Widner Degruy III, the Young Money rapper known as Flow, will face trial this week in a 2015 shooting that killed two brothers in New Orleans East.
Degruy, 27, is charged with two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of Kendred and Kendrick "Muddycuppy" Bishop, who were gunned down inside a black Kia sedan in the 4800 block of Bright Drive on May 25, 2015.
Before jury selection began Monday, Degruy's defense attorney, Gary Wainwright, filed a motion to quash his client's indictment based on his contention prosecutors violated grand jury secrecy laws when they allowed an attorney for one of his co-defendants to be present during a meeting. He called Degruy's indictment "a product of an unlawful grand jury proceeding."
Criminal District Judge Tracey Flemings-Davillier denied his motion.
A grand jury indicted Degruy, Jonathan Evans, Jamya Brady and Chantell Edwards Sept. 25, 2015, in connection with the shootings.
Degruy and Evans were indicted on two counts each of second-degree murder, conspiracy to commit second-degree murder, obstruction of justice and conspiracy to obstruct justice.
Brady was indicted on obstruction of justice and conspiracy to obstruct justice charges, and Edwards was indicted on an accessory to second-degree murder charge. Both have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.
Evans, who had a plea deal in place when he testified before a grand jury, pleaded guilty one month later to a reduced count of manslaughter, and to the other crimes he was charged with. He was sentenced to 20 years at hard labor in the Department of Corrections, and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors as the Bishop brothers' murder case moved through the court system.
Evans is expected to testify against Degruy.
2 men shot to death in quiet New Orleans East neighborhood, residents say
In arguing for Degruy's indictment to be quashed, Wainwright said Evans' attorney should not have been present when the grand jury met in September 2015 because Evans was not the target of the investigation. By law, he said, a person who is the target of an investigation may have an attorney present.
Wainwright argued because Evans already had a deal in place when he testified, he was an “ordinary witness” and was not allowed to have an attorney there. Wainwright further argued Evans wasn’t a target of the investigation because prosecutors asked the attorney to leave the room before Evans testified.
Assistant District Attorneys Irena Zajickova and Alex Calenda disagreed with Wainwright. Zajickova said Evans was the target of the investigation, which was supported by the fact that the grand jury indicted him in the murder after hearing him testify.
Calenda said the details of Evans’ plea were revealed to the grand jury. He also noted a judge had not yet accepted Evans’ plea, nor had he been sentenced when he testified.
Flemings-Davillier said she did not see how Wainwright's argument related to his client, and denied his motion.
Police have said they identified Degruy as a suspect after they found his cell phone at the shooting scene.
They later connected him to the shooting after reviewing multiple pieces of surveillance footage from the area, according to the warrant.
Evans was named a suspect through Crimestoppers tips after police released surveillance images of the suspects.
Degruy already has pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice in the case, but has not yet been sentenced. Wainwright said after his plea in February Degruy took responsibility for his role in the crime.
Wainwright said Evans was the gunman, and Degruy "really made a horrible mistake when he did not immediately tell law enforcement what he knew about the murder of his friend and his friend's brother."
The day the brothers were killed, Degruy posted a tribute to Kendrick Bishop on his Instagram page.
Jail records show Degruy has been in jail since his September 2015 arrest in connection with the shootings.
via nola.comhttps://www.nola.com
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