Young Thug co-defendant Yak Gotti stabbed in jail while awaiting verdict, lawyer says
One of two men who was indicted along with rapper Young Thug and is awaiting a jury verdict was stabbed in jail but is expected to be in court Monday, his lawyer said.
Attorney Doug Weinstein confirmed that his client, Deamonte Kendrick, who raps as Yak Gotti, was injured Sunday. Jurors are returning Monday to continue deliberating whether to convict Kendrick and Shannon Stillwell on gang, murder, drug and gun charges.
"While he sounded tired, I expect him to make a full recovery," Weinstein wrote on social media.
Stillwell was stabbed inside the jail almost a year ago, CBS affiliate WANF reported.
Natalie Ammons, Fulton County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman, said in an email that Kendrick and another detainee got in a fight at the jail's south annex in Union City. Kendrick was treated for "minor injuries from a sharp object," she wrote. An investigation into the fight is underway, she said.
Kendrick and Stillwell were among 28 people indicted along with Young Thug in May 2022 on charges including conspiring to violate Georgia's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. Jury selection for the trial of six of those defendants began nearly two years ago, and opening statements were a year ago.
Prosecutors have been trying to show YSL (Young Slime Life) is a criminal street gang responsible for numerous crimes, WANF reports, but defense attorneys say YSL is not a gang but simply the name of a record label, Young Stoner Life.
Four of the defendants, including Young Thug, pleaded guilty in October. The rapper, whose given name is Jeffery Williams, was freed on probation. Stillwell and Kendrick rejected plea deals after more than a week of negotiations, and their lawyers chose not to present evidence or witnesses.
The jury started deliberating last Tuesday afternoon and was dismissed at 5 p.m. Jurors deliberated for about six hours Wednesday before breaking for the Thanksgiving holiday. They're expected to resume deliberations Monday.
Young Thug several others had been facing multiple organized crime, weapons and drug-related charges, with the star rapper having already spent more than a year and a half in jail while awaiting trial, WANF reported.
The trial's jury selection lasted longer than any other in Georgia history, the station reported.
