Judge in much-delayed Young Thug trial must step down

Courtroom dramas and myriad delays took another turn in recent weeks, after a secret meeting between the judge, prosecutors, and an uncooperative witness threw proceedings into disarray.

Defense teams for the accused rapper and his five co-defendants accused Judge Ural Glanville -- who oversaw 10 months of jury selection and eight months of arguments -- of allowing the "improper and coercive" meeting to occur without the defense teams' knowledge.

They said they should have been informed of, if not been present at, the meeting.

Proceedings were put on hold while another judge considered the issue. She ruled this week that "the 'necessity of preserving the public's confidence in the judicial system' weighs in favor of excusing Judge Glanville from further handling of this case."

In her decision Judge Rachel Krause insisted that nothing discussed in the meeting was "inherently improper" -- adding, however, that it could have been held in open court.

That Glanville doubled down on how the meeting proceeded rather than referring the issue immediately to another judge was at issue, she said.

Young Thug's lead attorney Brian Steel said his client was "grateful" for the order "recusing and disqualifying Judge Glanville."

"We look forward to proceeding with a trial judge who will fairly and faithfully follow the law," he said.

Racketeering charges

The rapper born Jeffrey Williams was first charged in May 2022, one of 28 alleged street gang members originally swept up in the indictment.

The southern US state of Georgia charged them with violations of state criminal racketeering law, known as RICO.

The case is taking place in the same Fulton County courthouse where former president Donald Trump is himself facing a racketeering case over alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 election, although that case is tied up in legal wrangling.

Prosecutors allege Young Thug, 32, was the leader of YSL, or Young Slime Life, a part of the Bloods gang.

The accusations include underlying offenses that prosecutors say support an overarching conspiracy charge, including murder, assault, carjacking, drug dealing and theft.

There are now just six defendants -- but the case has been moving at a glacial pace due to issues including scheduling problems and a jail stabbing.

Jury selection began in January 2023. Opening statements didn't start until November 27 of that year.

Defense attorneys assert that YSL is simply a record label and a family of artists known as Young Stoner Life -- the name of the label Young Thug founded in 2016 as an imprint of 300 Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

A rap vanguard essential to the Atlanta scene, Young Thug is one of contemporary hip-hop's most famous and most idiosyncratic figures.

He maintains his innocence.

The case has sparked widespread attention not least because prosecutors plan to cite rap lyrics as evidence of criminal activity, a practice that for years has prompted accusations of racism and an unconstitutional curbing of artistic expression.