Judge Orders Mental Evaluation for Young Thug Co-Defendant
Written by SOURCE on April 8, 2023
A Georgia judge has ordered a mental health evaluation for Jayden Myrick, one of 14 defendants in the Young Slime Life RICO case.
The decision was announced in court Tuesday after Myrick filed a request to represent himself during the upcoming trial. Fulton County Chief Judge Ural Glanville questioned the 22-year-old’s competency, as he made several bizarre comments during the hearing. He told the court he had been studying law and was in contact with former president Donald Trump, current president Joe Biden, and U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff (Ga.-D).
“I’m not the regular inmate, I be with Joe Biden and Donald Trump and they be talking to me,” Myrick said. “Donald Trump is going to get me out.”
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Myrick expressed his dissatisfaction with his public defender Gina Bernard, claiming the attorney wasn’t making a strong enough effort in the case and simply “didn’t want to help him.” Glanville refused to grant the self-representation request until the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities completed an evaluation and determined Myrick was mentally competent to stand trial.
According to the outlet, Myrick’s speech became increasingly unintelligible during the hearing, so much so that Glanville asked the defendant if he had taken any medication. The Fulton County Sheriff’s Office provided the judge with a list of medications prescribed to Myrick, including an anti-psychotic. The defendant reportedly told the court he was not taking his prescription as instructed, saying: “I don’t need the medication.”
If mental health experts conclude Myrick is not fit to stand trial, the judge may allow for his case to be severed. This will ensure there are no more delays in the YSL RICO trial, which lists Young Thug as one of the defendants. The ATL rapper, legal name Jeffery Lamar Williams, was arrested nearly a year ago on gang-related charges. He and other YSL associates, including Gunna, were accused of committing a slew of crimes on behalf of the enterprise; the charges included murder, aggravated assault, and robbery. Thug has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Myrick is now serving a life sentence for the 2018 murder of Christian Broder, a D.C. resident who was shot and killed outside an Atlanta country club. Prosecutors said the victim had left a wedding and was waiting for an Uber when Myrick and three others robbed him at gunpoint. Broder reportedly tried reasoning with the group just moments before Myrick shot and killed him. Myrick was ultimately convicted of murder, armed robbery, aggravated assault, and 13 other counts.
