YNW Melly is hoping for a release from prison on bond while he waits for a new trial date.
via: BET
NBC Miami reports that the Florida rapper’s lawyers filed a motion requesting he be freed while he awaits a new trial, which is scheduled to start on October 9.
The paperwork argues that Melly’s co-defendant, Corten “YNW Borten” Henry, who faces the same charges, has been granted bond and that he should be given the same treatment.
That said, it is very uncommon for defendants charged with murder to receive a bond before their trial.
According to WTVJ, the Broward County State Attorney’s office confirmed in July that they would retry the case again and that both sides could refine their strategies.
The double murder trial of Melly, born Jamell Demons, ended on July 22 in a deadlocked jury. A unanimous verdict is required to convict or acquit a defendant charged with murder.
Judge John Murphy had twice asked the jurors to keep deliberating after they said they were deadlocked. But the jury came back a third time without a different result.
In July 2022, a Florida judge removed the death penalty as a possible sentence option for Melly. The rapper remains behind bars on double homicide charges.
Melly and Bortlen are accused of killing victims Christopher “YNW Juvy” Thomas and Anthony “YNW Sakchaser” Williams and then attempting to stage the crime scene to resemble a drive-by shooting. Melly pled not guilty to the first-degree murder charges in March 2019. He later addressed his arrest in a since-deleted Instagram post that same year.
According to prosecutors, Ballistics tests show the victims were shot from inside the Jeep. But defense lawyers point to the fact that a gun was never recovered and assert Melly had no apparent motive for the crime.
