Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Young Thug Pushes to Toss Lil Wayne Tour Bus Shooting Lawsuit
Young Thug is asking a Cobb County judge to dismiss a lawsuit over Lil Wayne's 2015 tour bus shooting.
Years after the shots rang out at Lil Wayne’s tour bus in Atlanta, the civil case tied to that night is still moving through court, and now Young Thug is trying to get it thrown out.
On Monday, Aug. 17, attorneys for the rapper appeared in Cobb County, Ga., to argue against a lawsuit brought in 2017 by Alvin Lewis, Wayne’s former driver, over the April 2015 shooting. No one was injured, but Lewis has said in court filings obtained by XXL that the incident left him with severe emotional distress and that he is seeking punitive damages.
Lewis’ suit accuses Young Thug, born Jeffery Williams, and Cash Money Records CEO Birdman, born Bryan Williams, of being directly responsible for what he describes as a reckless shooting, tying the claim to tension connected to the men’s gang affiliations. Thug and Birdman have both denied involvement.
According to a Courthouse News report published Tuesday, Aug. 18, Young Thug’s attorney Jeffrey Reilly argued that Lewis is leaning on biased gang-related testimony and speculation about the friction between Wayne and the defendants before the shooting. Lewis’ lawyer, Jeffrey Gewirtz, pushed back, saying Thug and Birdman paid Jimmy Winfrey, also known as Peewee Roscoe, who was arrested in connection with the shooting after Atlanta police found his white Camaro with an assault rifle inside.
Winfrey was sentenced in November 2015 to 10 years in prison for his role in the bus shooting, though Georgia’s Supreme Court later reversed that conviction that same year. More recently, in December 2024, Winfrey took a plea deal in the YSL RICO case, admitting guilt to racketeering, firearm, and narcotics counts and receiving a sentence of time served on those charges.
Gewirtz also pointed to a recorded jail phone call between Thug and Winfrey, arguing that it showed Winfrey trying to gain “street cred” and being rewarded for not being a “rat.” Defense attorneys for the YSL leader, however, said the $25,000 sent for Winfrey’s attorney fees was simply an act of generosity between lifelong friends, not evidence of anything darker.
The hearing ended with Cobb County Chief Judge Eric Brewton saying he would rule in a timely manner on whether Lewis’ case can keep moving toward trial.
XXL has reached out to Young Thug’s attorney for comment.
