Second judge in Young Thug RICO case recuses herself

ATLANTA (CN) — The second judge assigned to the trial against hip-hop artist Young Thug and others accused of participating in a criminal street gang recused herself Wednesday.

Just two days after she was assigned to take over the trial, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Shukura Ingram wrote in an order that she was disqualifying herself due to an “appearance of impropriety”.

Judge Paige Reese Whitaker has been reassigned to handle the case. A Fulton County judge since 2017, Whitaker is a former Fulton County prosecutor who also worked at the state Attorney General’s Office.

Ingram wrote that one of her courthouse deputies was arrested for conspiring with the relatives of onetime co-defendant Christian Eppinger to sneak contraband to him in jail.

“Because this court’s former assigned deputy could be called as a witness in any future proceedings in this case, the court may be called upon to assess this deputy’s credibility, or rule on matters related to her criminal prosecution. This may undermine the public’s confidence in the impartiality of the proceedings,” Ingram wrote.

The deputy is not named in Ingram’s order, but she has been identified in other court documents as Akeiba Stanley. In addition to trying to smuggle contraband, Stanley had an “inappropriate relationship” with Eppinger and communicated with him through Instagram, according to her arrest warrant.

In her order, Ingram wrote the former deputy was assigned to and responsible for the courtroom and Ingram’s personal security for nearly six months. She said Stanley was still assigned to Ingram when investigators discovered her communications with Eppinger.

Stanley faces charges of conspiracy to commit a felony, hindering the apprehension or punishment of a criminal, reckless conduct and violating her oath of office.

“While the court does not regard the aforementioned situation as creating any actual bias for or against any party to this case, the court does view this as a matter that could cause a reasonable person to question the court’s impartiality and reasonably give rise to the appearance of impropriety should the court remain on this case,” Ingram wrote.

The relationship accusations resulted in Eppinger’s attorney, Eric Johnson, having his laptop seized and Eppinger being severed from the sprawling racketeering case last year.

Eppinger faces 15 counts under the indictment and is accused of shooting an Atlanta Police officer several times in February 2022 while being taken into custody. Since then, he’s been linked to an inmate stabbing and picked up two more felony charges of threatening the sheriff’s office staff.

Ingram was randomly assigned to take the helm of Georgia’s longest criminal trial in history after Chief Judge Ural Glanville was removed on Monday.

Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffrey Williams, and his co-defendant Deamonte Kendrick called for Glanville’s removal amid complaints he and prosecutors improperly held a meeting in chambers with a key prosecution witness.

Glanville defended his conduct when he denied an initial recusal motion from Kendrick, claiming that it was within his authority as judge and that it did not give the prosecution any tactical advantage.

However, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Rachel Krause said in her order that in Glanville “added facts, provided context, questioned the veracity of allegations and otherwise explained his decisions and actions and argued why those actions were proper,” which violates Georgia statutes establishing that a judge cannot rule on their own recusals.

The 65-count indictment brought in May 2022 contains 191 “overt acts” that prosecutors contend were carried out in furtherance of a gang known as “Young Slime Life” or “YSL.” A total of 28 defendants were named, but many are no longer part of the trial, either because they accepted plea deals or have had their cases severed. All six remaining defendants standing trial have been in jail without bond for two years.

Prosecutors say the gang is responsible for a string of shootings, robberies and drug sales across Atlanta. They claim Young Thug was the co-founder and leader of the gang, although he denies the charges and says YSL is merely the acronym of his record label, Young Stoner Life.

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