The godson and childhood friend of Run DMC‘s Jam Master Jay have been convicted of his murder over two decades after it took place.
The artist, whose real name was Jason Mizell, was shot in the head at the age of 37 in Queens in 2002.
Karl Jordan Jr and Ronald Washington targeted the artist at his recording studio in New York after they were cut out of a drug deal allegedly said to be worth $200,000, the court heard. They were first charged with murder back in 2020 and had initially plead not guilty.
Jordan and Washington now face at least 20 years in prison.
The murder trial began on January 30, with the court hearing that the Run-DMC legend’s killing was motivated by greed and revenge related to a drug deal row.
An eyewitness who was at the scene of the shooting also appeared in court during the trial, identifying a suspect and recalling the Run-DMC star’s last moments.
Jordan and Washington’s defence lawyer had notably invoked Harry Potter in the closing statements of the trial last week.
As reported by Courthouse News, Jordan and Washington’s defence attorneys have pointed to evidence that they claim implies a third person as a suspect in Mizell’s murder, Jay Bryant.
According to the prosecutors’ argument, Bryant was present simply to let Jordan and Washington into the building on the day of the murder before leaving. The defence, however, suggest that if that were the case, then security monitors for the building would have shown Jordan and Washington waiting outside the building to be let in.
“Maybe they were out there,” said Susan Kellman, Washington’s attorney. “And maybe they borrowed Harry Potter’s invisibility cloak.” It is reported that this comment drew a laugh in the court gallery.
Early in the trial, a US judge ruled that lyrics written by the accused couldn’t be used in the legal proceedings.
Prosecutors wanted to use the lyrics: “We aim for the head, no body shots, and we stick around just to see the body drop.”
As Jam Master Jay – real name Jason Mizell – was shot in the head, they argued the lyrics “speaks directly to the issues in the case.”
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