Law&Crime Sidebar - Top 7 Wins for YNW Melly Prosecutors in Double Murder Trial

Episode Date: July 18, 2023

The prosecution and YNW Melly’s defense team both rested their cases in the double murder trial. The rapper, born Jamell Demons, stands accused of killing Christopher Thomas Jr., aka YNW Juvy, and Anthony Williams, aka YNW SakChaser, and staging the murders as a drive-by shooting. The Law&Crime Network’s Jesse Weber breaks down seven critical wins from the prosecution’s case.PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW:Go to zbiotics.com/SIDEBAR to get 15% off your first order when you use SIDEBAR at checkout!LAW&CRIME SIDEBAR PRODUCTION:YouTube Management - Bobby SzokePodcasting - Sam GoldbergWriting & Video Editing - Michael DeiningerGuest Booking - Alyssa Fisher & Diane KayeSocial Media Management - Vanessa Bein & Kiera BronsonSUBSCRIBE TO OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Court JunkieThey Walk Among AmericaDevil In The DormThe Disturbing TruthSpeaking FreelyLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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will keep you on the edge of your seat. Don't let your fears take hold of you as you dive into this addictive series. Love thrillers with a paranormal twist? The entire Oracle trilogy is available on Audible. Listen now on Audible. There's no one calling out Mr. Demons for being a fake blood. There's, all I could find is support for Mr. Demons for being blood by other bloods. The prosecution has had some big wins in the YNW. Mellie double murder trial, from incriminating text messages to a crime scene reconstruction, we break them down. Well, first before we begin, I have to apologize.

My voice is not 100%. This is what happens when you do too much podcasting, okay? This is a warning for all you would-be podcasters out there. This is what could happen. It's okay. I'll get better. Let's move on. Let's talk about YNW. Melly's double murder trial out of Broward County, Florida.

So the Murder on My Mind rapper, whose real name is Jamel Demens, is charged with the murders of his two friends and fellow YNW group rappers, Christopher Thomas Jr., or YNW Juv, and Anthony Williams, or YNW. Sack Chaser. These men were found shot to death on October 26, 2018, after Melly's co-defendant, Cortland Henry, also known as YNW. Bortland, pulled up to the hospital with the bodies of Thomas and Williams in his car, claiming that they were all victims of a drive-by shooting. However, the evidence has suggested that this was a staged drive-by shooting and that the shots actually came from inside the vehicle. Prosecutors say that after the four left a recording studio, Melly shot the victims and then he and Henry took the car to an area where they fired upon the car, staging it to look like a drive-by shooting. Melly then gets out and Bortland arrives at the hospital.

Now, the prosecution has highlighted how the defendant was a member of a gang called the G-Shine Bloods. Maybe that was a potential motivation here. But we can't forget that there is a lot stake here with this case because the death penalty is on the table if Millie is convicted. The law changed in Florida. It used to be you needed a unanimous vote for the death penalty. Well, now that law has changed. All you need is an 8 to 4 vote by the jury.

Well, the prosecution has officially rested their case. So we wanted to take a look back and discuss, how did they do? Did they make any headway? Well, we think they did. because here are going to be the seven wins for the prosecution. First up, where the shooting happened and where the victims were shot. So the prosecution called Sergeant Christopher Williams. This is a shooting reconstruction expert to the stand.

And he was called to explain why it was only possible for this shooting to happen inside the car and not outside like a drive-by shooting. So Mr. Williams was not even aware. about to be shot. When Mr. Williams was shot, Mr. Thomas puts up his hands and is shot and then a shot again. I, there's no time for anybody to switch a firearm if there were, I believe one of those individuals would be on it. There's no time to switch.

It was a very, uh, a rather rapid event of, uh, uh, uh, a rather rapid event of, uh, uh, uh, firing. Okay. Can you say the length of time between the fatal shots and then the stage drive-by shots later on? It was enough time for the, for the heart to stop feeding, for there to be no circulation due to the wounds that I examined from the medical examiner's office. None of the wounds have any blood in them, which tells me that they're all anti-mortem wounds.

So the time was it long enough for the heart to stop feeding? Okay. Is there scientific or medical testing to recreate that in any way, shape, or form? Yes, it's not, it's the knowledge that's the, I'm sure the medical examiner could say the same thing. So in terms of it's nothing that can be recreated with a live human. Correct. In terms of the number of shots, you said, 17 outside the car. How many rounds were fired inside of the car?

Three. And can you exclude the shots to the head for Mr. Williams and Mr. Thomas is coming from outside of the car? Yes. So the shooting happened inside and someone fired into the car afterwards from outside, presumably to stage this as a drive-by shooting. That's the assumption. And then Williams, and also medical examiner, Dr. Adrian Sorter, explain where the victims were shot. So Christopher Thomas had an injury to his left cheek. Part of that injury, or I'm sorry, his face or his cheek, if you will, had the tattooing or the tattooing or the, or the

stippling on there. The round that the projectile that entered into Christopher Thomas that was actually about in the middle of his cheek was completely as a full circle there was no there was no leading edge there was nothing to indicate that his head was turned to the right turned to the left it was straight forward looking forward you could explain what this is this is showing the brain and the extensive subarachnoid hemorrhage it has and the laceration that you can see to the right side of the cerebellum so I inserted a rod to show that the trajectory from the injury from the left cheek went all

the way through and cross into the right side of the cranial oxytobone. Where was this project that I've recovered from? On the right oxytobo bone. It appears that the victims were shot on the left side. Now, why does that matter? Well, that leads me to the third win for the prosecution. Because if the jury accepts that the victim or victims were shot inside the car from someone on the left at close range, then it is significant where YNW.

Mellie was sitting in that car. There is surveillance footage that was shown to the jury, and it appears to show YNW Melly, his co-defendant Y&W, Bortland, and the two victims, Thomas and Williams, exiting that recording studio on the night of the killings. And where does YNW Melly go? He sits in the left rear seat of the vehicle. Williams was in the front passenger seat, Thomas was in the right rear seat. And the prosecution has backed that up with DNA evidence.

On a three-person mixture, on item number 43, squab, the rear driver sign, door, andled material? Yes. Were you able to analyze the profile of the defendant Jamal Demons in this case? I did, Ms. And what was your conclusion in a three-person mixture as to the results of Mr. Demonsting included or excluded? He was included, the likelihood calculation.

The DNA results are at least 2.12 times 10 to the 8, or 212 million times more likely if they originated from Janelle Devin's and two unrelated unknown individuals than if they originated from three unrelated unknown individuals. And what verbal qualifier did you give to that particular item of the freedom is being included? There is very strong support for the inclusion. Lemon's DNA may have been found on the rear side door handle of that Jeep, again, helping to place him in that car. You know, we've all probably had a night out where we had one too many drinks and woke up the next morning feeling awful. And you've probably wondered why there isn't something we could take to help us not feel quite as bad the next morning. I'm here to tell you there is a product that you can use to make you not feel quite as bad. This is it. It's called Zbiotics. Zbiotics is a pre-alcohol probiotics.

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winds up at this rapper's house named fredo bang well listen to who he said shows up at that house and what he's wearing. Who was at Frito's house when you first got there? Everybody that wasn't a house. Okay. And it's because I don't know who everybody was or is. Can you please specify? Kobe, Melly.

I'm only people I can remember. Okay. Was that the first time you saw Melly after you guys left this video? Yeah. Was Mellie wearing the same clothes or different clothes than when you saw him at the studio? It was a little bit, no, he wasn't. Nah, he wasn't wearing the same clothes. Do you recall what he was wearing?

Just had on some shorts. According to Mr. Glass, after this shooting, Mellie wasn't wearing the same clothes that he was wearing earlier in the night. Now, of course, people can change. It's no big deal when they go places, they switch clothes. but is suspicious here that he isn't wearing the same clothes as the man accused of gunning down his friends at close range. While the next win for the prosecution had to go with gang evidence, it had to do with gang evidence.

So the prosecution has been keen, as I said, on showing that YNW Melly was part of a violent gang known as the G-Shine Bloods, and maybe as a way to show his loyalty or affiliation, he killed his friends. This could also potentially become an aggravating factor in the penalty phase if the jury convicts Mellie and then they have to decide if the death penalty is warranted. So if this shooting was a part of gang activity, it's going to be important.

While undercover detective Danny Polo from the Broward County Sheriff's Office took the stand to explain Mellie's alleged gang affiliations. So there's multiple videos of Mr. Dimmons claiming G-Shine or GKB as a game that he talks to me. What about adopting the style or dress of a criminal game? Yes, Mr. Devons was observed multiple, multiple times, more times that I can count, wearing the color is red, the color is green, and like I stated, the foot sovers are told to wear tan or brown. And Mr. Demons, there's a bunch of pictures of him wearing this tan

trench coat that falls in mind at the time where he would have been a full soldier. And so we'll come back to some of those pictures in a moment. What about adopting these of hand signs that's identified as used by a criminal gang? Yes, Mr. Demons does all the gang signs, and he does them very well. You can do them very quickly, a lot faster than I can. Physical evidence would be the videos of Mr. Demons, throwing up pants signs, the videos of Mr. Demons saying the gene shine oath, their motto, all the social media posts, references, he makes in songs about being of blood. That's all physical evidence. That definitely helps with the prosecution's narrative, right?

Well, let's hop into the phone evidence, because that's another big win for the prosecution. So the prosecution has been trying to establish that a particular phone belonged to YNW Melly. That's important because it helps them track his movements on the night of the killing, placing him with the victims at any moments. Now, listen to some exchanges that definitely seem to show this is Mellie's phone, as opposed to what the defense says, that this was a phone used by anybody and everybody, because these are text messages that are being discussed and read aloud by Lee. Detective Mark Moretti when he took the stand. One is in exchange, allegedly between Mellie and his ex, and another between Mellie and his mom. Message from Mellie Montana to, again, that baby. What does that one say?

You don't f*** me anyways. I peep it. You can slide, but God knows I wasn't in her. The N-word will end real dumb. Breaking. You've spoiled. Everything was given. you you act like a N-word oh some oh some I keep Borton with because at the end of the day he did one of the realest in my life

I'm good food you got it I'm just stay to myself I don't want to hurt you foo just leave me alone phone number 6942 message sent 11 through 2018 at 243 p.m no one blocked me because I'm not finish saying what I'm saying. Same phone number, same date at 243.20 p.m. I'd be trying to be there for you and you push me away like I'm the problem. Publishing page 58. From 9807, 11. 17, 113 of 2018, at 2.43 p.m. What everyone got to say. From 9807, 113, 2018, 218, p.m. Man, I'm not trying to hear that shit. I do s' for you too. Be better off without me, so just slide, bro.

I'm going to love you from a distance. From 9807, 113, 2018, and 244 p.m. You gave me the post shorter because I couldn't find a blazer. And the defense was particularly upset about that exchange. They even tried to move for a mistrial because they said it was highly prejudicial for the jury to hear the defendant call his mom the B word. The judge denied that. trying to establish this was his phone. That's what's key here.

But that leaves me now with one last major win for the prosecution, in my opinion. Right after the murders, YNW. Melly is having an Instagram exchange with someone named Heazy Gambino who asks Mellie if he's okay. Listen to what Melly responded. What does the Y&W Melly account state? I did that with a smiley emoji. In terms of what was that in response to from the PZ Gambino account? Objection. The PZ Gambino account asked him if he was okay and his response was, I did that and

placed a smiley face emoji. And the next message. from 1026, 2018, at 1602 from Eastern Standard Time. The Y&W. Melly count says what? After that, shh, H, H, H, H. I did that. Shh. Look, I'm not sure you can say that's a smoking gun,

but that's not good. That is definitely bad for the defense, because what does it look like? It looks like an admission. The defense tried to show that maybe Mellie didn't. didn't say that, that Mellie uses that and not that in his messages. Again, saying it maybe it wasn't him, that's going to be a tough one. Well, that was the state's case.

Let's see what the defense does next. All right, everybody, that's all we have for you here on Sidebar. Thank you so much for joining us. Please subscribe on Apple Podcast, Spotify, YouTube, wherever you get your podcast. I'm Jesse Weber. I'll speak to you next time. You can binge all episodes of this law and crime series ad free right now on Wondery Plus.

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