Lil Durk’s federal murder-for-hire trial has drawn plenty of attention from across hip-hop, and now one of rap’s most recognizable courtroom witnesses is weighing in.
Kenneth “Lil Woody” Copeland recently became emotional while discussing Durk’s ongoing federal trial in Los Angeles, expressing sympathy for the Chicago rapper and predicting that he will ultimately beat the case. Prosecutors have connected the alleged murder-for-hire plot to retaliation surrounding the 2020 death of King Von.
Woody’s reasoning centered on the government’s witnesses. He questioned the credibility of testimony coming from figures including OTF Jam, Flakka and OTF Vonnie, pointing to their criminal histories as a reason jurors could have difficulty accepting their accounts at face value.
His commentary immediately created another conversation online because Woody knows the government-witness seat better than most people discussing Durk’s case.
Woody became a nationally known figure during the sprawling YSL RICO prosecution involving Young Thug. Beginning in June 2024, he spent months on the witness stand as a prosecution witness while repeatedly frustrating questioning with variations of “I don’t recall.”
The phrase became so synonymous with his testimony that Woody eventually turned “I Don’t Recall” into the title of a song. During his time on the stand, he also frequently rejected the prosecution’s characterization of Young Slime Life as a criminal street gang.
That history has fueled criticism of Woody’s latest position. Some online observers have accused him of hypocrisy for questioning witnesses cooperating with prosecutors after his own highly publicized role in the YSL case, reopening hip-hop’s endless arguments surrounding cooperation, loyalty and “snitching.”
Woody’s life has also shifted considerably since that trial. The Atlanta native, who previously served 51 months in federal prison, has said he walked away from street life and retired from rap. After surviving a serious dirt bike crash in August 2025, he increasingly used his platform to speak against gang violence and encourage younger people to avoid the path he took.
Now, Durk’s trial has Woody talking about the courtroom again, only this time he is watching from the outside.