One of the defendants in the YSL trial has taken a plea deal. Quamarvious Nichols pleaded guilty to one felony count of conspiracy to violate the RICO Act. As part of his plea deal, the state dismissed charges including one murder count, two gang-related counts, and three firearm-related counts. Judge Paige Reese Whitaker sentenced Nichols to serve seven years of a 20-year sentence with the balance to be served on probation and with credit for time served. The RICO charge carried a sentence of five to 20 years.
Nichols wore a black-and-white flannel shirt, khaki pants, and glasses as he affirmed his guilty plea at the podium. One of Nichols’s attorneys, Bruce Harvey, said he is acknowledging the factual basis of a RICO conspiracy related to past drug-related offenses while categorically denying that Nichols participated in violence. Harvey noted that Nichols, who will turn 30 in a few days, has come “from a very humble beginning” after his mother died in prison and his father was shot by Atlanta police. “He is an intelligent young man who I believe has a future,” Harvey said. Nichols smiled and hugged his attorneys after being sentenced. Harvey called the deal “an exceptional resolution” in a statement.
Judge Whitaker adjourned court after Nichols’s plea, so it appears none of the remaining five defendants, including rappers Young Thug and Yak Gotti, are taking plea deals at this time. Gotti’s attorney, Doug Weinstein, requested that his client (born Deamonte Kendrick) be present to witness the plea as “a member of the public,” prompting a recess for the co-defendants to be brought in. Shortly before Nichols’s plea, Weinstein tweeted that Gotti “has been wrongly accused and incarcerated,” adding, “We continue to fight for his freedom.”
Nichols’s plea deal was set in motion last week when rapper Slimelife Shawty accidentally read the hashtag “#FreeQua” — which should have been redacted — to the jury during testimony. Attorneys for Nichols motioned for mistrial since he goes by Qua and the hashtag could have implied to the jury that Nichols had been in prison. “We’re not going to be able to unring this bell,” said his attorney Nicole Westmoreland. Attorneys for another defendant who goes by Qua, Marquavius Huey, also motioned for mistrial. Judge Whitaker discussed a stipulation to the jury that the hashtag does not refer to either Qua before denying Westmoreland’s motion for a mistrial with prejudice, which would not allow for a retrial. Whitaker then asked if Westmoreland would want a mistrial without prejudice, which she agreed to, leading Whitaker to call a recess. Court has been adjourned since the afternoon of October 23 with reports that multiple defense attorneys met with District Attorney Fani Willis to discuss plea deals. Whitaker has yet to rule on the mistrial motion.
The multiple days of plea discussions are just the latest delay in the trial. Jury selection took nearly a year before the trial formally began on November 27. Shannon Stillwell, one of the defendants, was stabbed in jail in December, prompting a monthlong delay. And in July, the trial’s original judge, Ural Glanville, was recused over a June 10 secret, ex parte meeting with prosecutors and a witness. Whitaker took over the trial after another judge also recused herself. While experts expected her to declare a mistrial, she decided to continue, attempting to make the trial more efficient after Glanville’s myriad delays. In the months since, Whitaker has criticized and reprimanded the prosecution over its disorganized handling of the case.
