Current:Home > NewsMemphis man testifies that he and another man killed rapper Young Dolph -FutureWise Finance
Memphis man testifies that he and another man killed rapper Young Dolph
View
Date:2025-04-24 14:28:50
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A Memphis man testified on Monday that he and a second person shot and killed rapper Young Dolph after Big Jook, the brother of rapper Yo Gotti, put a hit on him.
Cornelius Smith identified himself and Justin Johnson as the two people seen on a Nov. 17, 2021, surveillance video exiting a white Mercedes outside a Memphis cookie store about 30 seconds after Young Dolph entered the store and then opening fire in broad daylight.
Smith was testifying in the first day of Johnson’s trial on charges of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and being a felon in possession of a gun.
Smith also faces murder and conspiracy charges. Johnson’s attorney, Luke Evans, told the jury in opening statements that they should not trust Smith’s testimony because he was just trying to save himself. Johnson is innocent, Evans said. Photos of him wearing clothes like the person in the video do not mean he is same as person, Evans said.
Deputy District Attorney Paul Hagerman, in opening statements, said Young Dolph, whose real name was Adolph Thornton Jr., was determined to make it on his own as an artist, and also with his own label, Paper Route Empire.
“Trying to make it on your own can create enemies,” Hagerman said.
He noted that Yo Gotti-founded rival record label Cocaine Muzic Group (now known as Collective Music Group) and wanted Young Dolph to work for them, but he turned them down. Young Dolph later wrote diss tracks directed at the label, its artists, and its “number two person,” Big Jook.
Young Dolph had survived previous shootings. He was shot multiple times in September 2017 after a fight outside a Los Angeles hotel. In February of that year, his SUV was shot at in Charlotte, North Carolina, more than 100 times. The incident was the inspiration for the song “100 Shots.” He said he survived because he had bulletproof panels in his vehicle.
Big Jook, whose real name was Anthony Mims, was shot and killed outside a restaurant in January 2024, according to media reports.
Smith, who said he was shot in the arm and the leg by Young Dolph’s brother, Marcus Thornton, as he fled the cookie store shooting testified that he received only $800 prior to his arrest. He said his attorney was later paid another $50,000 by Big Jook.
Asked by Hagerman how he felt after shooting Young Dolph, Smith said, “I wasn’t feeling nothing at the time. I’m not gonna lie. I was trying to get some money.”
Smith testified that his young son had died a few months before and he had started “popping pills and not caring about nothing.” His conscience started bothering him only later after he sobered up in jail, he said.
Jermarcus Johnson pleaded guilty in June 2023 to three counts of serving as an accessory after the killing by helping Smith and Justin Johnson, his half-brother.
Jermarcus Johnson acknowledged helping the two shooting suspects communicate by cellphone while they were on the run from authorities and helping one of them communicate with his probation officer. Jermarcus Johnson has not been sentenced.
Hernandez Govan has pleaded not guilty to organizing the killing.
Young Dolph began his career by releasing numerous mixtapes, starting with 2008′s “Paper Route Campaign.” His multiple studio albums include his 2016 debut “King of Memphis.” He also collaborated on other mixtapes and albums with fellow rappers Key Glock, Megan Thee Stallion, T.I., Gucci Mane, 2 Chainz and others.
He had three albums reach the top 10 on the Billboard 200, with 2020′s “Rich Slave” peaking at No. 4.
___
Travis Loller contributed to this report from Nashville, Tenn.
veryGood! (22)
Related
- Rams vs. 49ers highlights: LA wins rainy defensive struggle in key divisional game
- Taylor Swift will be featured on Eras Tour opener Gracie Abrams' new album, 'The Secret of Us'
- David Sanborn, saxophonist who played with David Bowie, dies at 78 from prostate cancer
- George Clooney to make his Broadway debut in a play version of movie ‘Good Night, and Good Luck’
- Nearly 400 USAID contract employees laid off in wake of Trump's 'stop work' order
- Primaries in Maryland and West Virginia will shape the battle this fall for a Senate majority
- Snoop Dogg, Michael Bublé to join 'The Voice' as coaches, plus Gwen Stefani's return
- Horoscopes Today, May 12, 2024
- Israel lets Palestinians go back to northern Gaza for first time in over a year as cease
- Alabama follows DeSantis' lead in banning lab-grown meat
Ranking
- Apple iOS 18.2: What to know about top features, including Genmoji, AI updates
- Gypsy Rose Blanchard Details Why She Thinks “the Best” of Her Mom 8 Years After Her Murder
- Steve Carell and John Krasinski’s The Office Reunion Deserves a Dundie Award
- Primaries in Maryland and West Virginia will shape the battle this fall for a Senate majority
- McKinsey to pay $650 million after advising opioid maker on how to 'turbocharge' sales
- Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor and former President Donald Trump are two peas in a pod
- Van driver dies in rear-end crash with bus on I-74, several others are lightly injured
- As work continues to remove cargo ship from collapsed Baltimore bridge, what about its crew?
Recommendation
Residents worried after ceiling cracks appear following reroofing works at Jalan Tenaga HDB blocks
Volunteer fire department sees $220,000 raised for ambulances disappear in cyber crime
Cavaliers star guard Donovan Mitchell misses Game 4 against the Celtics with a strained left calf
Bryan Olesen surprises with vulnerable Phil Collins cover on 'The Voice': 'We all loved it'
Opinion: Gianni Infantino, FIFA sell souls and 2034 World Cup for Saudi Arabia's billions
Stock market today: Asian shares mixed in muted trading after Wall Street barely budges
The Nebraska GOP is rejecting all Republican congressional incumbents in Tuesday’s primary election
Duke University graduates walk out ahead of Jerry Seinfeld's commencement address