• Atlanta rapper Young Thug was denied bond after an hourslong hearing in his Fulton County racketeering case. The artist, whose real name is Jeffery Williams, pleaded innocent during the hearing. But a Superior Court judge ruled Thursday that he must stay in jail, siding with prosecutors who raised concerns about witness intimidation ahead of trial. Judge Ural Glanville denied bond even though Williams' attorneys promised to hire a team of off-duty law enforcement officers to monitor his activity 24 hours a day during home confinement. Attorney Brian Steel said Williams stated he was also willing to wear an ankle monitor, undergo regular drug tests and surrender his cellphone and passport. All he would want, his attorney said, was access to an in-home recording studio. Prosecutors allege Williams is the leader of Young Slime Life, which they say is a criminal street gang responsible for much of Atlanta's violence in recent years. He is accused of conspiring to violate Georgia's criminal racketeering law, but the indictment outlines more serious crimes allegedly carried out by their associates, ranging from drug possession to murder. In addition to racketeering and gang charges, the 30-year-old Williams faces seven counts stemming from his arrest and the subsequent search of his Buckhead home. Warrants allege police found nearly 1,300 grams of marijuana, 31 bottles of Promethazine syrup and six guns, including a 9mm Glock equipped with an illegal "converter switch" that transforms the semi-automatic pistol into a "machine gun." Police also said they discovered 20 bottles of "YSL Slime Drink" containing THC. Steel denies the drugs and guns belonged to his client.
• Korean pop band BTS visited the White House on Tuesday to talk with President Joe Biden about combating the rise in hate crimes targeting Asian Americans. Band members J-Hope, RM, Suga, Jungkook, V, Jin and Jimin joined White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre at her briefing with reporters on the final day of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Jimin said the band had been "devastated by the recent surge" of crime and intolerance against Asian Americans that has persisted since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. "Equality begins when we open up and embrace all of our differences," Suga said through an interpreter. "We hope today is one step forward to understanding and respecting each and everyone as a valuable person," V added. They got a tour of the White House before the briefing and held a private meeting with the president in the Oval Office afterward. The White House briefing room was even more jammed than usual. The White House livestream attracted more than 230,000 viewers before the event even began.
Young Thug attends the 3rd Annual Diamond Ball at Cipriani Wall Street on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2017, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)