MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — The jury found Justin Johnson guilty of murder in the death of rapper Young Dolph on Thursday. A co-defendant told the jury that the killing was part of a fight between two rival record labels.
After just under four hours of deliberation, the jury found Johnson guilty of murder, conspiracy to kill, and having a gun while being a felon. Johnson was given a life term by Judge Jennifer Mitchell of the Shelby County Criminal Court.
Anthony “Big Jook” Mims, the brother of rapper Yo Gotti, put out a $100,000 hit on Young Dolph and put rewards on all the artists on Young Dolph’s record label, Paper Route Empire.
This was proven by Cornelius Smith in court. Smith said that he and Johnson met up early on November 17, 2021, “looking for somebody” and “didn’t know who we were going to catch.”
They knew that Young Dolph and some of his artists were giving away Thanksgiving turkeys, so they were going that way when they saw Young Dolph’s car. Smith said they followed him to a cookie shop in Memphis and opened fire during the day. Dolph, who was young, was hit 22 times and died right there.
Read more about how Young Dolph changed Memphis for the better.
When he first spoke to the jury, Deputy District Attorney Paul Hagerman said that Young Dolph, whose real name was Adolph Thornton Jr., was determined to make it as an artist and with his own label.
Hagerman said, “Trying to make it on your own can make enemies.”
He said that Yo Gotti’s rival record company, Cocaine Muzik Group (now called Collective Music Group), wanted Young Dolph to work for them but he turned them down.
After that, Young Dolph wrote songs that were mean to the label, its artists, and Big Jook, who he called the label’s “number two person.” This year, Big Jook was shot and killed outside of a restaurant.
In addition to Smith’s testimony, the prosecutors showed a lot of other proof, such as surveillance footage and Johnson’s own cell phone.
Johnson had said he wasn’t guilty, and in his final arguments, Johnson’s lawyer Luke Evans said the videos only showed that someone wearing clothes that Johnson wore shot Young Dolph. Evans told the judge that Smith would say anything to get out of jail.
Evans said, “Cornelius Smith is lying the whole time.”
Smith has also been charged with murder and planning to kill someone. He has pleaded not guilty.
Another thing Evans said was that Smith’s fingerprints were found in the escape car, but Johnson’s were not. He also said that there was “no proof that Justin Johnson got a penny.” However, Smith said that he got $800 before he was jailed and another $50,000 from his defense attorney later on.
But Hagerman said that the video and cell phone proof supported Smith’s story. There were calls between Smith and Johnson right before the killing and between Johnson and Big Jook right after.
Jermarcus Johnson also testified. In June 2023, he pleaded guilty to three counts of being a party after the fact by helping Smith and his half-brother Justin Johnson. Jermarcus Johnson has admitted that he helped the two talk on the phone while they were running from the police. He has not been found guilty.
Smith said that Hernandez Govan was a go-between for Big Jook. Govan has pleaded not guilty to planning the murder.
Young Dolph started his work by putting out a lot of mixtapes, the first one being “Paper Route Campaign” in 2008. One of his many studio albums is “King of Memphis,” which came out in 2016.
He worked on other albums and mixtapes with singers like Key Glock, Megan Thee Stallion, T.I., Gucci Mane, 2 Chainz, and more.
The 2020 album “Rich Slave” by Young Dolph peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard 200. Three of his albums made it to the top 10.