ATLANTA (AP) — Considered one of two males who was indicted together with rapper Younger Thug and was stabbed in jail however appeared in courtroom Monday, as jurors deliberated one other day with out reaching a verdict.
Lawyer Doug Weinstein confirmed that his shopper, Deamonte Kendrick, who raps as Yak Gotti, was injured Sunday. Jurors started deliberating final Tuesday over whether or not to convict Kendrick and Shannon Stillwell on gang, homicide, drug and gun fees.
Kendrick returned to courtroom with 4 or 5 staples in his head, Weinstein stated throughout a press convention outdoors the Fulton County Courthouse, however “he’s doing really well.”
“It’s a shame that anyone that’s held in our jails have to go through that,” Weinstein stated.
Natalie Ammons, Fulton County Sheriff’s Workplace spokeswoman, stated in an electronic mail that Kendrick and one other detainee bought in a struggle on the jail’s south annex in Union Metropolis. Kendrick was handled for “minor injuries from a sharp object,” she wrote. An investigation into the struggle is underway, she stated.
Weinstein complained it was troublesome for him to get solutions from the Fulton County Sheriff’s Workplace about what occurred, however he thinks Kendrick was stabbed with “some type of an improvised shank.”
Kendrick is hardly occupied with the stabbing, Weinstein stated. As a substitute, he is preoccupied with the upcoming verdict as jurors proceed to deliberate a yr after opening statements started.
“Deamonte does not want to be in jail, and this incident does not make things any better,” Weinstein stated. “But he’s there. He knows, or at least he hopes and is confident, that he’s going to be out soon.”
Kendrick’s co-defendant, Shannon Stillwell, was stabbed on the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta final yr, which put the long-running trial on pause.
Kendrick and Stillwell have been amongst 28 folks indicted together with Younger Thug in Could 2022 on fees together with conspiring to violate Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. Jury choice for the trial of six of these defendants started practically two years in the past.
4 of the defendants, together with Younger Thug, pleaded responsible in October. The rapper, whose given identify is Jeffery Williams, was freed on probation. Stillwell and Kendrick rejected plea offers after greater than every week of negotiations, and their legal professionals selected to not current proof or witnesses.
The jury began deliberating final Tuesday afternoon and was dismissed at 5 p.m. Jurors deliberated for about six hours Wednesday earlier than breaking for the Thanksgiving vacation. Deliberations will resume Tuesday morning.
___
Kramon is a corps member for The Related Press/Report for America Statehouse Information Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit nationwide service program that locations journalists in native newsrooms to report on undercovered points. Comply with Kramon on X: @charlottekramon
