A co-defendant in the racketeering and gun conspiracy case against Atlanta rapper Young Thug accepted a plea deal Tuesday after days of speculation over whether Georgia's longest-running criminal trial may end in a mistrial.
Quamarvious Nichols, 29, changed his plea to guilty of conspiracy to violate Georgia's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, or RICO, statute. In exchange, Fulton County prosecutors agreed to dismiss all other charges against him, including murder, participation in gang activity and illegal firearms possession charges.
Superior Court Judge Paige Whitaker accepted the plea and a negotiated sentence of 20 years in prison but noted he would have to serve only seven years with probation, including credit for time served.
"Stay out of all kinds of trouble," Whitaker advised Nichols, who is set to turn 30. "Make this a birthday present to yourself, to your wife and your family."
Meanwhile, the trial is expected to resume for Young Thug, the Grammy-winning rapper whose real name is Jeffery Lamar Williams, and the four other co-defendants.
The latest twist comes after Whitaker said last week that she would consider a motion for a mistrial following a prosecutorial misstep involving Nichols.
During testimony a week ago, prosecutors had state witness Wunnie Lee, a rapper known as Slimelife Shawty, review social media posts in front of the jury. But Lee was inadvertently given an unredacted version of a post that referred to the hashtag #freequa, which may apply to Nichols. The post was redacted for the jury.
But by naming Qua, prosecutors allowed the jury to presume that the co-defendants are incarcerated, a detail that is not supposed to be shared because it is considered prejudicial.
“We’re not going to be able to unring this bell, your honor,” Nicole Westmoreland, a lawyer for Nichols, said in asking for a mistrial.
A reason Fulton County prosecutors agreed to a plea deal with Nichols now — more than two years since the initial indictment against him and the other co-defendants was announced — was not discussed in court Tuesday.
Young Thug and the others have been jailed since 2022 on charges of conspiracy and criminal street gang activity and additional firearm- and drug-related charges.
The indictment accuses Young Thug, 32, of leading a street gang, Young Slime Life, or YSL, with members committing illegal and violent acts, including murder, armed robbery, drug dealing and carjacking. Twenty-seven other co-defendants were also initially named — an unusually high number for a case.
The trial began with jury selection in January 2023 but dragged on through multiple delays.
Opening statements finally began in November after several defendants had already taken plea deals, while others chose to be tried separately from Young Thug.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis had presented the case against Young Thug and his associates — accused of being affiliated with the national Bloods gang — as a way to combat the unrelenting violence in their south Atlanta neighborhood.
The defendants have denied they are part of a street gang, and critics contend the RICO law is being unfairly used against Black hip-hop artists.
