The YNW Melly murder trial has been full of eye-opening moments, but the latest twist in the midst of jury deliberations might be the most shocking of them all.
On Friday (July 21), the jury sent a note to Judge John Murphy suggesting that they may be deadlocked, since everyone on the jury seemed to have picked a side and cannot be swayed in their decision.
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“What if we can’t come to a decision? Everyone is stuck on which side they’ve chosen,” read the note, which Murphy read aloud in the courtroom.
Check out the video of the judge reading the note below:
YNW Melly Trial: Jury tells judge they’re unsure if they can decide rapper’s fate https://t.co/52WCdDsvQrpic.twitter.com/I278uualfW
— HipHopDX (@HipHopDX) July 21, 2023
A deadlocked jury is one that cannot reach a verdict by the required voting margin — in this case, with eight or more jurors agreeing on the judgment — despite their best efforts. If the YNW Melly trial ends up being deadlocked, a mistrial will be declared.
According to the Cornell University School of Law, judges will make every effort to avoid a deadlocked jury, often going so far as to demand what’s known as a “dynamite charge” to force the jury to come to a verdict. There is no limit to how long a jury can deliberate for in any state of the union, but a mistrial will be declared at some point if all efforts to reach a decision are in vain.
The jury in the YNW Melly trial began deliberating on Thursday (July 20), after the last witness — lead Detective Joseph T. Moretti — took the stand two days prior. In his shocking testimony, Moretti admitted that he threatened YNW Melly’s manager Jameson “100K Track” Francois with deportation and imprisonment following the shooting.
“Did you as a trained investigator threaten Jameson Francois to be deported to Haiti even though he’s been in this country since 5 years?” The defense attorney asked Detective Moretti during cross-examination.
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“Yes sir,” he answered, after which he was then asked: “Did you in fact threaten that he would, ‘Not get fed or get any medicine in the Haitian jails?”
“I don’t know about that conversation sir,” Moretti replied.
YNW Melly was arrested and charged with two counts of premeditated murder in 2019 and is currently facing life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. If convicted, he could get the death penalty.
