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The trial has begun for two men accused of killing Run-DMC legend Jam Master Jay at his recording studio more than 20 years ago, and the prosecution is wasting no time characterizing the defendants as callous, money-hungry criminals who let greed drive them to murder.
According to the Associated Press, during opening statements in Brooklyn federal court Monday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Miranda Gonzalez laid out the prosecution’s case, which claims Karl Jordan Jr., Jay’s godson, and the renowned DJ’s childhood friend, Ronald Washington, were motivated by “greed and revenge” stemming from being cut out of a drug deal when they ambushed Jay, born Jason William Mizell, at his studio and ruthlessly gunned him down in 2002.
“Each defendant was proud that they had taken down Jam Master Jay and got away with it,” Gonzalez said after telling jurors they would hear from eyewitnesses who were in the studio the night of the killing, and that the accused confessed to their involvement in the murder to others.
From AP:
Run-DMC famously espoused an anti-drug stance in lyrics and PSAs, but Gonzalez said that as the spotlight faded, Mizell turned to the drug trade, serving as a middleman to sellers and buyers across the country. A few simple calls, she said, could earn him “hundreds of thousands” of dollars.
Mizell had allegedly acquired 10 kilograms (22 pounds) of cocaine, which Washington, Jordan and others planned to distribute in the Baltimore area. But the dealer involved in the sale refused to work with Washington, cutting both defendants out of a potential $200,000 payday, she alleged.
Gonzalez said that in the days leading up to his death, Mizell acted troubled and carried a gun. On the night of Oct. 30, 2002, however, he barely had time to react when the two men and an accomplice, Jay Bryant, showed up at his studio in Jamaica, Queens. Bryant was charged last year after he was seen going into the building the night of the killing and his DNA was recovered at the scene. He will be tried separately.
Jordan and Washington, who were arrested and charged with Jay’s murder in 2020, have both pleaded not guilty. Ezra Spilke, an attorney representing Washington, argued that the prosecution’s case is so thin, that it’s being held together with “tape and glue.” Spilke claims they actually have “no clue” who killed the “Walk This Way” group member.
“This case is about 10 seconds, 21 years ago,” he said. “It’s a blink of an eye, a generation ago,” Spilke said. (The same could be said for virtually any shooting death that happened two decades ago, but OK.)
Washington and Jordan face a minimum of 20 years in prison if convicted. According to AP, the federal government will seek the death penalty if they’re found guilty.
