C-Murder has been sitting behind bars for years in relation to a fatal shooting that he insists wasn’t his doing, yet a federal court official has now reportedly retained the rapper’s original conviction and denied his release.
On Wednesday (November 29), The Source reported that District Judge Sarah Vance decided to uphold the life sentence the rapper (real name Corey Miller) was handed for the first-degree murder of 16-year-old Steven Thomas in 2002.
The day prior, his former No Limit Records labelmate and fellow New Orleans native Mac was honored with a proclamation along with several other local Hip Hop artists for their contributions to the city’s culture.
Despite his appreciation for the distinction, the 46-year-old took to social media soon after to talk about his friend who was absent from the event due to his innocence still being contested in the legal system.
“It was a bittersweet feeling because yesterday I also learned that a dear friend of mine, C-Murder, conviction was upheld by the federal court,” he explained. “What that means is basically he’s going to keep fighting, y’know what I mean?
“It doesn’t mean it’s the end. Trust me, it’s not the end; it just means it’s one more hurdle he have to get over, and I know he’s going to continue to fight.”
The C-Murder trial is one that hits close to home for Mac as he was finally granted parole by the Louisiana Board of Pardons and Committee on Parole in 2021 after serving over two decades in prison.
He was sentenced to 30 years in prison for the 2000 nightclub murder of 19-year-old Barron Victor Jr., although he maintained his innocence the entire time he was locked up.
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C-Murder and his team have recently been building a case around the two witnesses who originally testified against him and then recanted their statements, which means that there’s no longer any direct evidence tying the accused to the crime.
Earlier this year, Kim Kardashian took to Twitter to emphasize the implications of this for the MC, writing: “There is no remaining evidence that even suggests that Corey Miller is any more culpable than the hundreds of patrons who were at the Platinum Club on January 12, 2002, when Steve Thomas was tragically shot.
“Rather than search for the real perpetrator of the crime, the local sheriff’s office zeroed in on proving a case against Mr. Miller. The lead detective harassed multiple witnesses and mishandled the case to such a degree that the trial court had no choice but to grant Mr. Miller a new trial after he was convicted in 2003.”
