ATLANTA-
A judge in Atlanta denied bail Thursday for rapper Gunna, who is charged with racketeering along with fellow rapper Young Thug and more than two dozen others.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Ural Glanville had previously denied bail for Gunna, whose given name is Sergio Kitchens, and on Thursday held a hearing on the rapper’s request to reconsider that decision. Glanville said he was concerned that Kitchens might threaten or intimidate witnesses if he was released before trial.
Prosecutors have said that Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffery Lamar Williams, is one of the founders of a violent street gang in Atlanta called Young Slime Life and that Kitchens has a management role within the gang. The 88-page indictment filed in May alleges the gang committed multiple murders, shootings and carjackings over roughly a decade and promoted their activities in songs and on social media.
In a statement issued last month on his birthday, Kitchens proclaimed his innocence.
Fulton County Assistant District Attorney Don Geary cited several crimes unrelated to the indictment that he said Kitchens may have been involved in and said the state continues to believe he should not be released on bail. .
Steve Sadow, an attorney for Kitchens, said prosecutors had not made any specific allegations or presented any evidence showing that his client is a threat to witnesses. Kitchens and his parents are willing to put up their property as collateral and Kitchens would agree to be placed under house arrest with electronic monitoring, Sadow said.
“All Mr. Kitchens wants under these circumstances is to be released, to be home, to be able to produce music and meet with an attorney to prepare for trial in this case,” Sadow said.
Kitchens, who is signed to Williams’ Young Stoner Life record label, scored her second No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart with “DS4Ever” this year.
Glanville noted that he has not set bond for any of the people charged in the indictment. He said that she wants the case to be tried as quickly as possible. He is currently scheduled for trial in January.
Prosecutors also asked in a court filing Tuesday to be allowed to exclude their witnesses’ contact information and addresses from information provided to defense attorneys and to restrict reporting on cooperating gang members’ statements until 30 days before the trial. judgment. If they are required to provide the names and contact information of all witnesses, they request that defense attorneys may not share witness lists with their clients, family members of clients, or anyone else.
Prosecutors said they have “significant safety concerns” for their witnesses due to threats and violence from gang members.
Glanville issued a temporary order Wednesday directing defense attorneys to withhold the contact information of their clients’ prosecution witnesses. He said he will modify the order after hearing more evidence from prosecutors.