YNW Melly Files Lawsuit Against Prison Over 'Cruel' Treatment, Alleges He’s Experienced ‘Isolation’

YNW Melly has filed a lawsuit against the Broward Sheriff's Office for subjecting him to "cruel" treatment while behind bars.

NBC Miami reports that the 25-year-old rapper, who is currently awaiting trial on two charges of premeditated first-degree murder, has alleged that he is being "illegally detained under conditions that violate the First, Fifth, Sixth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution." The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the rapper by his attorney Michael Pizzi Jr., who announced the news on Monday, November 4.

Melly's legal team has alleged that he has not been able to speak with his family in three years and has experienced "debilitating isolation" as a result. "His cruel treatment by the Broward Detention authorities warrants his immediate release from pretrial detention since the detaining authorities have shown such a callous disregard for his human dignity Right to Counsel," reads the lawsuit.

The rapper most recently appeared in court in July, during which his double murder retrial was announced for September 10, 2025. He will also appear in court for a tampering case on December 5, 2024. Melly has been accused of orchestrating the murder of two of his friends and collaborators, Chris 'YNW Juvy' Thomas and Anthony 'YNW Sakchaser' Williams, in 2018. Prosecutors have accused him of staging the double murder to look like a drive-by shooting.

In a statement shared during the press conference announcing the lawsuit, the rapper's mother, Jamie King, said that she will continue to fight for her son. "Jamell, if you watch this today, I just want you to know that I love you. I'm going to continue fighting for you and I just want to know that you're okay," she said, per NBC Miami. "I just want to hear your voice and see your face. And, I'm going to get you home. ... It's heartbreaking. Some days I don't know if he's alive in there. I don't know if something's happened to him in there. I have no communication whatsoever."

Earlier this year, Melly's case received renewed interest after Kendrick Lamar referenced the rapper on his Drake diss "Euphoria."