13-05-2025
YNW Melly to stay locked up in Broward ahead of double murder trial, judge rules
Rapper YNW Melly will remain behind bars after his legal team sought to have him placed on house arrest as he awaits a double murder trial.
In an order issued Monday, Broward Circuit Court Judge Martin Fein denied Melly's request to set a bond. Fein made his ruling after reviewing the evidence and testimony presented at the first trial and listening to arguments last week at an Arthur hearing, which allows courts to consider setting bonds for defendants charged with crimes that aren't usually eligible for bail.
'...This Court finds that the State's evidence is arguably sufficient to convict and is not contradicted in a material respect such that there is a substantial question of fact as to the guilt or innocence of the Defendant,' Fein said in his order.
Melly's defense team proposed placing the rapper on complete house arrest with an ankle monitor and security guards posted at his home around the clock. The attorneys argued that Melly wasn't a flight risk because he had no passport.
Prosecutor Justin Griffis, however, stated that the severity of the murder and witness tampering charges against Melly should keep him in jail pending the outcome of his cases.
Melly's first trial ended in a mistrial in July 2023. After three days of deliberation, the jury told Broward Circuit Court John Murphy it was deadlocked and couldn't reach a verdict. Weeks after the mistrial, Melly requested that Murphy, who has since retired, set a bond. That request was denied.
Melly, 26, whose real name is Jamell Demons, is accused of gunning down his childhood friends Anthony Williams and Christopher Thomas Jr. in an alleged drive-by after spending the night of Oct. 26, 2018, at a Fort Lauderdale recording studio. Williams and Thomas, both aspiring rappers with the YNW collective, were known as YNW Sakchaser and YNW Juvy, respectively.
Williams' and Thomas' families, court records show, opposed Melly's efforts to receive bail. Melly has been locked up in Broward since 2019.
READ MORE: YNW Melly kept in 'debilitating isolation' while in jail, lawsuit says. He seeks release
Fein's decision comes after attorney Michael Pizzi filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the Broward Sheriff's Office in October, alleging 'egregious violations' of Melly's constitutional rights. The 12-page lawsuit says the rapper has been kept in total isolation with no way to contact the outside world and has also been barred from meeting with his legal team on several occasions.
That suit is pending in Miami federal court.
Melly's double murder case is scheduled to go to trial in September. However, the case has been marked by a series of delays after his first trial ended in a hung jury. The mistrial set off a whirlwind that ended with a prosecutor ousted, key evidence thrown out and new charges.
Key evidence: A major cause of delay is the evidence removed from the retrial. Prosecutors appealed Murphy's ruling on the evidence to a higher court. The bulk of the contested evidence was extracted from Melly's cellphone, email addresses and social media accounts.
Under Murphy's ruling, most of the digital evidence admitted, including messages, will be confined to the day of and following the murders. But the attorneys now have a hearing on the evidence issue before the appeal court on Sept. 16.
Attorney probed: In December, Melly's legal team discovered that the Broward Sheriff's Office had obtained a warrant for the phone records of the Raven Liberty, one of the rapper's lawyers. Prosecutors haven't divulge why Liberty was investigated. Liberty remains on the case.
'These allegations are clearly a retaliatory ploy by the Broward County State Attorney's Office with a goal of trying to disqualify a highly qualified attorney who has zealously defended her client,' said attorney Philip R. Horowitz, who's representing Liberty. 'Ms. Liberty has acted ethically and within the bounds of the law at all times.
Ex testifying?: In January, Melly's ex-girlfriend Mariah Hamilton was arrested for not testifying in Melly's trial. Hamilton was released and ordered to wear ankle monitor but isn't charged with a crime. Prosecutors allege that Melly and his codefendent Cortlen Henry, known as YNW Bortlen, collaborated to keep Hamilton from testifying in the case.
