Back in 2015, multiple shots were fired at a pair of Lil Wayne’s tour buses in Atlanta after his performance at Compound nightclub. Although the New Orleans-bred rapper and associates were reportedly on board at the time of the shooting, no one was injured.
Seven months later, Jimmy Carlton Winfrey, the man initially indicted on 30 counts in connection to the incident, pleaded guilty to six gang-related charges and was subsequently sentenced to 10 years in prison as part of a deal with prosecutors.
Now, after nearly three years and an appeal, Georgia’s highest court has overturned the man’s conviction.
According to AJC, on June 29 the Georgia Supreme Court said the trial judge’s improper participation in the plea negotiations, forced Winfrey to take the plea. To make matters worse, during the pretrial hearing, the judge put pressure on Winfrey to take a deal in which he’d previously declined, warning that if he went to trial and lost, she had a reputation for being tough.
As a result, the court said the judge “overstepped her bounds,” and overturned the conviction. Now, Winfrey, best known as Peewee Roscoe, will have a new day in court.
