The legal saga surrounding Young Dolph’s murder continues to drag on as Cornelius Smith’s plea hearing was postponed yet again, leaving the final chapter of the case in limbo.
Smith, the gunman who admitted to firing the shots that killed the Memphis rapper inside Makeda’s Cookies on November 17, 2021, was scheduled to enter a plea but his attorney confirmed that additional time was needed to address details of the agreement. The hearing has now been pushed back to May 2026.
Smith previously testified in detail about the shooting, admitting he couldn’t count how many times he fired at Young Dolph and identifying himself and co-shooter Justin Johnson in surveillance footage. They arrived at the cookie shop in a stolen Mercedes-Benz, executing the attack with chilling precision.
Johnson was convicted in September 2024 and sentenced to life plus 50 years, while Smith has continued cooperating with authorities in related cases. The broader conspiracy includes claims that Yo Gotti’s brother, Big Jook, put out a $100,000 hit on Dolph in hopes of securing a recording deal with CMG Records. Smith and Johnson were to receive $40,000 each, though Smith reportedly received only $800 before his arrest.
The case is complicated by the deaths and acquittals of others involved. Hernandez Govan, alleged to be the mastermind, was acquitted in August 2025. Big Jook was killed in January 2024 in a separate, unsolved shooting.
This ongoing feud between Young Dolph’s Paper Route Empire and Yo Gotti’s CMG label has spanned over a decade, with multiple shooting incidents along the way. Notably, in 2017, Dolph survived an ambush where over 100 rounds were fired at his bulletproof Corvette in Charlotte, North Carolina, and another shooting outside the Loews Hollywood hotel.
Smith’s pending plea represents the final legal piece in a tragic and high-profile case that has shaken the Memphis rap community. Despite the delay, authorities continue to move forward, with the May hearing now in sight as the public waits for closure.
