The murder-for-hire trial of Chicago rapper Durk Banks, professionally known as Lil Durk, is underway at the Felicitas and Gonzalo Mendez United States Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles. Banks, 33, has pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy, stalking resulting in death, and murder for hire.

The proceedings center on the 2022 killing of 24-year-old Saviay'a Robinson. Prosecutors allege that Robinson was an unintended victim of a shooting at a gas station near the Beverly Center, where three shooters fired 18 rounds into a black Escalade. The intended target of the attack was Tyquian Bowman, a rapper known as Quando Rondo.

Both the prosecution and defense agree the shooting was motivated by revenge for the death of Dayvon Bennett, known as King Von, who was killed in Atlanta two years prior following a fight with Bowman outside a hookah lounge. However, the two sides disagree on who orchestrated the retaliation.

Prosecution and Defense Arguments

On Aug. 24, prosecutors told jurors that Banks was "consumed with revenge" following the death of Bennett, a close friend and member of his Only The Family hip-hop collective. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Weiner stated that Banks "used his wealth and used his purse strings" to employ hit men to settle the score.

Seven people have been charged in connection with Robinson's death. Three individuals have reached plea deals to testify for the government, including Banks' former personal assistant, Kavon Grant. Defense attorney Marissa Goldberg argued that Grant, not Banks, was the individual seeking revenge for his cousin Bennett. Goldberg told jurors that Grant was the one who drove Bennett to an Atlanta hospital in 2020 and that Grant secured the vehicles, hotel accommodations, and ski masks used in the Los Angeles plot.

Goldberg suggested Grant used Banks as an "insurance policy" to avoid personal culpability. Regarding Banks' presence in the courtroom, Goldberg said:

"Mr. Banks is a performer. He's won a Grammy. But there is one individual who has been practicing to take the stand for a long time. He's practicing his performance. He's hoping he gets an Oscar. Mr. Banks is a performer, he is a celebrity, but as he sits here today, he's a 33-year-old young man in a very, very serious situation. This is not a performance. This is not a show. This is reality."

During testimony from Kacey Hester, also known as OTF Jam, a shooter who pleaded guilty, Hester testified that Banks was not the mastermind. Hester stated:

"It's not his fault. It's Durk's fault. Durk put us in the situation, not him. He wasn't the mastermind behind this ... he was following orders just like everybody else was."

Courtroom Spectacle and Security

The trial has drawn significant public attention, functioning as a spectator event in the courthouse. Notable figures have appeared in the gallery, including:

• Rapper Machine Gun Kelly (MGK), who was searched with a metal detector for a chain.
• Rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, who was asked by a security officer to remove his dark sunglasses.
• Bodyguards accompanying Robinson's mother and Banks' wife, India Royale.

Content creators have utilized social media platforms like TikTok and YouTube to report on the trial, with videos reaching hundreds of thousands of views. Security measures at the courthouse include wands for all spectators and the requirement that all phones be locked in pouches opened only by staff. The court previously shut down a video feed in an overflow room after a witness's testimony was photographed in violation of court rules.

U.S. District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald addressed the crowd density by limiting the number of defendants' family members permitted secured seats to 15 to ensure availability for the public. Spectators have arrived as early as 7 a.m. to secure positions in line, with some individuals being paid to hold seats for Banks' family members.