Ronald Washington and Karl Jordan, Jr. were indicted for the 2002 murder of Jam Master Jay (born Jason Mizell) on Monday (August 17) — nearly two decades after the Run-DMC legend was gunned down inside his Jamaica, Queens recording studio.
As the arduous legal process begins, Jam Master Jay’s family is speaking out. Shortly after the news broke, his son TJ Mizell issued a statement to his Instagram account, which also appeared on Run-DMC’s official account.
“Statement from the Mizell Family,” it begins. “First and foremost we want to thank everyone who has reached out in support of our family today. We appreciate your kind thoughts and words. Upon hearing this news we have mixed emotions; we truly hope that these indictments are a solid step towards justice being served in the murder of Jay.
“We realize that there are other families out there who have lingering pain who continue to wait for their own closure, and we pray that this case gives them hope. In spite of all the tragedies we’ve seen this year alone, we take comfort in our family, our faith and in time’s ability to heal all. We can only hope that this new brings awareness to the fact that Black lives do matter.
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The statement closed with a request for privacy as the judicial process moves along.
In a statement obtained by HipHopDX, JMJ’s longtime brethren Darryl “DMC” McDaniels spoke about the pain that’s engulfed him since his death.
“Although this latest news opens up a lot of painful memories for all of us who knew and loved Jam Master Jay, I’m relieved to hear that 2 suspects have been arrested and charged with his murder,” he wrote. “It’s been a difficult 18 years not having him around while knowing that his murderers were not yet indicted for this heinous crime.
“I commend NYPD, NYC Detectives, Federal Agents and all the law enforcement who were involved in this case, for not giving up and working to bring justice for Jay. I realize this is a first step in the judicial process, but I hope Jay can finally Rest in Peace. My love to Jay’s wife Terri, his sons, his family, his friends, and all of his fans. #JMJForever”
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2 Men Arrested In The Killing Of Run-DMC Legend Jam Master Jay
Jordan was taken into custody on Sunday (August 16), while Washington was already serving a federal sentence for robbery. On Monday afternoon, acting US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Seth DuCharme announced a grand jury had returned the incitement alleging the two defendants were responsible for the crime.
“They shot him in cold blood,” DuCharme said in part. “Our office along with our federal partners and the NYPD started working that case in the early 2000s, very soon after the murder and there were a lot of challenges that we faced right away. In fact, one of the first cases that I worked on when I was here as a prosecutor in 2008 was this very case. These gentleman and our team were able to accomplish what I was frankly not then able to accomplish.”
Jam Master Jay was 37 at the time of his death.
