Demons, who performs as the rapper YNW Melly, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the Oct. 26, 2018 shooting deaths of Anthony Williams and Christopher Thomas Jr. His first trial ended in a mistrial in 2023 when the jury deadlocked. His retrial is set to begin Jan. 6, 2027.
On Oct. 13, 2026, Broward Circuit Judge Martin S. Fein issued administrative orders for the retrial, which is set to begin Jan. 6, 2027. He ordered 500 prospective jurors summoned, barred the public from the courtroom during jury selection and allowed it to be livestreamed to a separate courtroom, citing "numerous incidents of inappropriate contact" between prospective jurors and members of the public during the first trial.3 On Oct. 9, the defense moved to suppress Instagram, Snapchat, Google and iPhone evidence obtained through search warrants issued in March 2024, arguing that the warrant affidavit contained intentional misstatements and omissions.3 Earlier, on May 6, 2026, Fein denied Demons bond for the third time since the mistrial.45
Demons has not been convicted. His 2023 trial ended without a verdict. Everything in this section is an allegation by prosecutors or police, testimony at that trial, or a pretrial ruling. Testimony is evidence a jury heard, not a finding, and the jury did not reach one.16
Christopher Thomas Jr., 19, and Anthony Williams, 21, were shot multiple times on Oct. 26, 2018, and were pronounced dead at Memorial Hospital Miramar.2423 Both were aspiring rappers and friends of Demons, and both were part of the YNW collective.2316 Demons posted on social media the day after the shooting, mourning them.23
Cortlen Henry, also a member of the collective, drove the two men to the hospital, according to police.2411 In a recorded statement to investigators shown at trial, Henry said Thomas and Williams were victims of a drive-by shooting and that he was unharmed: “I am driving, ducking for my life, trying to make sure I don’t get hit.”18 Investigators said his account did not match their findings.24
Prosecutors allege that Demons shot Williams and Thomas while all three were inside a Jeep driven by Henry after a recording session in Fort Lauderdale.16 They allege that Demons and Henry then drove the bodies to an area near the Everglades and fired at the rear and passenger sides of the Jeep from outside to make it look like a drive-by shooting.16 Police alleged that Demons and Henry staged the drive-by in Miramar and claimed to be victims.11 Prosecutors say ballistics tests show the shots were fired from inside the Jeep.16
In April 2019, the Broward State Attorney’s Office filed notice that it would seek the death penalty.23 Complex reported that the notice cited four aggravating factors, including that the killings were committed for “pecuniary gain” and that Demons is a “criminal gang member.”22 Prosecutors did not seek death against Henry, according to NBC News.24
Henry was arrested on Feb. 12, 2019, and charged with two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of accessory after the fact.22 Demons surrendered the next day and was charged with two counts of first-degree murder.2225 A judge ordered him held without bond and ordered the two men to have no contact.22 He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in March 2019.25 His lawyer at the time, Bradford Cohen, said his client was “not guilty.”23
Jury selection began April 10, 2023, and opening statements were given June 12 before Broward Circuit Judge John Murphy III.2018 Prosecutor Kristine Bradley told jurors in her opening that a fellow rapper picked Demons up after the killings, Complex reported.21
A Broward Sheriff’s Office firearms expert testified that a .40-caliber gun was involved and that two of the projectiles came from one firearm; under defense questioning, he said there could have been more than one weapon.19 Detectives never found the gun.19 A Miramar police sergeant testified that the shots came from inside the car, not from a drive-by, according to Complex.21 Jurors saw surveillance video of Henry at the hospital, in the driver’s seat of the Jeep, with the two men’s bodies inside.18 A forensic scientist testified that Henry had gunshot residue on his hands.18 Prosecutors also presented text messages among people they identified as gang members, which a detective testified about.21 On June 20, Murphy denied a defense motion for a mistrial.21
In his opening, defense attorney David Howard pointed to Henry: he said Henry was in the driver’s seat, arrived at the hospital with a change of clothes and residue on his hands, and lied about where and how the shooting happened and about not having a phone.18 The defense accused detectives of fabricating the case once they realized a known rapper was involved.19
In closing arguments on July 20, prosecutors told jurors the fatal shots came “by every account, from the seat where YNW Melly was sitting,” and described the shooting as part of a gang action.17 The defense argued that the gun was never recovered, that Demons had no apparent motive, and that a gang motive was not credible because he and the victims were close friends.1716
The 12 jurors deliberated for three days. Murphy twice asked them to keep deliberating after they said they were deadlocked, and declared a mistrial when they returned a third time on July 22, 2023.16 Attorneys said one juror who favored Demons refused to convict and persuaded two others to vote not guilty, NBC 6 reported.8 No vote count was announced in court in the sources reviewed.16
Jury selection for a retrial began in late 2023.14 In October 2023, Murphy removed Bradley from the case after the defense said it intended to call her as a witness; the dispute arose from a prosecutor’s allegation that a Miramar police detective had asked a sheriff’s deputy to lie while executing a search warrant for the phone of Demons’ mother.14 An internal-affairs memo later closed the mother’s complaint against the detective, finding the prosecutor’s claims contradicted the deputy’s sworn statement.14 Prosecutor Alixandra Buckelew took over the case.14 Prosecutors also asked to introduce 58 of Demons’ songs and their album covers at the retrial, the Miami Herald reported.14
In a December 2023 omnibus order covering more than a dozen warrants in the murder case and a related witness-tampering case, Murphy found the warrants for Demons’ digital storage and social-media accounts overbroad.115 He severed the improper portions and limited them to the period around the killings; for a cloud account tied to Demons’ iPhone, he limited the warrant to the time of the shooting and a few hours before and after.1 He also rejected the testimony of the state’s main witness on inevitable discovery as “rank speculation.”1 The state appealed.15
According to the appeals court, police had reason to believe the occupants of the vehicle were on the phone during the shooting; Demons had called his mother just after the shooting, and his phone was communicating with cell towers around that time.1 On Aug. 8, 2025, the Fourth District Court of Appeal granted the state a stay, and the September 2025 retrial date was dropped.12 Defense attorney Raven Liberty said at the time that the team was “disappointed that today’s hearing was yet another win for the State of Florida.”13
On Oct. 15, 2025, the Fourth District affirmed in an opinion by Judge Gross. It held that Florida law permits a court to sever the overbroad parts of a warrant, found no abuse of discretion in narrowing the warrants’ time frames, and held that the trial court was entitled to reject the state’s inevitable-discovery witness.1 In a companion appeal from the witness-tampering case, the court affirmed without a written opinion.2 Defense attorney Carey Haughwout said the defense was pleased the court recognized “the unconstitutional actions of law enforcement.”9
Henry was to go on trial Sept. 10, 2025.11 On Sept. 9, he pleaded no contest to accessory after the fact; prosecutors dropped the two murder charges, and Judge Fein adjudicated him guilty and sentenced him to 10 years in prison followed by six years of probation.11 Later NBC 6 and Rolling Stone reports describe the sentence as covering witness tampering as well as accessory after the fact.107 The State Attorney’s Office said Henry must give a sworn statement about his role; his lawyer, Joe Nascimento, said Henry “hasn’t really admitted anything” and that he did not expect him to be called as a witness at Demons’ retrial.11
In a separate case filed after the mistrial, prosecutors charged Demons, Henry and a jail inmate with using code words and fake names to communicate outside the jail in an effort to keep Demons’ former girlfriend from testifying.14 Demons pleaded not guilty.15 On Jan. 20, 2026, a day before that trial was to begin, prosecutors dropped the four charges: tampering with a witness, directing the activities of a criminal gang, criminal solicitation to commit murder, and conspiracy to tamper with a witness in a capital case.87 A prosecution spokesman had no immediate comment; Demons’ lawyers said “it became immediately apparent to us that no crimes had occurred.”7
Demons has been held without bond since February 2019.2212 After an April 30, 2026 evidentiary hearing, Fein denied bond in a 39-page order filed May 6, finding that “the proof of guilt is evident and the presumption of guilt is great” and that “the State’s evidence is arguably sufficient to convict.”4 The order incorporated earlier bond denials from 2023 and 2025, but Fein wrote that the court “does not make any findings that the Defendant has been affiliated with violent gangs,” declining to adopt that finding from the 2023 order.4 The defense had proposed a home in Broward County with 24-hour supervision, no social media and limited movement.5
On Sept. 24, 2025, Fein allowed Demons to replace his legal team with Drew Findling and Carey Haughwout; court papers cited a conflict of interest involving a Broward Sheriff’s Office investigation of a member of the former team.10 The retrial is set for Jan. 6, 2027.103 On Oct. 13, 2026, Fein ordered 500 prospective jurors summoned, screened in groups of 50 toward a panel of 60, with the public watching jury selection by livestream from a separate courtroom and with tighter security.3 Prosecutors have not announced any change to the death-penalty notice in the sources reviewed; NBC 6 reported in May 2026 that he could face the death penalty if convicted.5 Under Florida law since 2023, a jury vote of 8 to 4 is enough to recommend death, the Miami Herald reported.14
Demons is from Gifford, in Indian River County, Florida, according to TCPalm.15 He was 19 when he was charged in 2019 and 26 in January 2026.247 No court testimony or on-record statement about his family life or schooling was found in the sources reviewed.
Thomas, Williams, Henry and Demons were part of the YNW collective.1615 Demons’ song “Murder on My Mind” was released on SoundCloud in 2017 and peaked at No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100, XXL reported.25 He had his breakout in 2017 and worked with Kanye West on “Mixed Personalities,” released in January 2019, about a month before his arrest, the Associated Press reported.16
No testimony, finding or on-record statement about Demons’ mental health was found in the sources reviewed.
Demons has been held in the Broward County jail since his February 2019 surrender.2512 On March 31, 2026, he refused to appear for a status hearing, NBC 6 reported.6 No public statement by Demons about the case since his arrest was found in the sources reviewed, other than his February 2019 social-media post saying he had “lost my two brothers by violence.”24
Prosecutors allege Demons shot Williams and Thomas from inside a Jeep driven by Cortlen Henry, then helped stage a drive-by shooting, firing at the outside of the Jeep; they say ballistics show the shots came from inside the vehicle.16 At the first trial they told jurors the shots came, "by every account, from the seat where YNW Melly was sitting," and described the killings as part of a gang action.17 The state appealed the exclusion of much of its digital evidence and lost.1
At the first trial, the defense argued there was no apparent motive, that the gun was never recovered, and that a gang motive made no sense because Demons and the victims were close friends.16 It pointed to Henry, telling jurors he was in the driver's seat and had gunshot residue on his hands, and accused detectives of building the case once they realized a known rapper was involved.1819 His current lawyers, Drew Findling and Carey Haughwout, said after the May 2026 bond ruling: "The State failed to secure a conviction once, and we remain confident it will fail again."5
Anthony Williams and Christopher Thomas Jr. are shot and are pronounced dead at Memorial Hospital Miramar.23
Demons surrenders and is charged with two counts of first-degree murder; Henry had been arrested the day before.22
The Broward State Attorney's Office files notice that it will seek the death penalty.23
Opening statements begin in Demons' trial before Judge John Murphy III.18
The jury deadlocks after three days of deliberations, and Murphy declares a mistrial.16
Murphy rules that the state's digital evidence must be narrowed to the period around the killings; the state appeals.151
The Fourth District Court of Appeal grants the state a stay, and the September 2025 retrial is postponed to January 2027.12
Henry pleads no contest to accessory after the fact; the murder charges against him are dropped and he is sentenced to 10 years.11
The Fourth District Court of Appeal affirms Murphy's evidence ruling.1
Prosecutors drop the witness-tampering-case charges against Demons a day before that trial was to begin.87
Fein denies bond after an April 30 evidentiary hearing.4
Fein orders 500 prospective jurors summoned and allows jury selection to be livestreamed.3
A court appearance was set for Oct. 27, 2026, according to XXL; no report of its outcome was found in the sources reviewed.3 The defense's Oct. 9 motion to suppress social-media, Google and iPhone evidence is pending.3 The retrial is set to begin Jan. 6, 2027, with jury selection from a pool of 500 summoned jurors.34