Young Dolph was tragically murdered over four years ago in his hometown of Memphis, a long-running case that might finally reach its conclusion. According to FOX13 Memphis, the third and final murder suspect in this case, Cornelius Smith, is reportedly finalizing a plea deal with prosecutors.
Per the outlet, on Thursday (February 12), Smith appeared before the court, and they expected him to plead guilty due to reports of a plea deal coming into the picture. However, following the hearing, the court instead delayed the plea hearing to March 30 in order to iron out details of the plea deal. More specifically, these details refer to considerations on where the Tennessee Department of Corrections will house him.
The District Attorney's office reportedly confirmed the existence of a plea deal. Smith's attorney Michael Scholl and Shelby County Deputy District Attorney Paul Hagerman reportedly told the outlet that "they're ready for this chapter to be closed," per FOX13 Memphis' investigative reporter Kayla Solomon. After the March 30 hearing, purportedly for Cornelius Smith's guilty plea, the murder case of the Memphis MC will finally wrap up.
Young Dolph's Killer's Sentence
Previously, Cornelius Smith confessed to Young Dolph's murder and took the witness stand to testify against the other murder suspects in this case, Justin Johnson and Hernandez Govan. Johnson received a life sentence for murdering Young Dolph. Smith told the court that Big Jook, the late brother of Dolph's rap rival Yo Gotti, ordered him and Johnson to carry out a hit on Dolph. Meanwhile, the court acquitted Hernandez Govan of the murder, whom authorities accused of being the mastermind behind the hit.
Hernandez Govan faced scrutiny for this Young Dolph verdict, fighting with media figures and commentators who painted him as a murderer. This follows years of controversy and complex legal matters in this case, which Dolph's family has suffered through immensely.
Elsewhere in this case, Jemarcus Johnson and Shundale Barnett received charges of accessory to murder after the fact. With Cornelius Smith's plea deal finding resolution, this could be the final step to put this case in the books. We will see if anything changes the expected outcome.
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