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By Mandy Taheri
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Judge Paige Reese Whitaker, who is presiding over the criminal trial of rapper Young Thug, warned the prosecution, led by the Fulton County, Georgia, district attorney's office, to "get all your ducks in a row" by Friday.
Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffery Williams, is currently on trial in Georgia for charges related to racketeering conspiracy and participation in criminal street gang activity, along with drug and gun charges. Prosecutors allege he violated the state's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, which punishes offenders working under a criminal organization.
The trial has been going on for over a year, with jury selection beginning in January of 2023 and taking nearly 10 months to complete. Whitaker is the third judge on the case, after the two priors were recused, one on July 15 and the other two days later.
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Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis's office has recently faced criticism over concerns regarding discovery violations. The defense has alleged that the prosecution violated the Brady rule, which requires prosecutors to disclose materials and information in their possession that may be favorable to the defense.
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On Wednesday, during the trial, Whitaker asked assistant chief district attorney Adriane Love, "At this stage, which is mid-trial, is there anything else...that you think might be relevant to either the state or defense in trying this case, that you, the state, know of that the defense still does not know of." After a long silent pause, Love sat down.
Whitaker said, "Between now and noon on Friday, you better make sure you've got all your ducks in a row and you have shared those ducks, and ducklings with the defense." Love replied, "Yes," in acknowledgment.
Defense attorney Nicole Westmoreland then stood up and said, "How many times can you say 'oops,' how many times can you repeatedly, systematically make the same mistake as an experienced litigator and say it's not bad faith?" She cited previous experiences with the prosecution involving intentionally late discovery admissions.
Whitaker replied, "Exclusion of evidence is an extreme, extreme sanction," adding "I understand what you're saying, and I hear you, and the answer to how many times can it happen? Maybe zero more times, okay?"
Newsweek reached out to the prosecution and defense team for comment via email on Wednesday evening.
Whitaker has issued new, stricter rules for trial to try and streamline the process, previously saying, "This trial should not take the next seven months. I'm not saying it won't, but it shouldn't."
The new rules include starting proceedings at 8:45 a.m. daily and allowing proceedings to begin without everyone present. To minimize distractions, she banned earbuds and food and encouraged professional behavior in the courtroom.
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