A Tennessee man has been acquitted of charges that he organised the daytime ambush killing of rapper Young Dolph at a Memphis bakery in November 2021.
The shooting stunned the music world and the city he called home, receiving mass press coverage at the time.
On August 21, a jury found Hernandez Govan, 45, not guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder in connection with the killing of Young Dolph, whose real name was Adolph Thornton Jr.
Prosecutors did not accuse Govan of firing the shots but argued he directed the gunmen who carried out the attack.
The jury rejected that theory despite testimony from one of the admitted shooters, who claimed Govan hired him and arranged the hit.
Central to the prosecution’s case was the testimony of Cornelius Smith Jr., who admitted being one of the two men who opened fire on Dolph.
Smith told jurors that Govan recruited him to ‘do the hits,’ provided weapons, and tipped him off that the rapper would be in Memphis for his annual Thanksgiving turkey giveaway.
But Govan’s attorney, Manny Arora, cast doubt on Smith’s credibility, describing him as an unreliable witness motivated to cooperate in hopes of securing a lighter sentence.
Arora also questioned the integrity of the police investigation and the strength of evidence drawn from cellphone communications between Govan, Smith, and others.
‘Not one of those messages directly incriminates my client,’ Arora argued, telling jurors the state failed to tie Govan to the crime beyond Smith’s word.
Govan chose not to testify in his own defense.
Young Dolph was killed on November 17, 2021, when two gunmen opened fire outside Makeda’s Homemade Cookies, a bakery he frequently visited.
According to investigators, the shooters fled in a white Mercedes-Benz. A medical examiner’s report later concluded Dolph was struck about 20 times.
The Memphis native was more than a rapper; he was an independent label owner, producer, and philanthropist admired locally for his charitable work. He was in the city to distribute Thanksgiving turkeys when the shooting occurred.
Smith has previously testified against Justin Johnson, identified as the second gunman. Johnson was convicted of first-degree murder in 2024 and sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole, along with additional sentences for related charges.
Prosecutors have linked the killing to a long-simmering feud between Dolph and associates of Cocaine Muzik Group, now known as Collective Music Group, a rival record label founded by Memphis rapper Yo Gotti.
Smith testified that Anthony ‘Big Jook’ Mims – Yo Gotti’s brother and a key figure at the label – put out a $100,000 bounty on Dolph and smaller rewards for artists affiliated with Dolph’s label, Paper Route Empire. Mims himself was shot and killed outside a Memphis restaurant in January 2024.
Smith previously suggested that Mims, not Govan, was the one who hired him, and he admitted receiving tens of thousands of dollars in cash through his attorney after Dolph’s murder.
Smith still faces charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder in the case. He has pleaded not guilty and has not yet gone to trial.
Govan’s acquittal does not end the legal fallout from Young Dolph’s death, which remains one of the most high-profile killings in Memphis in recent years.
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