Young Thug released after 900+ days in jail, faces 15 Years of probation in Landmark case

After serving a lengthy sentence in a case involving hundreds of defendants, Young Thug’s release from jail surprised his fans.

Young Thug, whose actual name is Jeffrey Williams, was freed on Thursday evening, October 31, after more than 900 days in detention, according to prison records, and will be sentenced to 15 years probation as part of a non-negotiated plea deal.

Williams also consented to a non-negotiated plea agreement on multiple charges, such as possession of firearms and involvement in criminal street gang activities, and entered a “no contest” plea to charges of racketeering and leading a criminal street gang in Georgia’s longest-running case ever.

In 2022, Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) implicated Williams and more than two dozen others.

Prosecutors accuse the rapper of commanding a criminal street gang that carried out a decade-long murder and violent crime spree in Atlanta, but Williams denies being the organization’s leader.

They asserted that YSL, also known as Young Slime Life and an acronym for the artist’s label Young Stoner Life Records, is an Atlanta-based criminal street group associated with the national Bloods gang.

Prosecutors also tried to establish that Young Thug was the proclaimed head of YSL and was complicit in crimes committed by its members, such as the deadly 2015 shooting of an accused rival gang member. Prosecutors claim Young leased a vehicle that YSL members utilized in the killing.

Several other defendants in the case, including rapper Gunna, have pleaded guilty or had their charges dropped, leaving Young Thug as one of six defendants on trial.

Williams pleaded guilty to six charges, including one count of engaging in criminal street gang activities, three counts of violating Georgia’s Controlled Substances Act, one count of possessing a handgun while committing a crime, and one offense of possessing a machine gun.

When asked to respond, he said that he accepted full responsibility and apologized to his family before requesting that Fulton County Superior Court Judge Paige Reese Whitaker allow him to return home.

“I’m a brilliant person. I have a really nice heart.” I find myself in a lot of situations because I was kind,” he told the judge as he stood in front of her.

“I’ve learned from my mistakes,” he said, citing some of the free concerts he’s organized and the money he’s donated to single parents and associated causes.

Prior to the sentence, Whitaker urged Williams, “I want you to try to be part of the solution,” to which he answered, “I promise you, I will change that 100 percent.”

Whitaker then ordered Williams to leave the Atlanta region two days after his release from incarceration and throughout the first ten years of his probation. Whitaker permits him to return to the Atlanta region for weddings, funerals, and graduations, but requires him to depart within 48 hours after the conclusion of the festivities.

The court ordered him to return to the neighborhood four times a year for the duration of his probation to conduct an anti-gang and anti-gun event.

Williams must also do 100 hours of community service each year of his probation and is prohibited from knowingly contacting members or affiliates of any violent street gang.

Williams could have received a maximum sentence of 120 years in jail if convicted on all counts.