As jurors prepare to continue deliberations in the extensive racketeering case that had involved rap sensation Young Thug, one of the two co-defendants in Georgia’s longest-running criminal trial was stabbed in jail, according to his attorney on Monday morning.
In a TikTok post, Douglas Weinstein, the attorney representing rapper Deamonte Kendrick, better known by his stage name Yak Gotti, said that he was stabbed in the Fulton County Jail and got in touch with him Sunday evening as he was waiting to be taken to a hospital for sutures.
Weinstein wrote on X, “Even though he sounded exhausted, I expect him to make a full recovery.” “I expect to be able to see him in court today and will know more then.”
The incident’s origins and the severity of Kendrick’s injuries were not immediately clear to Weinstein. A request for comment was not immediately answered by the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office.
In connection with many accusations connected to the state’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, or RICO, act, jurors in the case against Kendrick and co-defendant Shannon Stillwell were scheduled to return to court Monday morning to render a verdict. Last Tuesday afternoon, the discussions got underway.
Initially, there were 28 co-defendants in the case, including Young Thug, who was charged by Fulton County prosecutors in a 2022 indictment with being the leader of the Atlanta street gang Young Slime Life, or YSL. (In 2016, Young Thug established YSL Records, his own label.)
After several defendants accepted plea deals and others decided to stand trial apart from Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffrey Lamar Williams, the trial against the co-defendants began in January 2023 but continued through numerous delays and unexpected turns.
Six co-defendants gave their opening remarks in November 2023. Prosecutors have used the Grammy-winning rapper’s song lyrics to allege violent and illegal acts, as well as strange moments involving alleged drug exchanges, uncooperative star witnesses, and combative incidents involving the previous judge. The proceedings have been livestreamed and have captured the attention of social media users.
The trial was further postponed when Stillwell was stabbed during a dispute in jail in December 2023.
In July, the trial was once more put on hold after the original trial judge was dismissed following a private conference with prosecutors and a key witness that excluded defense attorneys. The trial then started to fall apart in October after a prosecutor made a mistake during a witness’s evidence, which might have resulted in a mistrial.
Young Thug was one of four of the six co-defendants who signed plea deals.The rapper’s 40-year sentence was shortened to time served and he was given 15 years of probation after striking a bargain.
The previous longest criminal trial in Georgia, which lasted almost eight months, featured public school teachers in Atlanta who were charged with racketeering in a cheating scheme.
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