Rapper YNW Melly’s murder trial is set to begin the week of June 20, but before the first juror is chosen, a court lowered the bar for a death sentence if he is convicted. Broward Circuit Judge John Murphy approved the state prosecutors’ request to follow new legislation that permits jurors to recommend the death penalty with an 8-4 decision rather than a unanimous vote.
The effort to lower Florida’s death sentence standard was sparked by the fact that the convicted Parkland school shooter did not get the death penalty owing to a divided jury.
On February 13, 2019, YNW Melly, widely known for her famous song “Murder on My Mind,” was arrested on two counts of first-degree murder. He has remained in the Broward County main jail ever then, despite efforts to get him freed during the height of the COVID-19 outbreak.
The 24-year-old’s death penalty case is one of the first to be heard following the change. The 8-4 vote to recommend the death penalty is the lowest in the country. In the order, Murphy stated that the decision “was not fundamentally unfair for [Melly]… nor would it violate his right to due process of law.”
Was It a Staged Drive-by Shooting?
According to court documents, co-defendant and confidant Cortlen Henry raced to the emergency room of Memorial Hospital Miramar in the early hours of October 26, 2018. He reported to medical personnel that two males were wounded in his 2018 Jeep Compass.
A Miramar police officer discovered Anthony Williams, 21, with gunshot wounds to his head and thorax in the front passenger seat, and Christopher Thomas Jr., 19, with gunfire wounds to his back and head in the right rear passenger seat.
They had already died.
According to court documents, Henry described their whereabouts that night. He told police that the group had just left the New Era Recording Studio in Fort Lauderdale when a vehicle drew up alongside them on Miramar Parkway and began firing. Williams and Thomas, aspirant rappers, used the monikers YNW Sakchaser and YNW Juvy, respectively.
Henry told police that he lowered his body to shelter himself from the gunfire. As soon as he realized his companions had been wounded by the spray of bullets, he raced toward the closest hospital. According to court filings, officers suspected Williams and Thomas were shot inside the bullet-riddled Jeep after inspecting the blood inside. Throughout the night, Melly, Thomas, and Williams were also linked via cellphone data.
According to court filings, authorities discovered evidence on an isolated stretch of Pembroke Road, including another.40 caliber round casing and glass matching the Jeep. According to court papers, projectile analysis revealed that the volley of gunshots was unlikely to have hit the SUV while it was in motion.
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The autopsies indicated that the shots were fired from the left rear passenger side, where Melly was seen sitting earlier that night on video.
YNW Melly is Still Alive
Since it has been declared that the rapper could potentially face the death penalty, it is safe to presume that the singer is already deceased if the court trial dates are unknown. However, YNW Melly is still alive and well. The rapper’s mother, Jamie King, announced on April 11 via her Instagram account that her son’s trial will commence on June 5.
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