Trial Begins For 2 Accused Of Killing Run-DMC Member Over 20 Years Ago

American hip hop group Run-DMC (American rapper Joseph ‘Run’ Simmons, American musician and DJ Jason ‘Jam Master Jay’ Mizell (1965-2002), and American rapper Darryl ‘DMC’ McDaniels) attend the 1987 Soul Train Music Awards, held at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica, California, 23rd March 1987. Run-DMC won the awards for ‘Best Rap Single’ for ‘Walk This Way; and ‘Best Rap Album’ for ‘Raising Hell’. (Photo by Vinnie Zuffante/Getty Images)

The man accused of killing Run-DMC’s Jam Master Jay can not have his rap lyrics used against him at trial, a Brooklyn judge ruled Tuesday (January 30). The verdict praised hip-hop as “a forum for speech to people who had mostly been voiceless.” Federal prosecutors tried to use Karl Jordan Jr.’s lyrics to convict him of murdering Jay, a pioneering artist born Jason Mizell, in 2002. Brooklyn Federal Judge LaShann DeArcy Hall examined hip-hop’s 50-year history in her 14-page opinion, citing over a dozen artists’ songs before ruling the lyrics inadmissible. While Hall stated that courts should be “wary” about using rap lyrics in court cases, she stated there may be exceptions for songs that detail a crime.

Should song lyrics be used in court cases? Why or why not?