YNW Melly Murder Trial Postponed Again — Until 2027

YNW Melly’s double murder trial has been postponed yet again, this time until January 2027 — nearly eight years after he was first arrested.

Melly has sat in jail for years awaiting trial on first-degree murder charges over accusations that he and another YNW rapper shot and killed Anthony “YNW Sakchaser” Williams and Christopher “YNW Juvy” Thomas Jr. in 2018.

Now, the wait will go on even longer. A trial had been set to kick off Sept. 10, but on Friday (Aug. 8), Judge Martin S. Fein postponed it until January 2027, prosecutors confirmed to Billboard. That will be almost eight years after Melly was arrested in February 2019.

The delay is due to ongoing appeals lodged by both sides over what evidence will be admitted in the trial. Last week, an appeals court granted a “stay” ordering Judge Fein to halt all proceedings until after that appeal is resolved. Both prosecutors and Melly’s defense team had asked for such a delay.

Prosecutors say Melly (Jamell Demons) carried out the October 2018 killings of friends Williams and Thomas after a recording session in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Rapper and Melly associate YNW Bortlen (Cortland Henry) then allegedly faked a drive-by shooting to cover up the murder; Henry is charged as an accomplice and will face a separate trial.

A trial was initially scheduled to start in April 2022, but was called off at the last minute. After a long appeal over whether Melly could face the death penalty, the trial finally kicked off in June 2023. But following weeks of testimony and days of deliberation, it ended in a mistrial after the deadlocked jury was unable to reach a verdict.

The case was set for re-trial in October 2023, but was postponed amid disputes over evidence. With the case finally set to be re-heard in September, Judge Martin S. Fein urged prosecutors earlier this year to stick to that date.

“Mr. Demons has now been in custody for 2,202 days, and if one state attorney is not available, maybe one of the other two assigned to this case can stand in, and if all three are not available, maybe one of the 150 state attorneys upstairs might sit in,” the judge said, according to NBC 6 Miami.

But with both sides pursuing appeals over evidentiary issues, they once again asked for the trial to be pushed back. When Judge Fein denied that request, both sides asked Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal to grant a stay ordering such a freeze.

“Simply, without a stay, the state loses its ability to prosecute a serious case on its full merits,” prosecutors told the appeals court last month. “This error cannot be corrected once it is inflicted.”

Melly’s defense attorneys similarly urged a delay until the appeal is resolved: “Appellee cannot adequately prepare for trial,” they wrote in their own filing. “Appellee’s due process rights will obviously be violated and he will be denied a fair trial if he is not afforded an opportunity to complete discovery.”

Oral arguments in the appeal are scheduled for next month.