YNW Melly must stay in jail, judge rules as rapper’s new trial approaches. What you need to know

Rapper YNW Melly will remain behind bars as he awaits his second double murder trial.

After delaying his decision last week, Broward District Judge John Murphy on Thursday denied Melly’s request to be released from jail ahead of a retrial. The rapper has been in Broward jail since February 2019, when he turned himself in to police.

Melly appeared in court Sept. 15 for a bond hearing in Arthur’s case, which allows courts to consider setting bail for defendants accused of crimes that are not typically eligible for bail. In August, defense attorney Stuart Adelstein requested a special hearing to possibly set bail for Melly before the trial begins Oct. 9 with jury selection.

Judge John Murphy reads instructions to the jury before closing arguments in the trial of Jamell Demons, better known as rapper YNW Melly, at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Thursday, July 20, 2023. Demons, 22, is charged with murdering two other rappers and conspiring to stage a drive-by shooting in October 2018. (Amy Beth Bennett/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

At Arthur’s trial, the state must show that “the evidence is clear and the presumption is high” that the defendant is guilty. That’s a heavy burden—often considered greater than proof beyond a reasonable doubt.

Melly, 24, whose real name is Jamell Demons, is accused of shooting his childhood friends Anthony Williams and Christopher Thomas Jr. in an apparent drive-by after spending the night at a Fort Lauderdale recording studio on Oct. 26, 2018. Williams and Thomas, both aspiring rappers with the YNW collective, were known as YNW Sakchaser and YNW Juvy.

Melly is one of the first defendants to go on trial after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a law lowering the threshold for a death sentence to an 8-4 jury vote, from the previous requirement of unanimity.

Melly’s first trial ended in late July when Murphy declared a mistrial. After three days of deliberations, the jury informed Murphy that it was deadlocked and could not reach a verdict.

Jamell Demons, better known as rapper YNW Melly, talks with his attorney Stuart Adelstein during a bond hearing before Broward District Judge John Murphy on Friday, Sept. 15, 2023. His previous trial ended in a mistrial after the jury deadlocked and was unable to reach a verdict in July 2023. Demons, 24, is charged with murdering two other rappers and conspiring to stage a drive-by shooting in October 2018. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

During the trial, Adelstein argued that because the final jury was unable to reach a verdict, there was a reasonable doubt as to guilt, meaning the evidence did not meet a high standard.

“At least give him the option of bail because he’s presumed innocent. And there’s no way the state, based on the lack of a conviction, can meet their burden.”

In her rebuttal, prosecutor Kristine Bradley shed more light on the mistrial, saying one juror who is a fan of the rapper and lied during jury selection caused a hung jury. Bradley urged Murphy to consider the thoughts of the victims’ families before making her ruling.

Assistant District Attorney Kristine Bradley stands in front of a diagram of the trajectory of bullets in a car as she delivers closing arguments in the trial of Jamell Demons, better known as rapper YNW Melly, at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Thursday, July 20, 2023. Demons, 22, is accused of killing two other rappers and conspiring to stage a drive-by shooting in October 2018. (Amy Beth Bennett/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

Leondra Phillips, Thomas’ mother, said in a Zoom call that she did not think Melly should be granted bail given the “serious allegations against him.”

“I don’t want anything to happen to me or my family, so I don’t think he should be given bail,” she said.

What else is happening with YNW Melly?

On Thursday, the defense argued in more than 10 documents filed in court that Murphy should consider throwing out evidence from Melly’s cellphone, email addresses and social media accounts.

Adelstein warned Murphy about the plethora of documents at last week’s hearing, during which Murphy joked that he thought a retrial would be simpler.

“It will be more complicated, I will advise the court,” Adelstein said last week. “We have taken a slightly new approach to certain issues.”

Melly is due in court next Wednesday, according to court documents. His trial, which could last into January, is set to begin with jury selection on Oct. 9.