Fulton judge Shukura Ingram to take over controversial YSL trial

July 16th, 2024

On Monday, it was determined that Superior Court Judge Shukura Ingram, who has been assigned to the Superior Court of Fulton County since 2018, will oversee the Young Slime Life RICO case after the previous judge, Ural Glanville, was recused Monday. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)

Fulton County has found another judge to take on the proceedings of a highly controversial racketeering trial that has been in session for 18 months and counting.

Superior Court Judge Shukura Ingram, who had been assigned to the Fulton County Superior Court since 2018, will oversee the Young Slime Life RICO case after the previous judge, Ural Glanville, was recused Monday.

“This Court has no doubt that Judge Glanville can and would continue presiding fairly over this matter if the recusal motions were denied, but the ‘necessity of preserving the public’s confidence in the judicial system’ weighs in favor of excusing Judge Glanville from further handling of this case,” wrote Superior Court Judge Rachel R. Krause in her ruling.

This decision came after several weeks of tensions between Glanville and the defense attorneys of defendants Deamonte Kendrick and Grammy Award-winning rapper Young Thug, whose legal name is Jeffery Williams.

Williams was charged in 2022 with various counts related to drug, gang, weapon and racketeering crimes.

Motions requesting Glanville’s recusal were filled shortly after a meeting involving Glanville, Fulton County prosecutors and a prosecuting witness that excluded Brian Steel, a defense attorney for Williams.

When Steel confronted the judge about the meeting in court, claiming witness tampering, he was found in contempt and sentenced to 20 days in jail, structured to be served throughout ten consecutive weekends.

“Jeffery Williams is innocent of the charges brought in this indictment and to clear his name he sought a speedy trial,” Steel said in a statement to WABE.

“Sadly, Judge Glanville and the prosecutors have run afoul of their duties under of the law … We look forward to proceeding with a trial judge who will fairly and faithfully follow the law.”

The inclusion of Ingram, while a potential benefit for Steel and other defense attorneys involved in the case, is only expected to delay the trial that has already been distinguished as the longest in Georgia’s history.

Jury selection began in January 2023 and lasted until October, followed by opening statements in November and dozens of witnesses who have taken the stand in the preceding months.

Ingram, a Georgia State University College of Law graduate, assumed office in August 2018 after being appointed by former state Gov. Nathan Deal. While her term ends in December, a successful reelection campaign will have her stay in office for a second term.

Previously, she served as a judge in Fulton’s Magistrate Court from 2015 to 2018, as well as in positions as a senior district attorney with the Fulton County D.A. Office and an assistant solicitor with the City Court of Atlanta.

Ingram’s career has placed her in the middle of a series of high-profile Atlanta cases.

The latest was the trial of Raissa Kengne, a defendant tried in the August 2022 shooting in Midtown that murdered two men.

Ingram was unavailable for comment at the time of publishing.