Judge moves case of teen rapper who shot NYPD cop to FAMILY COURT!
A Bronx judge has ruled to move the case of 16-year-old drill rapper Camrin 'C Blu' Williams, who is accused of shooting an NYPD cop, from an adult criminal court to family court on grounds that the police were illegally searching him when his gun accidentally went off.
On January 18, 2022, Camrin 'C Blu' Williams, who is also a suspected gang member of the Crips, shot Officer Kaseem Pennant as he was being searched. He was charged with criminal possession of a weapon, second-degree assault, and other weapons charges. He was initially charged as an adult and pleaded not guilty to the weapons and assault counts.
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During a hearing on Tuesday, March 8, Bronx Supreme Court Justice Naita Semaj said that while Williams possessed an illegal gun, police officers had no apparent reason to search him. As reported by New York Daily News, she ruled, "There was absolutely zero reason for any of those officers to approach this individual. They approached him, they detained him, they searched him, and no officer even bothered to come up with a halfway legitimate reason for any of that."
Judge Semaj also said that the video which was shown in court proved that Williams went out of his way to cooperate with the police by keeping his hands up, recording what was happening on his phone as proof, and answering officers' questions.
"While there is no disputing the fact that Mr. Williams had a gun on him that night, he literally does everything you tell your child to do when they’re approached by cops," Semaj said. The judge added that the police illegally searched the teen, and that his gun was discharged when Officer Pennant and another officer, Taulant Gjonbalaj, grabbed him. Semaj then turned to officer Gjonbalaj, claiming that his testimony about the incident was inconsistent with both the video and his fellow officer's testimony.
Police said they responded to the Belmont section of The Bronx that night after reports of unrest and encountered Williams, who, they said, refused to comply with their orders to remove his hands from his pockets. He began fighting with one of the officers and, during the commotion, accidentally shot Officer Pennant. The officer was rushed to the hospital and was released hours later. Meanwhile, Williams too was injured in the incident.
Nine days after his arrest, Williams, who is also a rapper and has signed a contract with Interscope Records, bailed himself out with the help of his label by paying a sum of $250,000.
This is not the first time Williams is under the court's radar. He was put on probation following a gun possession arrest in 2020, when he was just 14 years old.
As of now, Williams' case will be prosecuted by the Law Department in juvenile court and will be decided by a judge, rather than by a jury of his peers. After leaving court with his mother on Tuesday, Williams expressed his relief at the outcome of the hearing on his Instagram Stories, writing, "great day at court for us. god is great...the countdown continues."