XPost: alt.rap, atl.general, alt.politics.republicans
XPost: talk.politics.guns, sac.politics

ATLANTA (AP) � The judge overseeing the long-running racketeering and gang prosecution against rapper Young Thug and others has been removed from the
case after two defendants sought his recusal, citing a meeting the judge
held with prosecutors and a state witness.

Fulton County Superior Court Chief Judge Ural Glanville had put the case
in Atlanta on hold two weeks ago to give another judge a chance to review
the defendants� motions for recusal. Judge Rachel Krause on Monday granted those motions and ordered the clerk of court to assign the case to a
different judge.

While not faulting Glanville for holding the meeting and saying she has
�no doubt that Judge Glanville can and would continue presiding fairly
over this matter,� Krause wrote that �the �necessity of preserving the
public�s confidence in the judicial system� weighs in favor of excusing
Judge Glanville� from the case.

This ruling will surely cause more delays in a trial that has already
dragged on for over a year. Jury selection began in January 2023 and took nearly 10 months. Opening statements were in November and the prosecution
has been presenting its case since then, calling dozens of witnesses.

Young Thug, a Grammy winner whose given name is Jeffery Williams, was
charged two years ago in a sprawling indictment accusing him and more than
two dozen others of conspiring to violate Georgia�s anti-racketeering law.
He also is charged with gang, drug and gun crimes and is standing trial
with five of the others indicted with him.

Lawyers for Young Thug and co-defendant Deamonte Kendrick had filed
motions seeking Glanville�s recusal. They said the judge held a meeting
with prosecutors and prosecution witness Kenneth Copeland at which
defendants and defense attorneys were not present. The defense attorneys
argued the meeting was �improper� and that the judge and prosecutors had
tried to pressure the witness to testify.

Glanville maintained that the meeting was proper and argued that no one
gained a tactical advantage as a result.

The office of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, which is
prosecuting the case, had argued there was no need for Glanville to be
recused.

Brian Steel, a lawyer for Young Thug, said in an emailed statement that
his client is innocent and sought to clear his name through a fair trial.

�Sadly, Judge Glanville and the prosecutors have run afoul of their duties under the law,� Steel said, adding that he is grateful for the recusal
order and looks forward �to proceeding with a trial judge who will fairly
and faithfully follow the law.�

Kendrick�s lawyer, Doug Weinstein, also applauded Monday�s ruling.

�While I respect Chief Judge Glanville and his service to this community
and the country, he simply became biased over the course of this case,� he wrote in an email. He added that he looks forward to trying the case
�before an unbiased judge,� but said the only just outcome at this point
is �a mistrial and bond� for Kendrick, who has been jailed for more than
two years.

A spokesperson for Willis� office declined to comment. The Associated
Press has also reached out to Glanville for comment.

Krause wrote in her order that she �agrees generally� with Glanville�s assessment of the propriety of the meeting, that nothing about the meeting
or what was discussed was inherently improper. She did write that the
meeting �could have � and perhaps should have� been held in open court.

But when Glanville denied Kendrick�s recusal motion in court, he �provided context, questioned the veracity of allegations, and otherwise explained
his decisions and actions and argued why those actions were proper.�
Quoting case law, Krause wrote that when a judge discloses information
relevant to his potential recusal, he must do so �in a way that is as objective, dispassionate, and non-argumentative as possible, so that the
judge is not reasonably perceived as a hostile witness or advocate.�

Young Thug has been wildly successful since he began rapping as a teenager
and he serves as CEO of his own record label, Young Stoner Life, or YSL. Artists on his label are considered part of the �Slime Family,� and a compilation album, �Slime Language 2,� rose to No. 1 on the charts in
April 2021.

But prosecutors say YSL also stands for Young Slime Life, which they
allege is an Atlanta-based violent street gang affiliated with the
national Bloods gang and founded by Young Thug and two others in 2012. Prosecutors say people named in the indictment are responsible for violent crimes � including killings, shootings and carjackings � to collect money
for the gang, burnish its reputation and expand its power and territory.

Steel acknowledged during his opening statement that his client�s songs
mention violent acts, including killings, but he said those are just
artistic expressions drawn from his rough childhood and not a chronicle of
his own activities.

https://apnews.com/article/young-thug-trial-judge-removed- 4f62abf6197358455829eb4498007a59

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)