South Florida rapper YNW Melly is in court Friday on a motion for an emergency hearing.
YNW Melly’s real name is Jamell Demons. He is accused of shooting and killing his friends, Christopher Thomas Jr. and Anthony Williams, in 2018 in Miramar.
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WATCH HEREJudge Martin S. Fein went back and forth with the rapper's defense attorneys over a Broward Sheriff's Office investigation into the rapper's lead lawyer, Ravon Liberty. Up until this point, the state has been tight-lipped about what the investigation entails.
The defense attorneys on Friday were given the unredacted search warrant regarding Liberty, after Fein overruled the state's motion for a protective order.
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NBC6 is working to learn the details of that search warrant.
Defense attorneys argued that if Liberty's involvement in the case was a conflict of interest, the judge should help them find out why.
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"I believe as the court, you have a obligation to ferret out what the conflict is so that we can make an informed decision," one attorney said.
Fein strongly disagreed.
"Sir, with all due respect, this isn't a vacuum. He can have a sit down with Miss Liberty and you can sit down with Miss Liberty. She's well aware of who she's emailed. She's well aware of who she's called. She's well aware of what's on these records. So it's incumbent on you all to fully inform your client. That's not my job, it's your job," Fein said.
Melly is expected in court again on Feb. 18 at 9:30 a.m.
Meanwhile, most recently, YNW Melly’s ex-girlfriend was being held in the Broward County Jail for civil contempt – a rare case where someone who isn’t charged with a crime can, by law, be held in jail.
When Hamilton was a no-show at YNW Melly’s double murder trial in 2023, she violated a judge’s order stating she needed to take the stand at trial. But it wasn’t until she left the country that law enforcement became aware of the warrant for her arrest.
In late 2023, after the rapper's trial ended in a mistrial, Broward Sheriff’s detectives charged him and Cortlen Henry, his alleged accomplice in the murders, with witness tampering when prosecutors said the two arranged to have a key witness not testify.
She is also expected in court on Friday.
This is a developing story. Refresh for updates.
