Opening statements in the high-profile Young Slime Life (YSL) racketeering (RICO) trial were interrupted almost as soon as they began Monday in a Fulton County, Georgia, courtroom, where an attorney for rapper Jeffery “Young Thug” Williams, 32, motioned for a mistrial.
The nearly immediate snafu briefly threw a wrench into a case already slowed by months-long jury selection and numerous unexpected setbacks.
Williams and five other co-defendants — Marquavius “Qua” Huey, Deamonte “Yak Gotti” Kendrick, Quamarvious “Qua” Nichols, Rodalius “Lil Rod” Ryan, and Shannon “SB” Stillwell — face trial following the sprawling May 2022 RICO indictment against 28 total defendants. Between then and now, nine defendants have taken plea deals, including Antonio “Mounk Tounk” Sledge and Williams’ brother Quantavious “Unfoonk” Grier.
Sledge is expected to testify about a fatal drive-by shooting that left rival Donovan Thomas Jr. fatally shot outside of a barber shop in January 2015.
Fulton County prosecutors have said that Sledge, a YSL associate since 2012, admitted through his plea deal to threatening a member of a rival gang, participating in a drive-by shooting, having knowledge that at least one YSL associate murdered Donovan Thomas, 26, on behalf of the gang, and that Sledge and others got paid by Williams to lie low in the aftermath.
On Monday, prosecutors attempted to introduce their theory of the case to a jury that includes seven Black women, two Black men, two white women, and one white man.
“The evidence will show that YSL checked all of the boxes for being a criminal street gang,” Fulton County Chief Deputy District Attorney Adriane Love said during opening statements. “As I stated earlier, they are three or more people associated in fact, their members commit crimes on behalf of the gang, they commit crimes such as armed robbery, hijacking, motor vehicle theft, theft by receiving stolen firearms — so many stolen firearms — possession of a machine gun, and narcotics sales. And last, but certainly not least, murder.”
“What you will not hear any evidence of is that the defendants were not involved in a criminal street gang,” the prosecutor then said, at the start of burden-shifting lines that sparked a defense objection which Fulton County Superior Court Chief Judge Ural Glanville sustained. “You will not hear any evidence that they did not commit crimes on behalf of YSL.”
Minutes later, Love put up a PowerPoint presentation slide that led to the judge to send the jury out of the courtroom, as Williams’ attorney Bryan Steel moved for a mistrial.
Young Thug motions for mistrial over PowerPoint slide (Law&Crime Network)
“It states that [current co-defendant] Mr. [Rodalius ‘Lil Rod’] Ryan was convicted of murder — and I represent the co-defendant [Damone Blalock], who’s not on trial, on the appeal,” Steel said. “How did that not get sent to me so I could bring it to this honorable court’s attention, one? And two, how do we just violate court orders? So, yes, I have a serious motion for a mistrial because it’s intentional misconduct.”
Steel emphasized that he doesn’t represent Rodalius Ryan and that being named on the slide as the Blalock’s appellate attorney should not have happened.
Love responded by saying that it was an “inadvertent omission” to leave “part” of the name of Young Thug’s defense attorney on the offending slide.
Judge Glanville expressed his displeasure with the prosecution in clear terms while denying the motion for a mistrial and promising to issue a curative jury instruction. He also called out Ryan’s defense attorney Angela D’Williams.
“I’ve got a jury that’s out right now that’s being interrupted, and Ms. D’Williams [Ryan’s attorney] you should have made your motion — or should have told me about that an hour ago, or when you found out about it — not hijack me at the bench about that,” the judge said. “You did what you had to do but I’m not happy about that. I’m not happy about any of this.”
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Glanville added that this “stuff” should have been taken care of before jurors were called in.
“This is what I told you all was going to happen,” the judge fumed.
Judge Glanville tells prosecutor Love that she is the reason they are having this delay because she didn’t turn over her powerpoint presentation to the defense. Judge will now recess for lunch to give state opportunity to correct the errors she has in her powerpoint. Glanville… pic.twitter.com/Km4TDzFbTJ
— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) November 27, 2023
The judge pressed Love further.
“Have you given them everything you’re going to show them during opening statement?” Glanville asked, after Steel and D’Williams complained about slides that were not turned over to the defense and which contained basic inaccuracies.
Defense says there are at least a dozen slides that state plans to use in opening that were never turned over to defense and also slides with factual errors. Ryan’s attorney says there is a slide that says her client was involved in a murder that he was not involved in.…
— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) November 27, 2023
“Your honor, I haven’t given them all the word slides. I did give to them what Mr. Williams objected to, I had given that to them previously. I will give them, or share with them, the things that have been added as of this evening,” the prosecutor replied.
Glanville asked if Love could make that happen in the next five minutes.
“I sure can,” Love responded.
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Alberto Luperon contributed to this report.
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