YNW Melly has been overcome with emotion as his double murder trial gets underway in Broward County, Florida, with the rapper appearing to wipe back tears as footage of his alleged victims was played in court.
Reporting on behalf of Law & Crime, Bryson Paul remarked that the prosecution played footage of the rapper’s two alleged victims — YNW Juvy (Christopher Thomas Jr., 19) and YNW Sakchaser (Anthony Williams, 21) — being wheeled away on a stretcher.
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It was the sight of these two deceased men that brought many in the courtroom — including the “Murder on My Mind” rapper — to tears.
“#YNWMellyTrial: As video footage shows @YNWMelly deceased friends put on stretchers at the hospital, all but one of the women (4) in victims’ families exit the courtroom in tears. Melly even appears to wipe his eye lids,” Paul tweeted.
It has also been confirmed that the State of Florida will seek the death penalty against YNW Melly if he is, indeed, found guilty in the case, as long as the verdict of guilt is unanimous in the case.
Last week, Broward Circuit Judge John Murphy sided with the state prosecutors’ motion to follow a new statute that allows juries to recommend a death sentence with an eight-four vote in the penalty phase of trial.
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The last death penalty sentence in Broward County was handed down in 2015, when James Berard — the so-called Dunkin’ Donuts killer, and a member of the Bacc Street Crips — ordered the murder of 39-year-old Eric Jean-Pierre in an attempt to get his “body count” up for gang initiation purposes, according to the New Times of Palm Beach.
Despite YNW Melly’s long history with being on the wrong side of the law, he insists that he is innocent.
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He also claims that he is being subjected to inhumane conditions at the Florida jail where he has been held since 2019.
In December, he revealed that his phone privileges had been taken away from him, for what he claimed was a minor infraction. “On April 8th I was told I was not allowed to use the phone indefinitely (which mean forever) captain Archibald Revoked my calls for using another inmate pin to talk on the phone,” he wrote on Instagram.
“Usually when Someone get disciplined for this It is usually phone restricted for 30 days it is now going for 8 months, no other inmate in this jail is being treated this way. I haven’t spoke to family, friends, managers and accountants for months at a time making it impossible To pay my bills and take care of my house hold lively hood, or even talk to anyone for relaxation for pleasure and stress relief and worse to handle lawyer fees.”
Later that same month, he claimed to be in fear for his life since the conditions were so harsh. “As of this moment today I am officially in fear of my life,” he wrote on Instagram. “A new Captain named Hubert and XO Jenkins have taken over the jail for two weeks now and have handed out even harsher punishments for me than the previous ones in place. Since December 1 I have been moved and housed on a unit that holds 24 inmates at once.”
“I am the only inmate being housed on the vacant unit, with no phone privilege, no television and no access to a newspaper,” Melly added. “They are watching my every move on camera making sure I don’t use the phone to tell the world how I am being mistreated, discriminated, threatened physically, harassed.
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“When I come out of my cell for the 1 hour a day, all other inmates in the adjoining dorms must go back in their cell. I am being subjected to cruel and unusual treatment at the hands of deputies and high-ranking staff of the Broward Sheriffs Office.”
He continued: “I have been threatened by Deputies, Lieutenants and Sergeants that say ‘they will hide me from the world’ and threaten to ‘beat my ass everyday and if I tell my lawyers they will lie and say I hit them first.’ Words from Sergeant Anthony Kidd and Lieutenant Jean Baptiste. I have literally been hidden from the World so I have no other choice but to believe the next step is them beating 1/2 to death like they do to other inmates almost daily here at the main ail in Broward County.”
