Lil Durk’s Murder-for-Hire Trial Could Be Delayed Until 2026

Lil Durk’s trial on federal murder-for-hire charges might be postponed from October to January, according to new court filings — but the star himself still wants to go to trial next month.

In a joint motion filed in court Friday (Sept. 12), prosecutors and attorneys for several of Durk’s co-defendants agreed on the delay, arguing that the case is “so unusual and so complex” that the defense teams should get more time to prepare for trial.

If granted, the motion will delay by three months a blockbuster trial on charges that Durk orchestrated a plot to kill rival rapper Quando Rondo, resulting in a 2022 Los Angeles shooting that left another man dead.

Notably, it appears that Durk (Durk Devontay Banks) himself is not on board with the request, meaning he wants to stick to the original trial date: “Defendant Banks does not join in the stipulation to continue the trial in this matter.”

But consent or not, the feds say Durk should be forced to go along with the delay, noting that he’s joined to the others for trial, and that a three-month wait “constitutes a reasonable period of delay” — meaning it will not violate his constitutional right to a speedy trial.

Durk could oppose the motion to postpone the trial, or seek to have his case severed and tried separately on the original schedule. His attorney did not immediately return a request for comment from Billboard.

The rapper was arrested last year on murder-for-hire and gun charges over allegations that he ordered members of his Only the Family (OTF) crew to carry out the 2022 attack, which left Rondo (Tyquian Bowman) unscathed but saw his friend Lul Pab (Saviay’a Robinson) killed in the crossfire.

In charging documents, prosecutors claimed that Durk’s OTF was not merely a group of Chicago rappers, but a “hybrid organization” that also functioned as a criminal gang to carry out violent acts “at the direction” of Durk. Prosecutors say he ordered the Rondo shooting in retaliation for the 2020 killing of rapper King Von (Dayvon Bennett), a close friend and frequent collaborator.

The case initially cited Durk’s lyrics, quoting from a song called “Wonderful Wayne & Jackie Boy” in which Durk allegedly referenced the shooting. But after Durk’s lawyers pointed out that the rapper recorded those verses “seven months before the incident even happened,” prosecutors filed a new indictment that removed them from the case.

Durk has denied the allegations and pleaded not guilty to the charges. Also charged in the case are OTF members Kavon London Grant, Deandre Dontrell Wilson and Asa Houston, as well as Keith Jones and David Brian Lindsey, two other alleged Chicago gang members.

Friday’s motion seeking the postponement was signed by lawyers for Wilson, Houston and Lindsey. Though it mentioned that Durk did not consent, it failed to mention Jones or Grant at all; their attorneys did not immediately return separate requests for comment.