Young Dolph Murder Trial Pushed to September
The trial of Young Dolph’s suspected killers has been pushed to September following a late request from both sides to prep expert witnesses.
The trial of Justin Johnson and his co-defendant, Cornelius Smith, was set to begin today, June 3. But last month, as The Associated Press reports, Johnson’s attorney and prosecutors filed a joint motion requesting the delay so they could prepare witnesses to testify about cellphone location records.
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The new trial date has been set for Sept. 23, and according to the Memphis Commercial Appeal, oral arguments over the expert witnesses will take place Aug. 9. The prosecution will bring in two witnesses to testify, while Johnson’s team will bring in one.
While the judge overseeing the case granted the delay, she wasn’t exactly pleased about it. “I was extremely upset when the lawyers came to me, asking for a motion to continue this case,” Judge Jennifer Mitchell said in court Monday. “I was really anxious to get this case over and done with starting this week, but they both expressed to the court the desire to get experts in. So I allowed the continuance to occur.”
The trial has already faced several delays and hiccups, including the recusal of the original judge last October. The case was then set to begin in March before being pushed to June ahead of today’s news of the additional postponement.
Young Dolph was fatally shot on Nov. 17, 2021, with prosecutors claiming Johnson and Smith got out of a stolen Mercedes and shot the rapper while he was inside a Memphis bakery. It took several months for the police to arrest the two suspects: Smith was caught in December and Johnson in Jan. 2022. Both men have pleaded not guilty to the charges against them.
Police arrested two other suspects in connection with the killing: Johnson’s half-brother, Jemarcus, and Hernandez Govan, who was accused of arranging Young Dolph’s murder. Last June, Jemarcus pleaded guilty to three counts of accessory after the fact; prosecutors said he took a car and cell phone from Johnson to misdirect authorities while Johnson got out of Memphis. Jemarcus hasn’t been sentenced yet and may appear as a witness in the upcoming trial.
As for Govan, he has pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder. A trial date for him hasn’t been set yet.
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