Young Thug – Source: Paras Griffin / Getty
Prosecutors have filed a motion to ban video recording of witness testimonies in Young Thug’s YSL Rico Case.
Young Thug’s YSL Rico case is quickly approaching the witness testimony portion of the trial which could send Atlanta into disarray. Reportedly the prosecution is expected to call over 300 witnesses to make their case against Young Thug. Furthermore, they allegedly have several celebrity names they will call to the stand. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, video recording has become an issue after witnesses allegedly received death threats.
Fulton County’s District Attorney’s office filed a motion revealing witnesses and law enforcement officers were threatened and then doxed. Now they are seeking to ban video recording and photography of witnesses moving forward.
“This is not the first time something like this has happened in this case,” District Attorney Fani Willis and lead prosecutor Adriane Love wrote in the motion. “In December 2022, an assistant district attorney who testified for the State at a video-recorded pretrial motions hearing fell victim to online doxing. This witness’ personal cell phone number was leaked to the uncharted wilds of the internet, and the threatening communications the witness thereafter received caused genuine fear for self and family.”
Doug Weinstein responded on behalf of the defense and alleged the prosecution was just trying to “hide the proceedings from the public”. Being a witness in any high-profile case is dangerous but as we’ve seen in this case everything eventually makes it to the internet either way.
“The public should be able to view this case and the testimony of these witnesses and make their own assessment of what the State is doing,” said Weinstein. “Whether it be the defendants’ artistic expression or the freedom of the press, the State’s attacks on the First Amendment continue.”
Prosecutors also cited an incident last month when testimony was streamed and concerning comments emerged in the chat. The chat revealed the witnesses’ real names and threatened YSL would “pop by later”. Shortly after that incident, the witness began receiving threats from unknown numbers prompting the court to provide the witness security. If the court thinks there is any chance of keeping witnesses a secret, that would be foolish. We’ve already seen the court’s video feed hacked with a troll screaming “Free Young Thug, mistrial”. Finding out who testified would be easy work for the hacker.
Hopefully, everyone involved can stay safe and the court process can proceed promptly.
