SUSPECTS IN KILLING OF JAM MASTER JAY FACE TRIAL
Jam Master Jay, the pioneering DJ for Run-DMC, was fatally shot at his Jamaica, Queens, recording studio in 2002. More than 20 years later, the trial of his suspected killers—Karl Jordan Jr. and Ronald Washington—is finally underway.
At a Brooklyn federal courthouse on Wednesday (1/31), eyewitness Uriel Rincon pointed across the room and identified Jordan, Jay's godson, as the shooter.
Rincon told jurors that Jay (born Jason William Mizell) was in the studio’s lounge area playing a football video game and talking business with him and another person when Jordan arrived. "'He kind of walked directly to Jay and gave, like, half a handshake, with an arm,'" Rincon testified, according to the Associated Press. "'And at the same time, that’s when I hear a couple of shots. And then I see Jay just fall.'" Rincon, who realized he'd also been shot, continued, "'I’m trying to tend to my wound, and at the same time, I’m trying to give Jay attention—asking him: Is he OK? Can he talk? ...[And] he is just not responding.'"
The defense pointed out that Rincon had told investigators he "'hadn't quite seen'" and "'couldn’t identify the gunman'" when the shooting took place. He explained that he'd "'omitted the truth'" out of fear for his safety. Per the AP, "He finally named Jordan and Washington to authorities around 2017... When asked why he finally did so, Rincon said he thought of Mizell’s surviving family... 'Are you still scared today?' asked Mark DeMarco, a lawyer for Jordan. 'Of course,' Rincon said."
"Prosecutors say the two [suspects] had been planning a cocaine deal with the rap star and killed him because they were about to get cut out," the AP further reported. The trial is expected to last a month. A third suspect, Jay Bryant, will be tried later this year.
Peacock's three-episode docuseries Kings From Queens: A Run-DMC Story highlights the trio's journey to superstardom. Featuring interviews with Ice Cube, LL COOL J, Questlove, Cheryl "Salt" James, Eminem, the Beastie Boys, Ice-T, Chuck D and, of course, Rev Run and DMC, it becomes available to stream here tomorrow (2/1).
