A jury has found Kewon White guilty of capital murder in the 2020 shooting death of Dallas rapper MO3, whose legal name was Melvin Noble, following a trial that centred on an alleged murder-for-hire plot tied to a public rap feud.
Jurors reached their verdict after roughly three hours of deliberation on Friday, and White was subsequently sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He becomes the first of three men charged in connection with Noble’s death to face trial, according to multiple reports.
Yella Beezy Kewon White MO3 Trial: What happened on the day of the shooting?
Noble was shot and killed on Interstate 35E in Dallas on 11 November 2020, after being chased on foot by a masked gunman following a car pursuit. Prosecutors told jurors that White got out of his vehicle armed with a gun, prompting Noble to flee before being shot. A bystander in a nearby car was also struck during the shooting but survived.
Yella Beezy Kewon White MO3 Trial: Why did prosecutors say White carried out the killing?
Prosecutors alleged White was hired by fellow Dallas rapper Markies Conway, known professionally as Yella Beezy, to kill Noble amid a long-running public rivalry between the two artists that played out across their music and social media. The state’s case leaned heavily on phone and bank records, surveillance footage, and song lyrics from both Noble and Conway, several of which were played for jurors during the trial.
Prosecutors argued that Conway withdrew cash shortly before an alleged payment exchange in Irving that they say was intended for White. Conway has pleaded not guilty to capital murder and denies any involvement in the killing.
Yella Beezy Kewon White MO3 Trial: How did the defence respond to the charges?
White’s legal team did not dispute that a killing had taken place but argued that prosecutors had failed to prove the murder-for-hire element of the state’s case. White did not testify in his own defence during the roughly two-week trial.
Yella Beezy Kewon White MO3 Trial: What role does a third defendant play in the case?
A third man, Devin Brown, also faces a capital murder charge over his alleged role in coordinating the shooting. Prosecutors say Brown was present during the ambush and was captured on surveillance footage approaching Noble while wearing a mask. Brown’s case remains pending.
Yella Beezy Kewon White MO3 Trial: What does this mean for Yella Beezy’s upcoming trial?
Conway is scheduled to face his own capital murder trial at a later date, and legal observers have said White’s conviction could shape how prosecutors approach that case. A guilty verdict against the alleged gunman lends weight to the state’s broader murder-for-hire theory, which prosecutors are expected to rely on again when Conway goes before a jury. White is currently serving a separate federal prison sentence of close to nine years after pleading guilty to illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Yella Beezy Kewon White MO3 Trial: What has Noble’s family said about the case?
Noble’s mother, Nichole Williams Noble, publicly welcomed Conway’s arrest when charges were first filed, writing on social media that she wanted justice for her son. Noble, who performed under the name MO3, was best known for his 2018 single “Errybody” and had built a following in Dallas’s hip-hop scene before his death.
The case has drawn sustained attention in Dallas, both for its music-industry backdrop and for the use of rap lyrics as evidence, a practice that has faced legal scrutiny in courts elsewhere in the US.
