Celebrity
Murder Trial Of Rapper YNW Melly Ends In mistrial After Jury Deadlocks
FLORIDA’S FORT LAUDERDALE – A mistrial was declared in the South Florida case against rapper YNW Melly for the alleged 2005 murders of two pals due to a deadlocked jury.
After three days of debate, the 12-member panel could not agree on a decision. Prosecutors in Broward County, who had originally requested the death penalty, will probably decide to retry the case before a fresh jury. The jury must reach a unanimous decision to find a prisoner guilty or innocent.
When the jury announced they were deadlocked, Broward Circuit Judge John Murphy twice ordered them to continue debating but gave in after they returned a third time.
According to the prosecution, YNW Melly, real name Jamell Demons, shot Christopher Thomas Jr. and Anthony Williams while they were all in a Jeep. Williams and Thomas belonged to the YNW collective, which went by YNW Sakchaser and YNW Juvy, respectively.
Defense lawyers argued that the story lacks credibility because Demons and the victims were close friends, despite the prosecution’s assertion that the shooting was a gang-related incident.
A mistrial was declared in the South Florida case against rapper YNW Melly for the alleged 2005 murders of two pals due to a deadlocked jury.
Prosecutors claim that on October 26, 2018, Demons, Williams, and Thomas were in a Jeep driven by Cortland Henry, also known as YNW Bortlen, following a recording session in Fort Lauderdale. Williams and Thomas were allegedly shot to death by demons. Henry will face a separate trial despite being charged as an accomplice.
Prosecutors claim that after killing Williams and Thomas, Demons and Henry drove the bodies to a location close to the Everglades, where they shot at Henry’s Jeep from the outside to give the impression that Williams and Thomas had been the victims of a drive-by shooting.
Ballistics tests, according to the prosecution, suggest that the two were shot from inside the Jeep.
Defense attorneys emphasized that the gun was never found. They also informed the jury that YNW Melly’s motive for the crime was not immediately evident.
After breaking out in 2017, YNW Melly collaborated with Kanye West on “Mixed Personalities,” published in January 2019—a month before Demons, 24, was detained on suspicion of murder.
SOURCE – (AP)
