Run-DMC artist Jam Master Jay’s godson and a childhood buddy were found guilty of his murder in New York City over twenty years ago.
The singer was the target of Karl Jordan Jr, 40, and Ronald Washington, 59, at his recording studio, according to the trial, after they were dropped from a narcotics deal. On October 30, 2002, the hip-hop pioneer—real name Jason Mizell—was shot in the head in Queens while he was 37 years old.
Washington and Jordan will now spend 20 years behind bars. Following the guilty decision, Washington exclaimed at the jury, “Y’all just killed two innocent people,” according to the Associated Press. The fans of Jordan also started yelling and cursing the jury.
Mizell, buddies Joseph Simmons and Darryl McDaniels, who all grew up in the Queens borough’s Hollis neighborhood, in New York, founded Run-DMC.
The group rose to prominence as one of the most significant hip-hop acts of all time, and the 1980s saw a number of singles, including the Aerosmith duet Walk This Way and the hits It’s Tricky and It’s Like That.
As the group’s fame started to wane in the 1990s, Mizell moved to cocaine trafficking, despite the fact that they made anti-drug PSAs and publicly opposed drug use.
Defense attorney Ezra Spilke referred to the prosecution’s version of events as “one version of many” during the course of the four-week trial. It also contested the accuracy of eyewitness testimony after such a long period of time.
However, the prosecution presented forensic evidence, questioned numerous witnesses, and claimed that the accused was the victim of an “execution” that was “motivated by greed and by revenge”.
The murder went unresolved for years despite the two defendants’ suspicions, and it wasn’t until 2020 that federal prosecutors prosecuted them.
