After Fulton County prosecutors used rap lyrics and tattoos as evidence of gang affiliation in the lengthy trial of Atlanta rapper Young Thug and his alleged associates, a bipartisan group of lawmakers are vowing to restrict that legal tactic in future proceedings.
State Rep. Kasey Carpenter, R-Dalton, filed House Bill 237 Tuesday, which would make it tougher for prosecutors to use artists’ “creative or artistic expression, whether original or derivative,” against them.
“People have got to be able to express themselves, artistically, without fear of retribution in court,” Carpenter said.
Courts already have to decide whether or not to admit lyrics in the first place, but the proposed legislation adds an additional requirement that would be beneficial for artists. The legislation requires prosecutors to show a factual connection between the defendant’s art and the alleged crime before it can be admitted as evidence.
Defense attorney Suri Chadha Jimenez, who was originally part of the “Young Slime Life” trial, said that specification is crucial because “judges will actually have to pay attention to the evidence,” instead of just admitting it under the current rules of evidence.
The YSL trial became the longest in Georgia history.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis used rap lyrics in the racketeering indictment against Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffery Williams, Atlanta rapper Gunna and more than two dozen others in an effort to snuff out violent crime in Atlanta amid a historic spike in shootings and homicides.
Willis alleged the rappers were gang members and said some of their lyrics were evidence of real-world crimes. She has also used lyrics to go after other alleged gangs in Fulton County.
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez/AJC
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez/AJC
Willis defended her decision at the time, saying, “If you decide to admit your crimes over a beat, I’m going to use it.”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reached out to the Fulton County DA’s office for comment on the legislation but has not heard back.
After defending Atlanta rapper Young Thug, attorney Brian Steel said he welcomes legislation aimed at strengthening protections for artists.
“Using a person’s artistic works as a weapon against them is un-American and unfair at a trial,” Steel said. “The only art used as a weapon against the accused are rap lyrics, and that is wrong.”
It’s the second attempt to bring legislative backing to a debate over free speech and public safety, after Democratic state Rep. Eric Bell filed a similar bill last year.
He joined fellow Democratic Rep. Spencer Frye of Athens and Republicans Trey Kelley of Cedartown and Tyler Paul Smith of Bremen in cosponsoring Carpenter’s bill this year.
Chadha Jimenez said he was surprised the bill came from Republican lawmakers but is appreciative of their efforts.
“It goes to show that there should be limits on the government and the abuse of the government when it comes to free expression,” Chadha Jimenez said.
If the bill would have been in effect before the YSL case, Chadha Jimenez, who is also a former Fulton prosecutor, said Willis still might have tried to introduce the lyrics, but it would have created grounds for an appeal.
“I think prosecutors like Willis and many other prosecutors that just want to throw everything at the fan and then see what sticks would still try, but a law like this would allow a legal basis to challenge this nonsense,” he said.
The legislation focuses on creative expression, including lyrics, but Carpenter said “there’s some conversation” about including tattoos as protected speech. “We’ll see as it goes through the process,” he said.
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