Young Thug and YSL’s RICO Trial Finally Commences: Mistrial Request Denied on Day One

The Young Thug YSL RICO trial got underway on Monday, and it was pretty eventful. 

Chief Deputy District Attorney Adriane Love opened up for the prosecution, immediately calling Thug and his YSL gang for running their criminal enterprise for years. One of the most damning moments was her allegations that Thug was the leader who called the shots for several crimes, including robberies and murders.  

However, during her presentation, Love made the mistake of tying the “Take It To Trial” rapper with a separate case that Judge Glanville previously ruled against, per the Washington Post. The defense slammed Love for this move and claimed they were not given access to several of the slides in her presentation. A prior court ruling ordered that the defense and prosecution must exchange all materials they planned to use in the trial. 

Another slip-up that raised serious concerns among the judge and the defense was “burden-shifting.” This was due to Love stating, “What you will not hear any evidence of is that the defendants were not involved in a criminal street gang.” The defense objected to this, which Glanville sustained. 

“What you will not hear any evidence of is that the defendants were not involved in a criminal street gang.”

My jaw actually dropped when the DA said this in her opening in the Young Thug trial. This is the kind of burden shifting that leads to convictions being overturned. pic.twitter.com/TP6Pm3tEZq

— Meghann Cuniff (@meghanncuniff) November 27, 2023

Such blunders led the defense to request a mistrial. As expected, this motion was denied. The trial will reconvene on Tuesday, and more bombshells are expected. Song lyrics, which were addressed on day one, will likely continue to come up throughout the proceedings. YSL associate Antonio “Mounk Tounk” Sledge will soon take the stand to detail the January 2015 of Donovan Thomas Jr., who was killed outside of a barber shop. He previously admitted to knowing one YSL member who killed Thomas on behalf of Thug and the gang and being paid by Thug to maintain a low profile after the murder. 

Thug has maintained his innocence.