There have been plenty of crossovers between crime and hip-hop so far in 2023. Unfortunately for the rappers involved, most of the proceedings have been slow-moving. Of course, Young Thug is still waiting for jury selection in the YSL RICO trial to wrap up. Elsewhere, YNW Melly was shockingly granted a mistrial in the summer. He and his defense team are now busy preparing for the prosecution's retrial regarding the double murder of YNW Juvy and YNW Sakchaser.
The first time around, the jury's identity wasn't concealed. After Melly's co-defendant, YNW Bortlen, was arrested on witness tampering charges earlier this month, however, a motion has been filed to keep the next round of jurors anonymous in order to protect them. As the Sun Sentinel reports, authorities uncovered "a notebook containing names and physical descriptions of the jury from [Melly's] first trial." In their request, prosecutors also noted that "There is evidence that suggests potential or seated jurors in the upcoming jury trial will be subjected to improper outside influences or harassment."
YNW Melly Anxiously Awaits His Next Trial
As AllHipHop notes, selection for the Florida artist's retrial was expected to begin on Monday (October 9). Ultimately, though, Judge John Murphy pushed things back to take a closer look at a request from the defense. Previously, they alleged that the prosecution withheld evidence in Melly's first trial. They're now asking for the case to be dismissed entirely, or for the Broward State Attorney's Office to be removed. On Tuesday, a pre-trial hearing was postponed due to one of the "Murder On My Mind" hitmaker's attorneys falling ill.
Even with the odds stacked against him, YNW Melly seems confident that he'll once again be a free man when all is said and done. Earlier this month, the embattled artist wrote an open letter to his father, declaring that he sees himself winning his double murder trial in the end. Read more about that at the link below, and check back later for more hip-hop/pop culture news updates.