Young Thug’s slow-moving RICO trial hit a roadblock on Monday (July 1). Judge Ural Glanville put the proceedings on hold until another judge decides if Glanville must recuse himself from the case.
Defense attorneys sought Glanville’s removal over a private meeting with prosecutors and Kenneth Copeland, a key witness in Young Thug’s trial. Young Thug’s lawyer Brian Steel questioned the meeting in court, resulting in an explosive confrontation with Glanville in June.
The judge held Steel in criminal contempt after the lawyer refused to reveal how he learned about the meeting. Steel was sentenced to 20 days in jail, but the Georgia Supreme Court stayed his sentence. Glanville faced significant backlash for his handling of Steel.
YOUNG THUG TRIAL IS PAUSED UNTIL A DIFFERENT JUDGE DECIDES IF JUDGE GLANVILLE SHOULD BE REMOVED FROM THE CASE
— THUGGERDAILY ひ (@ThuggerDaily) July 1, 2024
Judge Glanville has changed his mind and transferred Young Thug and Yak Gotti's motions to recuse him to a different judge. pic.twitter.com/EIDI3Vjxe6
Steel and others believed the defense was entitled to be present at the judge and prosecution’s controversial meeting with Copeland. The defense accused Glanville and prosecutors of pressuring Copeland to testify by threatening him with jail time.
Glanville previously denied requests seeking his recusal, insisting he did nothing wrong.
“The only thing discussed between the state and counsel for Mr. Copeland and this court was the understanding of his immunity agreement,” Glanville said. “There was no other testimonial statements, in terms of what Mr. Copeland planned to testify to.”
Defense attorneys wanted a separate judge to rule on Glanville’s alleged misconduct. Glanville unexpectedly agreed to let another judge settle the matter and halted Young Thug’s trial on Monday.
“We’ll be in recess until that time,” Glanville said.
Prosecutors asked how long the trial would be delayed. Glanville was unsure.
“Don’t know,” he said, per the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “That has to go to another judge pursuant to our rules. That’s not within my information and purview … Hopefully, it will get done fairly quickly.”
Young Thug’s trial is already the longest in Georgia’s history. He has remained in jail since his 2022 arrest.