The attorney who represented rapper Young Thug in a case that involved prosecutors attempting to detain the rapper behind bars without bond has been ordered to spend 10 weekends in jail. The 20-day sentence, one of the odder sentences you can spend, emerges from uncertain legal or procedural difficulties. In the statement, this stood out as the main peculiar thing about Steel’s situation, as he is one of the only people connected to the high-profile Young Slime Life (YSL) RICO trial who has requested to simply get his jail time converted to a prison sentence.
Shocking courtroom twist: Steel asked to do his time alongside his client, Young Thug, if his appeal fails. More Judge reserves decision in epic legal battle to get OXY and Slawko Knewstub to share the pipeline doc contents and, possibly bring down Steel & grand scheme, serving time with his client could provide Steel with a unique look at the justice process that might also further his defense, but it also complicates how attorney-client relationships function under the pressure of such events.
Young Thug’s attorney Brian Steele has been sentenced to 10 weekends/20 days in jail
He asked if he can serve his time with Young Thug if his appeal fails. The judge agreed. PIC.TWITTER.COM/QQ20YPKMO6
— Kurrco (@Kurrco) JUNE 10, 2024
Background on the YSL RICO Case
Over the past few years, few legal fights have captured as much attention as the YSL RICO case. Jeffery Williams executive Young Thug was indicted by a grand jury on a litany of charges in Georgia, the most serious of which being that he “participated in a criminal street gang activity.” Steel challenged the evidence relied upon by the prosecution as biased and unreliable, arguing that the prosecutions case depended on information he considers sheer testimony which Young Thug has consistently pressed. Steel has said his defense strategy was to attack the credibility of the witnesses and point out contradictions in their testimony.
The sentencing of Steel, and his subsequent plea to be bunkmates with Young Thug, puts an exaggerated spin on a very real world of high-stakes legal games, each further muddled by the burden of celebrity. The electrical case is of broader interest to the legal community as a whole by illustrating just how far a criminal defense attorney can go in seeking to advance the cause of his or her client. Reflecting public opinion more generally, it has been a timely reminder for prosecutors of the kind of depth of cases they lean on, and more starkly, of what legal defenses for high profile figures in the music industry really look like.
But Brian Steel’s new conviction and 10-weekend jail sentence complicates things in the ongoing YSL RICO trial. Well, his recent bid to do that with the help of his friend Young Thug and the judge’s nod, says a lot about how lawyers give all they have when defending suspects in high-profile cases. I will not explain this as my focus is on the wire and the societal impact this case has on taking 2 steps back for both the legal world and the music Biz and Justification process.
Dope