After a long and historic process, Young Thug has been officially released from prison after pleading guilty in his long-running RICO case.

Before a judge today, the rapper, whose real name is Jeffery Lamar Williams, pleaded no contest to RICO and gang leader charges, and pleaded guilty to the rest of his charges, including two weapons charges and three drug charges. The judge sentenced him to time served on several charges, as well as 15 years of probation, which if successfully completed would result in the commutation of his portion of service.

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Before the sentencing, Thug spoke for the first time about the case after spending the last two years in prison. “I’m a smart guy, I’m a good guy and I really have a good heart,” he told the judge. “I found myself in a lot of things because I was nice and cool, and I understand that you can’t be like that when you reach a certain height because it could end badly.”

During the dramatic court hearing today, Thug changed his plea after Superior Court Judge Paige Whitaker asked him if he had accepted a non-negotiated plea, meaning prosecutors and the defense were unable to reach an agreement on the plea. sentence and the power to determine punishment was given. to the judge.

Georgia prosecutors had previously offered a guilty plea that Thug rejected. That deal would have allowed him to walk free today on 15 years of probation, which, if completed, would have allowed him to avoid prison time, but would potentially put him behind bars for 23 years if he violated probation.

Thug was initially jailed in Georgia in May 2022 as part of a street gang bust. He was one of 28 people named in a 56-count indictment that included violation of Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act and participation in criminal street gang activity. The case centered on YSL (“Young Slime Life”), which prosecutors said was a street gang that formed in 2012 in Atlanta. Thug was charged with being one of the three founders of YSL and on two counts: conspiracy to violate RICO and participation in street gang activity.

Earlier this week, three of Thug’s co-defendants, Rodalius Ryan (aka Lil Rod), Quamarvious Nichols (aka Qua), and Marquavius ​​Huey (aka Qua), accepted plea deals. guilt in the case. Ryan, already serving a life sentence for a murder case when he was 15, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the RICO Act. His 10-year sentence would be commuted to time already served. Nichols had several charges dropped and was sentenced to 20 years in prison with seven of them on probation. Huey, charged with 19 charges, had some of them reduced or dropped. He was sentenced to 25 years, of which only nine will be served in prison.

In addition to Thug, two other defendants in the case remain on trial. Deamonte Kendrick (aka Yak Gotti) and Shannon Stillwell (aka Shanon Jackson, or SB) have a litany of charges including conspiracy to violate RICO, murder charges, participation in street gang activity, and more. Gotti recently rejected a plea deal and instead opted for a jury trial.

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