@JozsefPapp_
Before the jury is brought out,
#YoungThug's attorney Brian Steel told Judge Whitaker that he plans to cross-examine Copeland about the June 10 meeting and argue that Judge Glanville was biased against the defense.
"I'm not here to hurt Judge Glanville, in fact, I like Judge Glanville but I don't know what happened in this case, but I liked him before this case," Steel said."I believe that Mr. Copeland will truthfully say that he believed Judge Glanville and the state of Georgia are one.”
Steel said he intends to cross-examine Copeland about what Deputy DA Hylton and Judge Glanville told him during the June 10 meeting.He acknowledged he might get stuck with the "I don't recall" answers but plans to still asked and doesn't want cross-examination to be limited.
"I am not making my ruling in any sort of an effort to protect Judge Glanville, I do not believe is relevant to the issues for this jury to determine in regards to whether Mr. Copeland's testimony between 10th and 12th was impacted by the ex-parte on the 10th," Whitaker said.
Whitaker said she did ask everyone if they wanted to redo all of Copeland's testimony, but was later told that they wanted to keep the June 7 to June 12 at 3 p.m.
Whitaker said defense attorneys can ask him about the immunity order and whether he would have testified without it.Whitaker said, in her legal opinion, what happened in the June 10 meeting and whether Glanville is biased is not relevant for the jury to consider.
Steel said there is a lot of stuff in the June 10, 2015 interview being played in which Copeland mentions Young and he feels it shouldn't have come in based on what happened in the June 10, 2024 meeting.
Steel said Copeland only testified because "Judge Glanville held hands with Ms. Love and Ms. Hylton" and they coerced/pressured Copeland to testify. Steel claims Copeland was not fed during the weekend (June 7-10) he spent in jail while being held in contempt.
Whitaker said that claim that Copeland wasn't fed should have been raised by defense attorneys before. "Y'all decided you wanted the testimony between the 10th and the 12th, that was a strategic decision on your part because you believe things he said during that testimony.”
Steel argued that he simply followed the law by only excluding the testimony from June 12 at 3 p.m. on. Whitaker said she would have considered to redo Copeland's testimony if the defense would have argued for all of it to be excluded.
"The jury needs to know they want (Young ), they want Shannon Stillwell, they want these people so bad that they gave Copeland just full reign to go around Atlanta, do all these things and as long as you get up on the stand we're never going to prosecute you," Schardt said.
"This is not a trial about how the state handled Mr. Copeland or how Judge Glanville handled Mr. Copeland, this is a trial whether the state can prove that these defendants committed the acts they allege them to have committed," Whitaker said.
Whitaker said defense attorneys are welcomed to provide a list of questions that they should be able to be asked and agreed to look at them ahead of cross-examination.
Copeland's new attorney made it clear that any of his conversations with Copeland since August 13, 2024 would be off-the-table in cross-examination.
Copeland is back on the stand as the state continues to play the June 10, 2015 meeting, which should take the rest of the day.
