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YNW Melly Double Murder Case Ends In Mistrial—Rapper Could Walk

YNW Melly
By: Kyle EusticeCategory: News

The “Murder On My Mind” rapper is free—at least for now.

YNW Melly could walk free after serving more than three years in prison on double homicide charges. According to Law & Crime, the dramatic case ended in a mistrial on Saturday (July 22) after a Broward County jury was unable to come to a decision in the 2018 killings of YNW Juvy and YNW Sakchaser.

“The note reads, ‘We as jurors, we are still unable to reach an unanimous decision,'” Judge John Murphy says in a clip. “So at this time, I am going to declare a mistrial…we want to reiterate how much we appreciate the fact that you were here and you willingly served. Our system doesn’t work without getting people from the community to come here and listen to the facts of the case and make decisions.

“These types of decisions, they’re hard decisions…you did your best effort to bring the case to a resolution. Unfortunately, it wasn’t able to happen.”

YNW Melly—widely known for his single “Murder On My Mind”—was arrested alongside YNW Bortlen in February 2019. Melly pleaded not guilty to two charges of first-degree murder the following month and was facing the death penalty. The State of Florida—one of 30 states that still allow capital punishment—was initially confident it could “prove beyond a reasonable doubt” Melly murdered both men for financial gain. The State called it an especially heinous crime and claimed Melly committed homicide in a “cold, calculated and premeditated manner.”

Prosecutors and YNW Melly’s defense team made their closing arguments on Thursday (July 20). The jury briefly began deliberations that day and continued on Friday (July 21).  Jurors informed Judge Murphy they were deadlocked shortly after. The jury asked the judge what would happen if they couldn’t reach a consensus on YNW Melly’s guilty or innocence.

“What if we can’t come to a decision?” the jury said in a note to the judge. “Everyone is stuck on which side they’ve chosen.” Judge Murphy explained how to handle a deadlock, and the court adjourned a few hours later. Prosecutors can choose to take Melly to court again, but only time will tell what the next move is. For now, Melly is a free man.