New Judge Provides Update On Future Of Young Thug YSL Trial

A new date has been scheduled to continue Young Thug's YSL trial.

During a hearing on Friday, July 19, the latest judge to preside over the case Paige Reese Whitaker told the court that she's actively working to play catch-up after she was assigned to the case last week. She also laid out a new schedule and fresh guidelines, which may help speed up the trial. Judge Whitaker expects the jury back in court by August 5 after she deals with all pending motions.

“I need for us to try to be efficient with the jury’s time,” Whitaker said.

According to the Associated Press , Judge Whitaker wants the proceedings to run from 8:45 a.m. to 6 a.m. with a shorter run time on Fridays. She cited a need for "a degree of decorum and dignity and professionalism" so she banned headphones and eating in her courtroom. The new judge also requested a "realistic" witness list with bullet points about what they plan to say. Under the previous judge, there were still at least 150 witnesses that still needed to testify. Judge Whitaker's new rules might reduce that list drastically.

“I’m here to give everybody a fair trial, a fair shake, and follow the law," she said.

Judge Whitaker took over the trial after the previous judge Shukura Ingram recused herself from the the case after she indicated that her former deputy was arrested for having an inappropriate relationship with one of the defendants. Before that, Judge Ingram had taken over for the original judge Ural Glanville. Glanville was removed after the defense cited a suspicious meeting with a witness and prosecutors without him or any other defense attorney present.

Young Thug and his co-defendants are accused of violating Georgia's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act and was hit with numerous drug, gang, and gun charges. He pleaded not guilty and has maintained his innocence since he was arrested in May 2022.