{"id":999499,"date":"2026-08-14T03:51:13","date_gmt":"2026-08-14T03:51:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/999499\/"},"modified":"2026-08-14T03:51:13","modified_gmt":"2026-08-14T03:51:13","slug":"lil-durk-trial-judge-rules-pissed-me-off-video-can-be-shown-to-jury","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/999499\/","title":{"rendered":"Lil Durk Trial: Judge Rules \u2018Pissed Me Off\u2019 Video Can Be Shown to Jury"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tWith a week to go before the start of Lil Durk<\/a>\u2019s murder-for-hire trial in Los Angeles, a federal judge ruled Thursday that the rapper\u2019s video and lyrics for his hit single \u201cPissed Me Off\u201d can be used as evidence.<\/p>\n

\n\tAt a morning hearing, U.S. District Judge Michael Fitzgerald granted prosecutors\u2019 request to admit the video and lyrics over the objection of Durk\u2019s defense. In their motion, prosecutors argued the song shows Durk\u2019s \u201cresolve to avenge\u201d the death of his friend and prot\u00e9g\u00e9, Dayvon \u201cKing Von\u201d Bennett. <\/p>\n

\n\tAccording to prosecutors, Durk blamed fellow rapper Quando Rondo, born Tyquian Terrel Bowman, for Bennett\u2019s death and was seeking retribution when he allegedly orchestrated a hit on Bowman that instead killed bystander Saviay\u2019a \u201cLul Pab\u201d Robinson in Los Angeles four years ago. Durk, whose legal name is Durk Banks, denies any involvement in Robinson\u2019s death.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cPissed Me Off,\u201d released in 2021, was the lead single on Banks\u2019 seventh studio album, 7220. On the track, Banks raps, \u201cGrab a gun if you ain\u2019t with it, put up money for a gun. Put up money for a hot car, put up money for a bond. I don\u2019t see you on the regular, but I see you screamin\u2019, \u2018Von.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tProsecutors allege the lyrics show Banks\u2019 intent to pay for a firearm and vehicle to retaliate for King Von\u2019s death. But at the Thursday hearing, Banks\u2019 defense lawyer Marissa Goldberg said showing the video at trial could create \u201cso much risk of prejudice and confusion.\u201d She said the song is largely about Banks\u2019 slain older brother, Dontay \u201cDThang\u201d Banks Jr., with its opening lyrics stating, \u201cLong live DThang.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWith Banks watching from the defense table, Goldberg urged the court to exclude the song and video, noting that the judge previously severed recently filed charges accusing Banks of racketeering and involvement in a 2022 Chicago killing. Those charges are set for a later trial. Goldberg said the severed counts involve \u201csome sort of alleged get-back for the murder of Mr. Banks\u2019 brother,\u201d so allowing the video at the upcoming trial would effectively \u201cinject\u201d evidence back into the current proceeding that \u201cthe court has already ruled should not come into this case.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s just inappropriate, and the court has already noted there are areas of danger here,\u201d she argued. She claimed prosecutors misunderstood the song, and it would be difficult to set the record straight simply by cross-examining a government expert.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe judge then asked prosecutors how they intended to introduce the video. They told the judge a cooperating witness somehow involved in the Los Angeles shooting at the center of the case was present when \u201cPissed Me Off\u201d was filmed and would offer his interpretations of the lyrics and video. The judge then agreed to allow the video at the trial, which is set to start with jury selection on Aug. 20.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI understand the defense sees [the song] as really an in-memoriam for a number of people who were lost to Mr. Banks, including his own brother, and of course, the defense will be able to bring that out,\u201d Judge Fitzgerald said from the bench. \u201cI will certainly consider an appropriate limiting instruction, if one is suggested, and of course on cross-examination the defense may bring out that many of the references in fact are referring to Mr. Banks\u2019 brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBanks, 33, had pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit murder for hire and denies he paid the gunmen who allegedly stalked Bowman and ambushed him at a gas station near the Beverly Center on Aug. 19, 2022. Robinson was traveling with Bowman at the time and was struck in the crossfire of at least 18 rounds fired from multiple weapons, including a machine gun, authorities said. \u00a0<\/p>\n

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\n\tJudge Fitzgerald previously ruled that lyrics from Banks\u2019 song \u201cHanging With Wolves\u201d would be barred at the upcoming trial. In the track, Banks raps, \u201cI\u2019m the type to hop on a flight with a warrant, you gotta catch me.\u201d Prosecutors claimed the line bolstered their theory that Banks was attempting to flee the country\u00a0at the time of his arrest<\/a>. Banks disputed the claim.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cParticular lyrics [sought] to bolster the government\u2019s argument that there was an intention to flee \u2014 which is traditionally viewed as consciousness of guilt \u2014 will be excluded because they really are just sheer propensity,\u201d Fitzgerald ruled in February<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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\n\tFitzgerald later ruled that other lyrics would be allowed in, including from the song, \u201cWho Want Smoke??\u201d In that track, Banks raps, \u201cThey be on my page like \u2018Slide for Von\u2019, I know they trollin\u2019 me \u2026 Got it back in blood, y\u2019all just don\u2019t know that\u2019s how it \u2019posed to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tIn another ruling Thursday, Judge Fitzgerald said that while lawyers in the case will be allowed to see the names of prospective jurors during jury selection, they will not be allowed to share the names with the defendants. Judge Fitzgerald said the proposed three-week trial could begin with opening statements as early as the afternoon of Friday, Aug. 21.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With a week to go before the start of Lil Durk\u2019s murder-for-hire trial in Los Angeles, a federal…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":999500,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[29],"tags":[11368,69714,171,147352,975,67,132,68],"class_list":["post-999499","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-controversy","tag-courts-and-crime","tag-entertainment","tag-lil-durk","tag-music","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-us"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/117091833506474574","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/999499","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=999499"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/999499\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/999500"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=999499"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=999499"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=999499"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}