100th Day of Young Thug Trial Begins Huge Shortened Holiday Week

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – On what would be the 100th day of what is arguably the most high-profile criminal trial in the country – and arguably one of the longest – the judge overseeing Young Thug’s trial is holding a private examination to find out who leaked a supposedly confidential conversation between him and a star prosecution witness to the other side.

Since the rapper’s criminal trial began on Nov. 27, 2023, in Atlanta, Fulton County Superior Court Chief Judge Ural Glanville has scheduled 63 full days of proceedings; 34 half days; 59 days off; and three cancellations of court days.

On Monday, Glanville held a private, closed-door review of the trial transcript from June 10, 2024, the day the judge ordered Young Thug’s attorney, Brian Steel, held in contempt of court, an order that was suspended a few days later until the Georgia Supreme Court could rule.

On July 3, a public hearing will be held on exactly the same issue. Testimony at the trial itself will resume on Monday, July 8.

Glanville ordered Kenneth Copeland and his replacement attorney, Kayla Bumpus, to appear at a hearing to determine why either of them should not be held in contempt of court for disclosing court information. ex parte conversation with Steel on June 10, 2024. Glanville also orders any other person present during the conversation to appear.

Glanville’s order came at the height of one of the most dramatic weeks in the trial’s history. The wave of upheaval actually began on Friday, June 7, 2024, when Copeland—aka Woody or Lil’ Woody—was jailed for refusing to testify. It’s widely believed that Copeland tipped off police to the crimes allegedly committed by Young Thug and the alleged YSL crime gang.

By Monday, Copeland had changed his mind and agreed to testify. Then, Glanville ordered Steel held in contempt.

Steel was taken into custody after refusing to answer Glanville’s repeated questions about how he heard about the conversation.

The legal term ex partetranslated from Latin as “outside the party”, refers to a decision made by a judge without requiring all parties to a dispute to be present.

“The judge had an ex parte hearing “He communicated with the prosecutor and a witness,” said Tom Church, a lawyer who showed up in court to show support for Steel. “This means that he was speaking to the lawyer and the witness without any member of the defense present. And this is generally considered inappropriate.

“So Mr. Steel found out about this, he filed a motion for a mistrial, and the judge required Mr. Steel to reveal this source,” Church said.

According to the court reporter for the trial, Steel received information about what happened during a ex parte conversation between Fulton County prosecutors and Glanville. When Glanville asked Steel how he received the leaked information, Steel declined to disclose the source.

Steel and Young Thug’s other attorney, Keith Adams, repeatedly requested a mistrial, as did attorneys for some of the other defendants. Glanville rejected all repeated requests; he also denied a motion by Steel and other attorneys to recuse himself from the trial.

Prosecutors and defense attorneys continue to haggle over Copeland’s police interviews and jail records. Steel accuses prosecutors of coercing testimony from Copeland, who he says was surrounded by law enforcement and prosecutorial officials.

In 2021, Copeland was arrested in Fulton County after a traffic stop revealed a gun on his person. Copeland, already convicted, could have faced up to 10 years in prison for possession of the gun, but during a three-hour interrogation, Copeland told detectives about several crimes that had occurred and were about to occur.

Copeland was sentenced to federal prison on October 22, 2018, for being a felon in possession of a firearm after bringing an assault rifle into the gymnasium at the Dunbar Recreation Center in the Mechanicsville community of Atlanta.

Williams was arrested on May 9, 2022, along with 27 other suspected gang members in Buckhead, in a 56-count indictment.

Jury selection for the trial took longer than any other trial in Georgia history, and the testimony itself will likely outstrip state records. Both records were set by the Atlanta Public Schools teachers scandal and trial in 2014-15.

The trial – which has been repeatedly marred by arrests, accusations and disruptions – began on November 27, 2023. Defense attorneys have repeatedly expressed concerns that the trial could last for years, depending on the number of witnesses the State plans to call.

Prosecutors are trying to show that YSL, or Young Slime Life, is a criminal street gang responsible for numerous crimes. Defense attorneys say YSL is not a gang but simply the name of a record label, Young Stoner Life.

Young Thug himself faces eight counts under a federal law originally passed to combat organized crime. Georgia is one of 33 states with its own RICO law, but in the Peach State, the alleged criminal enterprises do not have to have existed as long as the federal law.

Williams is also charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute; possession of codeine with intent to distribute; possession of cocaine; possession of a firearm; and possession of a machine gun.

Williams’ lawyers argue that the artist is not the alleged gang leader as prosecutors claim.

A total of 18 jurors have been selected, including six alternates. Two jurors have already been excused; one had a medical emergency and the other moved out of Fulton County.

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