Judge overturns conviction in 2002 murder of Run-DMC founder DJ Jam Master Jay.A judge in the United States has overturned the murder conviction of one of two men found guilty of murdering pioneering rap star Jam Master Jay in 2002, ruling that prosecutors had failed to satisfactorily prove their case.Ronald Washington and Karl Jordan Jr, the alleged shooter, were found guilty on all counts and convicted of murdering the rapper, whose legal name was Jason Mizell and who rose to fame as a producer and founding member of the 1980s hip-hop group Run-DMC.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listMizell and his Run-DMC bandmates helped usher rap into the music mainstream in the 1980s with such hits as It’s Tricky and a cover of Aerosmith’s Walk This Way off the best-selling 1986 album Raising Hell.On Friday, Judge LaShann DeArcy Hall granted a rare judgement of acquittal for Jordan, but denied a similar request for co-defendant Washington.Jordan, the godson of Mizell, and Washington, a longtime friend of the rap artist, were found guilty in February 2024 on federal charges of murder while engaged in narcotics trafficking.Mizell was shot dead on the night of October 30, 2002, in his New York City recording studio, in what the prosecutors said was a disagreement with Jordan and Washington stemming from a lucrative deal to distribute cocaine in Baltimore. RUN-DMC members, from left, Jason Mizell (Jam Master Jay), Darryl McDaniels (DMC) and Joseph Simmons (DJ Run) make ha …
