A federal jury cleared Lil Durk of every single count in September, and he still hasn’t spent a night outside a cell. Now the Chicago rapper is staring down another long wait, with his second federal trial officially moved to August 2027.
The trial had been set to open October 5, 2026. According to court reporting, U.S. District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald agreed Wednesday to push it back after prosecutors and defense attorneys hashed out scheduling.
This remaining case is a different animal from the one Durk just beat. It covers murder in aid of racketeering, known as VICAR, plus a related firearms charge, both of which were severed from the murder for hire case before the first trial so they could be tried on their own.
That first trial ended September 11 in Los Angeles. Jurors rejected the government’s claim that Durk, born Durk Banks, orchestrated the August 2022 shooting of Georgia rapper Quando Rondo at a gas station near the Beverly Center.
Quando Rondo, legal name Tyquian Bowman, survived the attack. His cousin Saviay’a Robinson, known as Lul Pab, did not.
Prosecutors framed the shooting as payback for the November 2020 killing of King Von, Durk’s close friend and fellow Chicago rapper.
Durk’s defense pushed back hard, arguing the government was trying to pin other people’s actions on him through his lyrics, his relationships and his role as the head of Only The Family.
After weeks of testimony and three days of deliberations, the jury sided with Durk completely. Co-defendants Deandre “OTF Dede” Wilson and David “Browneyez” Lindsey were also found not guilty of murder for hire, though both were convicted on stalking related counts that they’re now appealing.
The government’s position has clearly taken a hit, but prosecutors are pressing ahead with the severed charges.
Durk’s attorneys see things very differently, arguing that much of the conduct behind the VICAR case overlaps with what a jury already heard and threw out.
His legal team is expected to seek a dismissal of the remaining case outright. They’re also trying to get him released while it plays out.
Defense attorney Drew Findling didn’t mince words after the verdict. “Durk is not guilty of all charges,” he said. “The shackles must come off, and he must walk free.”
So far, that hasn’t happened. Durk has been in federal custody since his October 2024 arrest near Miami International Airport, when authorities accused him of trying to leave the country after associates were picked up in connection with the Los Angeles shooting.
His lawyers have long disputed that version of his travel plans, and several earlier bids for release went nowhere. The difference now is that the murder for hire, conspiracy and stalking charges at the heart of the original case are gone.
If bond is denied and the charges stand, Durk could end up spending close to three years locked up before the second case is resolved.
The next real fight comes November 4, when his attorneys walk back into federal court for a bond review hearing that could decide where he spends the long road to August 2027.
