The judge presiding over the “Young Slime Life” gang case is taking steps to speed up the longest trial in Georgia history.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Ural Glanville will start court earlier on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays and, if the pace doesn’t pick up, might hold court on weekends.
“If you don’t want your Saturday and Sunday sucked up, I think we need to work a little harder,” Glanville said this week as Assistant District Attorney Adriane Love said the state expects to call 150 witnesses over 120 court days - which is about six to seven months. That estimate does not account for time to cross-examine witnesses or for defense attorneys to present their case.
“We hope to be able to prove everything that we intend to put before this jury in our case in chief with these (150) witnesses,” Love told the judge.
The trial’s length and frequent delays came up after attorneys for Deamonte Kendrick filed a motion asking Glanville to limit the state’s witness, lest the case extend to 2027.
“I don’t want to be in 2027 trying this case, or as Mr. Steel said, I don’t want to be here next Super Bowl trying this case,” Glanville said, referring to a concern voiced by attorney Brian Steel, who represents the rapper Young Thug.
Credit: Jason Getz
Credit: Jason Getz
Glanville said during a Tuesday motions hearing that he’ll issue an order aimed at speeding things up.
“I’ve had to excuse our jurors, sometimes for hours, in respect to try and unravel issues that you present to the court,” Glanville told attorneys, adding that he plans to exclude evidence that is not disclosed in a timely manner and may even consider holding attorneys in contempt.
Credit: Jason Getz
Credit: Jason Getz
Attorney Doug Weinstein, who represents Kendrick, has asked Glanville to limit the state’s witnesses.
“Unless you exert some type of limit, we are never going to get through this (case), even working on the weekends,” said Weinstein, noting that the sluggish pace is causing some jurors to tune out at times.
Jury selection in the case began on Jan. 4, 2023; opening statements followed more than 10 months later, on Nov. 27. Repeated delays, juror problems and time off has resulted in just over 50 days of actual proceedings, some conducted outside the jury’s presence.
“We are looking at another six months and I think we are asking a lot of our jurors, so I want you to really look at the number of witnesses you are going to call and the number of counts you are going to prove,” Glanville told Love.
Prosecutors initially said they would call 700 witnesses, then trimmed the list to 400 and then 150. They have gotten through fewer than 60.
The 65-count indictment contains 191 “overt acts” that prosecutors allege were carried out in furtherance of the gang. So far, prosecutors have brought in multiple witnesses — mostly law enforcement officers — to answer questions about each act. Some of those witnesses have been called back to the stand multiple times.
One witness, former defendant Trontavious Stephens, remained on the stand about nine days before he was eventually excused.
All six defendants have been in jail without bond for two years.
