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Brian Steel

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Brian Steel
Born
Queens, New York, U.S.
EducationUniversity of Michigan (BBA)
Fordham University (JD)
OccupationAttorney
EmployerSteel Law Firm
Known forRepresenting Young Thug in the YSL Records racketeering trial
SpouseColette Resnik Steel

Brian Steel is an American attorney best known for representing rapper Jeffery "Young Thug" Williams in the YSL racketeering trial. Steel served as the lead defense attorney for Williams in what would become the longest trial in the history of the state of Georgia, lasting over 22 months.[1][2]

Steel founded his own law firm in 1997 alongside his wife Colette, who is also an attorney. As of 2026, he has credited himself with over 300 published opinions and 45 reversals.[3]

In February 2025, Canadian musicians PartyNextDoor and Drake's collaborative album, Some Sexy Songs 4 U, featured a song titled "Brian Steel", named after Steel.[4]

In April 2025, Brian Steel was hired as a member of Sean "Diddy" Combs' legal team for his then-upcoming federal criminal trial on sex trafficking charges.[5][6]

In March 2026, Steel joined the defense team of rapper Lil Durk in his federal murder-for-hire case.[7]

Early life and education

[edit]

Steel graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Michigan in 1987 and graduated with a Juris Doctor from Fordham University School of Law in 1990.[8]

YSL racketeering trial

[edit]

On May 9, 2022, Williams was arrested and charged alongside 27 other individuals in a 56-count Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) indictment filed by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. Fulton County Chief Judge Ural D. Glanville denied bond for everyone who was charged and scheduled the trial for January 9, 2023.[9]

During the nearly two-year trial, Judge Glanville engaged in several controversial actions, including conducting multiple ex parte meetings without the defense's knowledge and imprisoning Steel for refusing to reveal his sources after the defense attorney had been informed about the meetings.[10][11][12]

On July 15, 2024, Glanville was removed from the case.[13] He was replaced by Superior Court Judge Paige Whitaker. On October 31, 2024, Williams pleaded guilty to the drug-related and gun-related charges and entered a no-contest plea to charges of conspiracy and participating in a street gang, allowing him to leave custody after serving over two and a half years.[14]

Lil Durk murder-for-hire case

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In March 2026, Steel joined the defense team of rapper Lil Durk (Durk Banks) in his federal murder-for-hire case in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, replacing attorney Jonathan M. Brayman.[15] Prosecutors alleged that Banks had financed and directed a 2022 plot to kill rapper Quando Rondo in retaliation for the 2020 killing of Banks's friend King Von. The shooting killed Rondo's cousin Saviay'a Robinson (Lul Pab), while Rondo survived.[16]

During the trial, Steel challenged the credibility of cooperating witnesses, including Kacey Hester and Kavon Grant, and emphasized Grant's role in arranging the Los Angeles trip and his access to Banks's financial resources.[17] In his closing argument, Steel argued that membership in Banks's Only the Family collective did not establish his participation in the alleged conspiracy and attacked the reliability and incentives of the government's cooperating witnesses.[18]

On September 11, 2026, after four days of deliberations, the federal jury acquitted Banks of all charges in the murder-for-hire trial.[19] Despite the acquittal, Banks remains in federal custody pending a separate trial on murder-related racketeering and weapons charges, which had previously been severed from the murder-for-hire case.[20]

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ Coscarelli, Joe (October 31, 2024). "Young Thug Released After Guilty Plea in Lengthy YSL Case". The New York Times. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  2. ↑ Papp, Jozsef (September 30, 2024). "Young Thug trial: Frustrated judge scolds prosecutor for 'really poor lawyering'". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  3. ↑ "Brian Steel". The Steel Law Firm. Retrieved September 12, 2026.
  4. ↑ Diaz, Angel (February 13, 2025). "Here's What Young Thug Attorney Brian Steel Has to Say About Drake & PartyNextDoor Naming a Song After Him". Billboard. Retrieved February 24, 2025.
  5. ↑ Sundel, Jenna (April 16, 2025). "Who Is Brian Steel? Sean 'Diddy' Combs Gets a New Lawyer". Newsweek. Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  6. ↑ Donahue, Bill (April 16, 2025). "Sean 'Diddy' Combs Hires Young Thug's Lawyer Brian Steel Ahead of Sex Trafficking Trial". Billboard. Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  7. ↑ "Brian Steel Motion to Join Lil Durk Legal Team". National Today. March 10, 2026. Retrieved March 11, 2026.
  8. ↑ Manins, Rosie (June 18, 2024). "Meet the marathon-running Atlanta lawyer representing rapper Young Thug". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  9. ↑ Heyward, Giulia (January 9, 2023). "Rapper Young Thug's RICO trial begins". NPR. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  10. ↑ Darnell, Tim (July 31, 2024). "Defense attorneys erupt over another secret meeting in Young Thug trial". Atlanta News First. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  11. ↑ Fung, Katherine (June 18, 2024). "Judge in Fani Willis Case Hit With 'Nuclear' Recusal Filing". Newsweek. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  12. ↑ Coscarelli, Joe (June 11, 2024). "Young Thug Lawyer Clashes With Judge in Chaotic Gang Case". The New York Times. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  13. ↑ "Judge removed from long-running gang and racketeering case against rapper Young Thug and others". NBC News. Associated Press. July 15, 2024. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  14. ↑ Ortiz, Erik (October 31, 2024). "Young Thug changes plea to guilty in Georgia's longest-running criminal trial". NBC News. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  15. ↑ Backwoods Altar (March 10, 2026). "Lil Durk's Murder-for-Hire Case: Brian Steel Joins Defense Team". Complex. Retrieved September 12, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Rapper Lil Durk acquitted of murder-for-hire at Los Angeles trial". Associated Press. September 11, 2026. Retrieved September 12, 2026.
  17. ↑ "Bodyguards, celebrities, tourists: Murder-for-hire trial of Lil Durk". Los Angeles Times. September 2, 2026. Retrieved September 12, 2026.
  18. ↑ "Lil Durk Murder-for-Hire Trial Goes to Jury After Closings". Los Angeles. September 8, 2026. Retrieved September 12, 2026.
  19. ↑ "Grammy-winning rapper Lil Durk acquitted in murder-for-hire trial". Reuters. September 12, 2026. Retrieved September 12, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Grammy-winning rapper Lil Durk acquitted in murder-for-hire trial". Reuters. September 12, 2026. Retrieved September 12, 2026.
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