This article is a good picture on criminal procedure after arrest but before indictment:
Rapper Young Thug waived Monday morning his preliminary hearing in DeKalb County court, Channel 2 Action News reported.
The rapper, whose real name is Jeffery Lamar Williams, was scheduled to be in court following his July 15 arrest on charges including terroristic threats. He is accused of threatening a security guard at Perimeter Mall on July 7.
During a preliminary hearing, authorities outline their initial case against a defendant and a magistrate judge decides if there is sufficient evidence for the case to proceed to superior court. The case also proceeds if a defendant waives their hearing.
Following Williams’ arrest, local police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation served search warrants at his Sandy Springs home, leading to additional marijuana, cocaine and weapons charges against the rapper. Those charges were filed in Fulton County.
Williams was also recently named in an indictment linking him to the April shooting of rapper Lil Wayne’s tour buses. Although Williams has not been charged in the incident, his tour manager Jimmy Winfrey was indicted on 30 charges.
Williams is best known for his 2013 single “Stoner” and is a member of Gucci Mane’s Atlanta-based record label.
