Lil Durk’s fate remains undecided after jurors asked to review digital evidence during their first day of deliberations in his federal murder-for-hire trial.
The jury began weighing the case against Lil Durk, whose legal name is Durk Banks, and two co-defendants on Wednesday, September 9, after closing arguments concluded a day earlier. Jurors did not return a verdict before the end of the day and requested evidence in digital form, extending deliberations into Thursday.
According to Complex, the request came as Durk’s attorneys were also pressing Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald over portions of the rapper’s 2023 interview with DJ Akademiks. The defense argued that prosecutors relied on selected excerpts during rebuttal closing arguments and asked the court to admit additional portions or give jurors a curative instruction.
Judge Fitzgerald denied that request, with Complex reporting that he noted statements made by attorneys during closing arguments are not evidence. The dispute nevertheless added another late-stage issue to a trial that has centered on the government’s allegation that Durk helped orchestrate a plot targeting Quando Rondo in Los Angeles in August 2022.
The shooting killed Rondo’s cousin, Saviay’a “Lul Pab” Robinson, while Rondo survived. Prosecutors have argued that the alleged plot was retaliation connected to the 2020 killing of King Von, while Durk’s lawyers have challenged the government’s witnesses and its interpretation of the evidence throughout the murder-for-hire trial.
Durk and co-defendants Deandre “OTF DeDe” Wilson and David “Browneyez” Lindsey are facing five counts tied to stalking and the alleged murder-for-hire conspiracy. The jury must consider each defendant and each count separately, and Durk has pleaded not guilty.
The request for digital evidence does not indicate which way the jury is leaning, only that jurors wanted additional access to material already admitted as they continued evaluating the case. Deliberations are expected to resume Thursday, September 10, keeping one of hip-hop’s most closely watched federal trials on verdict watch.
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