FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Detective Mark Moretti was the prosecution’s final witness before the state rested on Monday afternoon, the 15th day of Florida rapper YNW Melly’s murder trial in Broward County.
Moretti, a detective with the Miramar Police Department, accused Jamell “Melly” Demons of killing Christopher “Juvy” Thomas Jr. and Anthony “Sakchaser” Williams over four years ago.
Attorney David Howard, who is representing Demons, filed a motion for a mistrial since the state’s circumstantial case based on an incomplete investigation was forcing the jury to speculate.
“The DNA evidence is inconclusive, the cell tower evidence ... it’s not accurate and when it’s accurate is not specific,” Howard said.
Attorney Stuart Adelstein, who is defending Demons, confronted Moretti about what he said were holes in his investigation into the murders of the YNW Collective rappers on Oct. 26, 2018.
The defense argued Moretti did not do enough to get more surveillance video in the case, did not interview all of the possible suspects involved, and he did not have another party authenticate the cell phone data.
The prosecution cites a direct message on Instagram after the fatal shooting to user Peezy Gambino who asked Demons, “Are you ok?” Demons allegedly responded, “I did that.” He also added, “Shhhh.”
Adelstein said that couldn’t have been Demons since he usually writes, “dat” — not “that.” Assistant State Attorney Kristine Bradley later countered with several examples of Demons using “that.”
The defense argued that since the rappers shared phones there was no way for Moretti to even know if Demons had been the author of that response. He also the message was not written in Demons’s style.
Moretti and Bradley accused Demons of shooting Thomas and Williams inside a Jeep Compass, and he and his friend Cortlen “Bortlen” Henry of staging a drive-by shooting to cover up the murders.
If the jury finds Demons guilty, he could be sentenced to the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole. Broward Circuit Judge John Murphy is presiding over the case. The court is in recess until 9 a.m., on Tuesday when Murphy expects defense attorneys to call their first witness.
INTERACTIVE GRAPHIC
TRIAL TIMELINE
The first week of trial: Opening statements were on June 12
The second week of trial: Prosecution’s witnesses continue to testify
The third week of trial: Testimony continues
The court is in recess
The fourth week of the trial: Testimony continues