Judge Tosses Jam Master Jay Murder Conviction Over Lack of Proven Motive

A Brooklyn federal judge on Friday overturned the murder conviction of Karl Jordan Jr. in the 2002 slaying of Run-DMC’s Jam Master Jay, ruling prosecutors did not prove the killing was drug-related or tied to a botched Baltimore deal. U.S. District Judge LaShaan DeArcy Hall said the government failed to show that Jordan had a motive to kill Mizell, such as being dissatisfied with revenue from drug sales, having contact with a supplier, or otherwise arranging to carry on Mizell’s operation. The decision comes as Hall upheld the murder conviction of Ronald Washington, who was convicted alongside Jordan in February 2024 for killing Mizell inside his Queens studio more than two decades ago. The four-week trial featured multiple witnesses recounting the moment the pair gunned down the Run-DMC pioneer inside the 24/7 Studio in Hollis on Oct. 30, 2002. Uriel “Tony” Rincon, a friend of Mizell, identified Jordan as the shooter, telling jurors he heard shots and saw Jay fall as Jordan pushed the entertainer away. Prosecutors had argued the shooting was a revenge plot after a Baltimore drug deal went wrong months earlier. From the bench, Hall concluded there was no evidence that Jordan sought retaliation for the failed deal, writing, “From what evidence, then, could the jury have reasonably inferred that Jordan sought to retaliate against Mizell for the failure of the Baltimore deal? There was none.”

Jordan had not yet been sentenced on the Mizell murder conviction, but remains jailed at the MDC Brooklyn lockup. His attorney, Michael Hueston, said in a statement that the decision offers “a measure of solace as they approach the holiday season.” A spokesperson for the Eastern District of New York said the ruling is “being reviewed.”

The case centers on Mizell’s death inside his Queens studio and the government’s insistence that the killing was tied to a broader narcotics conspiracy and retaliatory violence linked to drug deals. Prosecutors argued that Washington and Jordan carried out the shooting to avenge a failed Baltimore deal, a theory that formed the backbone of the charges of murder while engaged in a narcotics trafficking conspiracy and firearm-related murder. The judge’s ruling reflects a narrowing of the evidentiary thread necessary to prove motive beyond a reasonable doubt, even as the court affirmed Washington’s conviction on the same facts. The decision leaves unresolved questions about Mizell’s killing and the exact criminal arc pursued by investigators over the years, but it underscores the legal threshold for proving motive in violent crimes tied to organized drug activity.

The four-week trial featured multiple witnesses who described the chaotic moment in the studio, including Rincon’s identification of Jordan as the shooter and testimony about the dispute that prosecutors said precipitated the act. Mizell’s death in 2002 robbed the music world of a renowned DJ who helped crystallize the genre’s rise in New York City and beyond. While the reversal of Jordan’s conviction marks a notable legal development, Washington’s conviction remains in place, and the court will continue to determine the appropriate post-conviction steps for Jordan. The justice system’s handling of this high-profile case continues to unfold as defense teams assess potential avenues for appeal or resentencing, pending further court action.