The Fulton County District Attorney’s Office has asked a judge to try two of rapper Young Thug’s co-defendants separately because their attorneys are pregnant.
On Tuesday, Feb. 14, the DA’s office filed a motion asking to have YSL gang members Kahlieff Adams and Tenquarius Mender separated from Young Thug’s criminal trial due to the pregnancies, the Atlanta-Journal Constitution reports.
The trial is expected to last for 6 months. The DA’s Office wants to avoid delaying the trial while both women give birth and take maternity leave.
Mender’s attorney Nicole Fegan (left), who fell pregnant unexpectedly after the trial began, was insulted by the language in the motion, which she claims paints pregnancy as a “disability”.
She also objected to the request to try her client separately.
“I don’t think pregnancy should be treated as a disease or a disability,” Fegan said. “I think at this point, trying them separately would be expensive and potentially prejudicial because the jury selection process has already started. We’ve been on this case since May, and in May I wasn’t pregnant.”
“If Rihanna can do it, I’m sure that we can both adequately represent our clients,” she said, referring to singer Rihanna performing in the Super Bowl while pregnant.
Fegan said the state’s motion makes it appear that Fani Willis is unsympathetic to expectant attorneys, “who already face challenges in a male-dominated career.”
Adams’ attorney Teombre Calland, whose pregnancy was also unforeseen, agreed with Fegan. Neither woman wants separate trials.
Young Thug, fellow rapper Gunna and 26 others were indicted on RICO gang charges in May 2022.
Gunna was released from jail after accepting a plea deal and admitting YSL is a street gang that needs to be eliminated.
