Rapper Lil Durk has been found not guilty on all five counts in his federal murder-for-hire trial in Los Angeles, handing the Chicago rapper a major legal victory.
A jury delivered the verdict on Friday, Sept. 11, after three days of deliberations. Durk, whose real name is Durk Banks, had been accused of orchestrating a 2022 shooting that killed Saviay’a “Lul Pab” Robinson, a cousin of Quando Rondo.
Much of the attention following the verdict turned to Durk’s lawyer, Brian Steel, who was celebrated by fans as the “MVP” after successfully defending the rapper.
Fans swarmed Steel as he left the courtroom and later flooded social media with praise, with some calling him one of the greatest lawyers of all time. One commenter described his resume as “legendary,” while another praised him for securing the acquittal despite the evidence presented during the trial.
Steel had attacked the credibility of the government’s cooperating witnesses during his closing argument, arguing that they had reasons to implicate Durk. He also suggested an alternative theory that cooperating witness Kavon “OTF Vonnie” Grant, King Von’s cousin, was the mastermind behind the shooting.
Prosecutors had alleged that Durk ordered the attack as retaliation for the 2020 killing of fellow rapper King Von, claiming he “had his shooters on speed dial.”
Although Durk was acquitted of the five charges, he will remain behind bars. His co-defendants, Deandre Wilson and David Lindsay, were convicted of stalking and stalking conspiracy charges but acquitted of the other counts.
Durk is also scheduled to face a second trial on related racketeering charges, with proceedings set to begin on Oct. 5.
