After 900 Days, Grammy Winner Young Thug has Finally been Released from Prison

After 900 days in jail, Grammy-winning rapper Young Thug, born Jeffery Lamar Williams, was released following a guilty plea to gang-related and criminal charges in what was the longest criminal trial in Georgia’s history. Arrested in May 2022, prosecutors claimed his music label, Young Stoner Life (YSL) Records, fronted a criminal syndicate allegedly responsible for the majority of violent crime in Atlanta. Williams received a sentence of time served plus 15 years of probation.

In court, Williams expressed regret, stating, “I take full responsibility for my crimes,” acknowledging the impact of his choices. Superior Court Judge Paige Whitaker, who commuted his sentence after plea negotiations failed, emphasized the importance of him being “part of the solution, not the problem.” Williams’s probation terms include 100 hours of community service, a ban on contact with former co-defendants, and a restriction from entering metropolitan Atlanta, except under specific circumstances, for the first decade of his probation.

Initially accused alongside 27 others, including fellow rapper Gunna, of gang conspiracy under Georgia’s RICO Act, Young Thug’s case drew controversy over the use of rap lyrics as criminal evidence. This, critics argued, infringed on his freedom of expression. Despite delays, mistrials, and allegations against Fulton County Superior Court Judge Ural Glanville, the rapper’s sentence was finalized on Thursday. Williams is now set to host anti-gang and anti-gun events quarterly as part of his community service.