The YSL Case: YSL Members Shank Fellow Inmate As Jury Selection Stalls

Christian Eppinger, Rodalius Ryan, and Damone Blalock, defendants in the blockbuster Fulton County trial of Young Thug and the alleged “Young Slime Life” criminal organization, have been accused of stabbing a fellow inmate at the county jail, where they are being held. At the same time, the jury is selected for their trial.

On Tuesday night, deputies responded to a commotion surrounding inmate Demarcus Bussey. When the deputies attempted to disperse the crowd, Eppinger allegedly stabbed Bussey in the upper left chest with a handmade “shank.” Bussey was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital for treatment.

Eppinger and Ryan have been charged with aggravated assault, and Blalock has been charged with misdemeanor battery in connection with this incident. All three men have also been accused of misdemeanor willful obstruction of a law enforcement officer.

Eppinger has been charged with shooting an Atlanta police officer six times in February 2022 when the officer attempted to serve an arrest warrant on him. Ryan and Blalock are both serving life in prison for separate murders.

Ryan has already been charged in two additional incidents that have delayed the jury selection. Last week he was accused of spitting on a Fulton County investigator while being driven from the jail to the courthouse. His counsel after that filed a complaint alleging the use of excessive force on Ryan at the time of this incident, claiming he was punched in the head and dragged out of the van. Ryan and Blalock have also been charged separately with unauthorized possession of contraband by an inmate, and Blalock was charged with giving an inmate a prohibited item.

After more than a month of jury selection in this large and unwieldy case, not a single juror has yet been seated.   This is primarily because the trial is scheduled to last six to nine months, and virtually every potential juror will experience legitimate hardship is made to serve. However, the frequent incidents involving the YSL defendants are not helping move the process along.