Trial Might Delay Until August

Brian Steel, attorney for rapper Young Thug, right, arrives at the Fulton County. Courthouse on November 27, 2023, in Atlanta, Georgia. Opening statements are set to begin in the case against 31-year-old US rapper Young. Thug and 28 others, who are facing a racketeering indictment accusing the defendants of a number of offenses that support an overarching conspiracy charge, including murder, assault, carjacking, drug dealing, and theft. (Photo by Christian MONTERROSA / AFP) (Photo by CHRISTIAN MONTERROSA/AFP via Getty Images)

Whitaker took over as the presiding judge in the case after Ural Glanville’s recusal, earlier this month. “I would like for us to maintain a degree of decorum and dignity and professionalism that is what is expected of all of us as members of the bar,” Whitaker said. “I’m here to give everybody a fair trial, a fair shake, and follow the law.” To that end, she’s banned headphones and eating in the courtroom.

Whitaker is currently catching up on pending motions and all that she’s missed since the trial began. In turn, the jury will not return until August 5. Be on the lookout for further updates on Young Thug and the ongoing YSL RICO trial on HotNewHipHop.

Read More: YFN Lucci Receives Co-Sign From Fani Willis As He Continues To Push For Early Release

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The Young Thug Trial Got Its New Judge — Who Also Recused Herself Two Days Later

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The high-profile racketeering case against Young Thug was assigned a new judge after the old one was removed, but the new judge is already off the case. According to local news coverage, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Shukura Ingram was randomly assigned to the case on Monday (July 15), but today filed an Order of Recusal taking herself off the case.

Her reason for recusing herself was to avoid any appearance of favoritism or bias after it was revealed last June that her court deputy was involved in an inappropriate relationship with one of the YSL case’s co-defendants, Christian Eppinger. The former deputy had been assigned to Judge Ingram’s courtroom for almost six months by the time the relationship was discovered, and the deputy was arrested.

The deputy, identified by local news as Akeiba Stanley, was arrested after Fulton County deputies seized Eppinger’s attorney Eric Johnson’s laptop, after discovering it was being used to allow him to communicate with alleged YSL members not in custody. Stanley also allegedly used a phone to communicate with Eppinger, visited him in his jail cell, and tried to smuggle contraband into the jail for him.

Although Ingram maintained in her order that she didn’t think the connection constituted any “actual bias for or against any party to this case” (a pretty boilerplate response for this situation), she acknowledged that it could affect public perception. A new judge, Paige Reese Whitaker, has been assigned to the case. The prior one, Judge Ural Glanville, was recused after a third-party review following his order to hold Thug’s attorney Brian Steel in criminal contempt of court.

Young Thug’s Racketeering Trial Will Start Over With A New Judge After Ural Glanville Was Removed From The Case

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After months of slowdowns, delays, and controversies, the racketeering trial against Young Thug and alleged gang/record label YSL will restart with a new judge, as Ural Glanville, who had overseen the trial for the past year and a half, has been removed from the case, according to documents filed with the Fulton County Superior Court. Ironically, the news comes from ThuggerDaily, a fan account on Twitter that has been following the case intently, for obvious reasons.

According to Judge Rachel Krause, who approved the motion to have Judge Glanville recused, he was not removed over the ex parte meeting with witness Kenneth “Woody” Copeland that prompted Glanville to have Thug’s lawyer Brian Steel held in criminal contempt of court. Rather, she approved Glanville’s recusal due to his prior judgments to deny previously filed motions to recuse, in which he offered his own opinions as justifications, leaving his judgments open to critique. In order to “preserve the public’s confidence in the judicial system,” she deemed it necessary to have Glanville removed from the case.

Steel avoided a sentence of several weeks worth of jail time, as the sentence was suspended until an appeal could be completed. With Glanville removed from the case, Steel will likely be let off the hook.

Young Thug’s Kids Threaten To Wack Gunna In Scathing New Diss Song

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Young Thug and Gunna are not the friends they once were. It’s hard to imagine they ever will be. The former is still in the midst of a RICO charge, and the latter has walked. It’s widely assumed that Gunna snitched on Young Thug to avoid prison time. That said, the rapper has repeatedly stated that the “rat” claims are false. It hasn’t helped much. Kendrick Lamar cast Gunna in an unflattering light when he named him on “Euphoria.” Now, Young Thug’s kids are getting in the act. Admittedly, their reference to Gunna is a lot more aggressive.

Young Thug’s sons posted a snippet of an untitled diss song on Instagram. The duo can be seen dancing and showing off money stacks. It’s the bars, however, that definitely draw the most attention. The duo makes reference to multiple targets, but Gunna gets it the worst. “And Bentley a rat he keep leaving states,” one of the kids raps. “And Gunna get whacked if he don’t leave L.A.” It’s not clear whether Young Thug gave the thumbs up to these bars, but it shocked viewers enough to question his parenting in the comments. Some users claimed that Thugger will be disappointed by the diss. Others considered the legal ramifications. They worried the diss could be used against the rapper during the YSL trial.

Read More: Young Thug Posts Cryptic Tweet About Lil Baby Amidst YSL Trial

Young Thug’s Kids Urged Gunna To Leave Los Angeles

Young Thug has had some controversial takes on parenting in the past. He lobbied to have full custody of his 12 kids during a Twitter rant in 2015. He felt that he had the means to provide for all of them, unlike the women he had the kids with. “I got a mansion with 12 empty bedrooms waiting for them,” he wrote. “I refuse to come on Cleveland Ave. That’s called backtracking. Just wanna no [why] should a peasant with no job, or future, or apartment/house/condo have custody of a rich mans child.”

Young Thug doubled down on this line of thinking during a 2022 Instagram Live. He went as far as to claim that people who are broke shouldn’t procreate. “We need new rules. We need a new oath,” the rapper asserted. “If you dead broke, if you a broke-a*s n**ga, you should not be able to n*t. You’re bringing poor kids into this world, f*ck n**ga. You’re making n**gas rob, and kill and steal because you’re running around with no type of career, no nothing.”

Read More: YSL Woody Affiliate Reportedly Murdered In Atlanta Amid Young Thug RICO Trial

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The Young Thug Trial Has Reportedly Been Put On Hold Until A Recusal Judgment Is Made

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Last month, the racketeering trial against YSL and Young Thug was sent into disarray as Judge Ural Glanville had Thug’s attorney, Brian Steel, held in criminal contempt, sentencing him to a month of weekends in jail alongside his client. While that sentence was suspended while Steel appeals the decision, now the whole proceeding has reportedly been put on hold, as another judge must now review a recusal motion filed against Glanville by the defense.

The defense moved to have Judge Glanville recuse himself a couple of times in this case, but he’s refused on every occasion. On June 18, he denied the most recent motion, which stemmed from a secret meeting between the judge and a witness for the prosecution — the same meeting that prompted Steel’s supposed contempt of court when the defense attorney demanded the minutes from the meeting and refused to tell Glanville how he found out about it.

According to WSB-TV Atlanta, the case will now be on hold until another judge has made a decision on whether Glanville can continue to preside over the case, which has been underway for 100 days today.

Young Thug is accused of being the ringleader of a criminal organization, YSL (Young Slime Life), which has been credited with a wave of crimes across Atlanta, including armed robbery, drug trafficking, and attempted murder.

Is Gunna Still Signed To YSL Records?

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GUNNA: The Bittersweet Tour - Atlanta, GA
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In December 2022, Gunna “entered a negotiated plea, known as an Alford plea, in which a defendant doesn’t admit he committed the crime but acknowledges that it is in his best interest to plead guilty,” as initially reported by WSB-TV. Gunna and Young Thug had been among 28 YSL members arrested in May 2022 and charged with in a 56-count grand injury indictment, including Racketeer Influenced And Corrupt Organizations (RICO) allegations. Gunna’s decision to take a plea deal sparked scrutiny with many calling Gunna a “snitch,” especially considering Young Thug is facing nine charges in the ongoing YSL RICO trial.

Is Gunna Still Signed To YSL Records?

On Wednesday, June 26, a video shared by Complex showed Gunna reiterating his loyalty to YSL.

“I’m still signed to YSL,” he said. “I’m still providing. We still pushin’. No paperwork has been changed. So, it’s like, whatever’s been getting and how we’ve been pushin’ this sh*t, it’s still going.”

It’s unclear when the video was shot and for whom, but Gunna expressed a similar sentiment about Young Thug for his XXL Magazine cover story in April: “It’s the same. It’s love, always. Our relationship is our relationship.”

Earlier this month, Jeffrey Williams Sr., Young Thug’s father, was dancing front row at Gunna’s The Bittersweet Tour finale at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. Williams Sr. has been an ardent defender of Gunna.

Young Thug Posts Cryptic Tweet About Lil Baby Amidst YSL Trial

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There are a lot of moving parts in the YSL trial. Young Thug is the leader, and therefore the face, of the organization, but Lil Baby and Gunna have played pivotal roles. Lil Baby has continued to voice support for Thug. Gunna, on the other hand, has come under fire from the hip-hop world. Many believe Gunna snitched on his label boss to save himself, though he refutes these claims. This context is important, because Young Thug’s recent tweet doesn’t provide any. The rapper sent a message to Lil Baby, and fans are unsure as to what it could mean.

The tweet in question was posted on June 26. Young Thug wrote: “Whateva wham say goes,” which again, makes little sense in a vacuum. “Wham” is the nickname Thug has for Lil Baby, which implies the rapper is supporting whatever Lil Baby wants to do on the outside. Simple enough. Except for the fact that the message was shared shortly after footage of Gunna surfaced online. The footage in question sees Gunna declaring that he’s still part of YSL. “I’m still signed,” the rapper asserted. “Still providing, like we still been pushing. No paperwork has been changed… It’s still going.”

Read More: Young Thug Trial: Lil Woody Confesses He Lied To Police In Intense Rant

Young Thug And Lil Baby Have Remained Close Friends

Lil Baby and Gunna, who were once serial collaborators, have been on the outs since the YSL trial started. Lil Baby even threw subliminal disses at Gunna on the song “Family Freestyle” from 2023. “Some ni***s taking pleas at trial I know that slime ain’t happy,” Baby rapped. More disses came on “350,” which saw the rapper calling an unnamed target a “rat.” It doesn’t take much to arrive at the conclusion that Lil Baby is siding with Young Thug in the YSL cold war.

Lil Baby has been upfront about his stance on Thug. He told XXL that he barely talked to Gunna when the YSL case began, but stayed in touch with his label boss. “He’s not like one of my rap friends,” the rapper noted. “He’s one of my personal friends. We actually talk on the phone. Or if we in the same city, like one of them guys that I pull up on.” It’s unclear whether Young Thug’s tweet was meant to suggest that Lil Baby wanted Gunna off the label, or if he was merely co-signing Baby. Either way, all eyes will remain on YSL.

Read More: Young Thug Trial: Judge Refuses To Step Down After Ex-Parte Meeting Debacle

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Young Thug Trial: Lil Woody Confesses He Lied To Police In Intense Rant

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There’s been two major storylines coming out of the Young Thug YSL RICO trial so far this month. One of which has been the testimony of Lil Woody. Last week it was revealed that he would be compelled to testify in the case or face jail time and after his first appearance in court it looked like he would opt for the latter. But in a surprise move, he decided to testify after all and his time on the stand has been grueling over the past few days. At first, videos made the rounds online of his testimony where he appeared to be purposefully dragging out answers and taking questions exceedingly literally.

Later in his testimony, Lil Woody fired his lawyer while still on the stand. That’s why it’s no surprise that even more surprising revelations have spawned from his testimony. Earlier today during an intense rant he confessed that he lied to police. In fact, he cut off the prosecutor in the middle of a question. He did so to reveal that he had extensively lied to the police in order to protect his own innocence. In the comments, fans treat the revelation as yet another example of the unprofessionalism of the entire trial. Check out the full rant Lil Woody went on below.

Read More: Young Thug Trial: Judge Determined To Find Out Who Told Brian Steel About Controversial Ex Parte Meeting

Lil Woody Confesses He Lied To Police During Young Thug Trial

The other major storyline from the YSL RICO trial this week has revolved around Young Thug’s lawyer Brian Steel. He was found in contempt of court after accusing the judge and prosecution of coercing witnesses. Though he was hit with 20-day jail sentence after being taken into custody he was granted emergency bond in order to return to the trial.

What do you think of Lil Woody confessing that he extensively lied to police in order to protect his own innocence? Do you think his testimony will help Young Thug beat the charges he’s facing or hurt his chances? Let us know in the comment section below.

Read More: Kodak Black’s Lawyer Speaks Up For Brian Steel After Young Thug’s Attorney Is Taken Into Custody

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Young Thug’s Attorney Brian Steel Will Avoid Jail For Now As He Appeals His Court Contempt Sentence

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On Monday, June 10, Young Thug’s ongoing YSL Racketeer Influenced And Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) trial was interrupted in bizarre fashion when Brian Steel, Young Thug’s attorney, was taken into custody after being held in contempt of court.

According to Billboard, Steel “will not have to report to jail this weekend on criminal contempt charges after the Georgia Supreme Court granted his emergency motion for bond,” a ruling from Wednesday, June 12.

“The decision means that Steel’s jail sentence — 20 days, to be served over ten consecutive weekends starting this Friday — will be put on pause until the Supreme Court rules on his appeal of the contempt order, which his attorneys have argued was an abuse of the judge’s authority,” Billboard relayed.

FOX 5 Atlanta initially reported that Steel’s charge is due to his approaching the bench following a lunch recess and “revealing his knowledge of an ex parte conversation that took place before court” between the Judge Ural Glanville, prosecutors, and witness Kenneth “Lil Woody” Copeland. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution additionally noted, “It could upend the entire trial, which has already lasted 18 months —making it the longest trial in Georgia’s history.”

See clips of the moment unfolding below.

Young Thug Trial: Lil Woody Fires His Lawyer In The Middle Of Giving Testimony

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The calls for Young Thug’s YSL trial being compromised have been louder than ever before in the past week. Since it got back underway earlier this month there’s been one turbulent moment after another for the already notoriously rocky trial. It started with an extensive back and forth over the testimony of Lil Woody. Woody was given the choice to testify or face jail time and initially it looked like he was going to opt out of giving testimony at all.

But earlier this week he changed his mind choosing to testify after all. The resulting testimony he gave seemed to be purposefully wasting time and interpreting statements exceedingly literally. The testimony led fans to debate where he was actually helping or hurting Thug’s case. According to Meghann Cuniff, Woody was back on the stand today and even more drama ensued. That came when Woody fired his lawyer in the middle of giving testimony. His attorney had previously told the judge that she wanted to quit the case and got her wish granted when Woody declared “she fired” while on the stand. Check out the video of the moment where he fired his attorney below.

Read More: Young Thug Trial: Court Erupts In Laughter After State’s Witness Calls “Lifestyle” A “Banger”

Lil Woody Fires His Lawyer While On The Stand In Young Thug Trial

The even bigger story from the Young Thug trial this week relates to the rapper’s lawyer Brian Steele. Yesterday Steele accused the judge and the state of coercing witnesses and was found in contempt of court. He decided to take jail time in order to keep fighting for Thug and was sentenced to 20 days, though he was allowed to return to the trial where he appeared in court today.

What do you think of Lil Woody firing his lawyer while on the stand giving testimony in Young Thug’s YSL RICO trial? Do you think his antics help or hurt Thug’s chances of beating the charges he’s facing? Let us know in the comment section below.

Read More: Gunna Subtly Calls For Young Thug’s Release Amid RICO Trial

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