Move Over Brian Steel, There's A New Lawyer In The YSL Trial Getting Attention
Social media has recently gone feral over Young Thug's lawyer Brian Steel, who has accumulated his own celebrity while representing the rapper during the Young Slime Life case, Georgia's longest-running criminal trial.
However, it seems like there's a new lawyer getting public attention now. Criminal Defense Lawyer Doug Weinstein, representing Deamonte Kendrick (Yak Gotti) in the YSL case, has been the face of several memes and social media craze recently due to his effortless charm and seemingly tight bond with his client.
Weinstein has been active on social media himself, offering commentary on the viral moment the courtroom underwent analysis to determine if the lyric "He fell to the curb" is admissible evidence or not.
"This is one of the big issues when using lyrics," he wrote. "Sometimes and often words are just used because they rhyme and not because they are recounting actual events."
The racketeering trial began in November 2023 following Young Thug's arrest in May 2022. Though Thug is officially home, co-defendants like Yak Gotti continue to fight for their innocence.
Weinstein noted to Atlanta News First that his client "fully intends to take this to the jury and get our not guilty verdicts and go home," facing 12 counts of charges related to racketeering, murder, guns, drugs, and street gang participation.
In the meantime, Thug has been enjoying the fruits of his freedom. He reunited with longtime girlfriend Mariah the Scientist and even made a guest appearance via FaceTime for one of Steel's lectures at Emory Law School.
Thug gave a speech encouraging the law school students to become defense attorneys, saying "I think it's very important to help people out of their situations... Everybody makes mistakes, we're human," he shared. "And I feel like we need more people like Brian Steel on this earth."
Both Steel and Weinstein bring to attention a larger dialogue about the sacred relationship between lawyer and client.
-- Originally published in Music Times