Evan Agostini/Invision/AP/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Young Thug‘s lawyer, Brian Steel, has been arrested and sentenced to jail time following the rapper’s court appearance on Monday, June 10.
According to the New York Post, Judge Ural Glanville held Steel in contempt of Fulton County court on Monday, June 10. Steel reportedly confronted Judge Glanville during the RICO court hearing, prompting the decision.
Steel reportedly accused the judge of having an “ex-parte meeting” meeting. The meeting allegedly discluded Steel but included “the State, and key witness Kenneth Copeland.” To note, Copeland was recently held in contempt of court for refusing to testify for the prosecution against Thug after taking the stand on June 7, per HipHopDX. Copeland had reportedly been offered immunity in exchange for his testimony.
Furthermore, Steel refused to disclose to Judge Glanville how he learned about the meeting.
Young Thug’s lawyer also alleged that the court was engaging in “coercion” since he wasn’t invited to the alleged gathering. According to Georgia Criminal Lawyer, coercion takes place when one “is forced to do an act against their will by the use of pressure, physical force, or threats.”
According to 11Alive, a brief recess was taken after the exchange between Judge Glanville and Steel. However, after the break, the lawyer doubled down on not revealing who provided him with the information about the alleged meeting.
The outlet reports that Steel advocated for a mistrial instead. However, the judge denied his motion, and Steel was reportedly “taken into custody shortly after.”
As the hearing resumed, the judge reportedly allowed Steel to be “brought back into the courtroom.” However, he ordered the lawyer to reveal the source of his information by the end of the day.
According to 11Alive, Steel ultimately did not comply with the judge’s request, and Judge Glanville ordered that he be held in Fulton County jail for “no more than 20 days for this contempt.”
“Those 20 days consisting of every weekend for the next 10 weekends,” Glanville reportedly said. “And you’ll be reporting to 901 Rice Street NW, Atlanta, Georgia, 30318. At 7 p.m. on Fridays, you’ll be released on 7 p.m. on Sundays. And it’s to commence this Friday, June the 14th at 7 p.m. and not to end until Sunday, August the 18th, 2024, at 7 p.m.”
According to the New York Post, Judge Glanville has since agreed to Steel’s request to be detained in Cobb County jail alongside Young Thug.
Meanwhile, Steel’s wife, Colette Resnik Steel, has reportedly filed a notice to appeal Judge Glanville’s sentence. To note, Colette Steel is also a practicing lawyer.
According to a tweet shared via My Mixtapez on X, formerly known as Twitter, Brian Steel’s wife has also filed a motion for her husband to receive a bond.
However, Colette Steel’s efforts don’t end there. According to a tweet shared by X user @ThuggerDaily, Colette has also filed a “motion to set aside contempt.” The motion appears to detail why Judge Glanville’s decision to detain Brian was made in error.
Additionally, it asserts that the judge admitted to the ex-parte meeting and shouldn’t have badgered Steel to reveal his source due to attorney-client privilege.
“Hours after holding Mr. Steel in contempt, the court stated that Mr. Steel can only purge himself of contempt by telling the court from where he got ‘information that he shouldn’t have had,” the motion reads. “Thus, the court has imposed an illegal and inherently inconsistent punishment for this criminal contempt…”
Finally, the motion also asserts that “the court,” or Judge Glanville, allow the RICO case to be “handled by a separate court.”
As The Shade Room previously reported, T.I. recently shared his thoughts on Young Thug’s trial in May. At the time, the rapper appeared extremely optimistic that Thug would soon return home.
“I don’t think that the prosecution has successfully proven the case of him, you know, knowingly and willingly participating in an active street gang,” T.I. told ‘The Breakfast Club’ at the time. “I just don’t see it.”
A few weeks earlier, Young Thug’s girlfriend shared an update on the rapper and his situation behind bars.
