Jury seated for YSL gang indictment case, opening statements set for Nov. 27

ATLANTA — Nine months after the selection process began, a jury has finally been seated in the Young Slime Life gang indictment trial.

In May 2022, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis accused members of the YSL gang of creating “havoc” in Atlanta since 2015, engaging repeatedly in violent crime. Rapper Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffrey Williams, was among the dozens charged in a sweeping gang indictment.

Since then, more than half of the defendants have either taken a plea deal or been severed from this trial. There are currently seven defendants left, including Williams, to head to trial.

Jury selection for this trial started in January 2023 with hundreds of potential jurors. On Wednesday, the 12 jurors and 6 alternates were selected.

The makeup of the 12 jurors consists of six black women, 2 black males, 1 white woman, 1 white male, 1 Hispanic woman, and 1 other woman. As for the six alternates, they consist of four black women, 1 black male, and 1 white male.

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Channel 2′s Courtney Francisco was at the Fulton County Courthouse on Wednesday as there was a scramble to get a jury seated before Nov. 6. If the jury hadn’t been seated by then, the case would have had to start over, according to speedy trial rules.

At the start of the day, the judge and attorneys were working to whittle 50 potential jurors down to the final 12.

By noon, the judge had excused one woman from the list. The trial is expected to last about nine months, and the judge agreed she could lose her job if she is out for that long.

Over the past several months, both sides questioned the potential jurors about everything from their personal views about rap music and they even asked some about their feelings when it comes to tattoos.

Opening statements are expected to begin on Nov. 27.

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‘That’s where I’m at a lot:’ Cobb man says he can be on YSL jury since he stays at mom’s Fulton home The man says he stays with his mom more often than not. Attorneys say that's not the case.

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