YNW Melly's Attorneys Allege State Withheld Evidence About Lead Detective

YNW Melly wants his double murder case dismissed after they alleged the State Attorney's Office did something that may have tainted their upcoming retrial.

On Tuesday, September 26, Melly's legal team filed a motion to dismiss the charges against him after they accused prosecutors of withholding evidence against the lead detective on the "Mixed Personalities" rapper's case, Detective Mark Moretti. According to court documents obtained by AllHipHop, Melly's lawyers say the prosecutor hid the alleged evidence involving Moretti in an effort to ensure that he would remain a legitimate witness for the State for the beleaguered artist's upcoming retrial.

“The information provided by [Assistant State Attorney Kristine] Bradley indicates that Detective Moretti executed a search warrant outside of his jurisdiction and therefore, illegally,” YNW Melly’s lawyers argued. “It would have allowed the defense to question him as whether he committed a robbery or battery on [YNW Melly’s mother] Jamie King when he unlawfully took her phone. It would have shown that Detective Moretti was willing to lie as to who served the search warrant, an official court order, and it would have shown that Detective Moretti was willing to conspire with Deputy Gorel to obstruct justice and to create false filings. This was impeachment evidence favorable to the Defendant.”

Melly's lawyers think ASA Bradley purposed paused an internal affairs investigation and a potential criminal investigation against Moretti. They believe that there's more instances of prosecutorial misconduct.

“In essence, the State has intentionally done whatever it could to sanitize Detective Moretti’s actions so they would not be fodder for cross-examination during trial,” YNW Melly’s lawyers wrote. “Although the defense has only uncovered the tip of the iceberg in this matter, this tip is sufficient for this Court to determine the Defendant’s Due Process Rights, as guaranteed by the United States Constitution through the Fourteenth Amendment, and the parallel provisions of the Florida Constitution, that his fundamental rights have been violated and that the only remedy is dismissal and to let him free.”

YNW Melly has been in jail since he was arrested in 2019. His legal team has been trying to bail him out, but Broward County Circuit Judge John Murphy has denied the motion each time. Judge murphy also denied the latest motion on Wednesday and set the retrial to begin on October 9. If convicted, Melly may face the death penalty.