Young thug.
Photo: Arvin Temkar/TNS via ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

Young Thug returns from prison after pleading no bargain in RICO trial against his label YSL. The rapper, born Jeffery Williams, pleaded guilty to various gun and drug charges, as well as one count of engaging in criminal gang activity, while pleading no contest to a felony charge. RICO and gang leadership. He was sentenced to five years in prison, commuted to time served, with various conditions. Below, the latest news on his advocacy And sentencing.

October 31, 5:22 p.m.: Young thug made a non-negotiated plea the long-term RICO trial against his label, YSL. The rapper pleaded guilty to various gun and drug charges, as well as one count of engaging in criminal gang activity. The thug pleaded nolo pretendere, or no contest, to conspiracy to violate the RICO Act and to a leadership charge for criminal participation in criminal gang activity. His non-negotiated plea means the state and its attorneys can recommend separate sentences, and Judge Paige Reese Whitaker will decide the sentence. Adriane Love, chief deputy district attorney in Fulton County, Georgia, recommended a sentence of 45 years, with 25 in custody and 20 on probation. Thug’s lawyers have not yet made their sentencing recommendation.

Thug’s plea follows a moment of drama in the Atlanta courtroom. When court returned late on the afternoon of October 31, Judge Whitaker said she understood Thug’s team was at an “impasse” with the state. She then asked him if he wanted to plead no bargain. Thug looked uncertain. Whitaker then requested a recess so Thug could consult with his lawyers. When court returned about a half hour later, Thug was ready to present his non-negotiated plea.

Young Thug was on trial alongside five co-defendants in what became the longest criminal trial in Georgia history. Three of those co-defendants – Quamarvious Nichols, Marquavius ​​Huey and Rodalius Ryan – reached plea deals earlier this week. Another co-defendant, Yak Gotti, declined a new plea deal today, according to his attorney, Doug Weinstein. “Yak Gotti has rejected the state’s latest plea offer and fully intends to take it to the jury, get our not guilty verdict and go home,” Weinstein said. told Atlanta’s WSB-TV. The final co-defendant, Shannon Stilwell, also declined a plea deal, Law and crime reported.

October 31, 7 p.m.: Judge Paige Reese Whitaker sentenced Young Thug to 40 years in prison, with five years commuted to time served, allowing the rapper to leave prison for the first time in more than two years. The thug will be on probation for 15 years, with a 20-year sentence “delayed” afterward. The deferred sentence will be suspended if he does not violate the terms of his probation. As part of his probation, Thug must leave the Atlanta metro area and cannot return for ten years, except for family weddings, graduations and funerals. He is also scheduled to return four times a year to give a presentation against gangs and violence to children, which may include a benefit concert. He is not allowed to associate with known gang members or people named in the RICO indictment, except for his brother and Gunna, with whom he is contractually obligated to work .

Whitaker’s sentence largely mirrored that proposed by Thug’s lawyers. During the plea hearing, his attorney, Brian Steel, sharply criticized the state, accusing them of lying and distorting evidence — including Thug’s own words — to make an example of his client. “What the State of Georgia has presented to this jury and this courtroom over the past year is full of untruths, and they know it,” Steel said. Steel emphasized that he expected the trial to end, but Thug wanted to prioritize returning home to his family and taking care of his health. “He told me he wakes up every day and it’s another ET-white-white day,” Steel said.

Young Thug also addressed Judge Whitaker. Wearing a brown sweater, he apologized while pledging to change his life after his request for release. “I’m a smart guy, I’m a good guy and I have a really good heart, you know,” he said. “I find myself in a lot of things because I was just nice or cool, and I understand that you can’t be like that when you reach a certain height, because it could end badly.” He told Whitaker she was “the best thing that ever happened to me” for presiding over a fair trial, and hoped he never had to see her again, “unless it was in a bar in the future or something.” Thug also expressed his intention to change what he raps about in the future, saying he is “older now” and has “more topics to rap about”.

In delivering his sentence, Whitaker reminded Thug of his influence on the children, asking him to be “more of the solution and less of the problem.” She also acknowledged that the state “does not seem particularly concerned” that Thug would be dangerous if it was willing to offer him a sentence commuted to time served as part of a plea deal. Steel said Thug disagreed with the state’s conditions, which required him to admit to his role as a gang leader.