In the fifth and final installment of the BET Network docuseries ‘No Limit Chronicles,’ the episode touched on the questionable 2003 conviction of Corey “C-Murder” Miller. He is currently incarcerated and serving a life sentence for the murder of Steven Thomas. The CEO of 2 Loaded Records, Money Mike Willis, summed up Miller’s current situation when he stated, ” I honestly know C-Murder didn’t do that murder, but karma is a mutha f*cka.”
A native of New Orleans, Louisiana Corey Miller, left the projects to join the army. When his brother Kevin Miller was murdered in 1990, Corey went AWOL in order to join his family and mourn the death of his sibling. He would later transition to Richmond, California, to join his other two brothers Percy and Vyshonn. Percy “Master P” Miller started No Limit Records, and he wanted the music venture to be a family affair. Vyshonn named himself Silk The Shocker, and Corey chose the name C-Murder. Master P advised Corey to select a different name, but Corey was sold on his original choice.
As a rapper C-Murder eased his way into the business. He started off doing features, but in 1998 he stepped from the rear to center stage. His debut album ‘Life or Death’ sold 197,000 copies in its first week. The album would go on to achieve platinum status. C-Murder released his second album, ‘Bossalinie’, in 1999. It went certified gold. Miller kept the ball rolling as he released ‘Trapped in Crime’ in 2000 and ‘C-P-3.com’ in 2001. His success as an artist helped him to become a multi-millionaire.
Despite his millionaire status, C-Murder would hang out in the projects on a regular basis. He had one foot in the music industry and one foot in the streets. Miller could be spotted walking through the projects like he never left. He had a mansion, but he also had a renovated apartment in the Calliope Projects. In August of 2001, C-Murder went to Club Raggs in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He refused to be searched and allegedly pulled out a handgun and fired shots at the owner of the club. Miller turned himself in and was released on bond. Five months later, C-Murder went to the Platinum nightclub in Harvey, Louisiana. Sixteen-year-old Steven Thomas was on stage as a participant in a rap battle. When Thomas stepped off stage, he was attacked by a group of people. Miller joined the group and participated in the assault. Club Bouncer Darnell Jordan grabbed Miller from behind and pulled him away from the assault. After Jordan released him, Miller rejoined the assault. All of a sudden, a single shot was fired. The crowd scattered as Steven Thomas laid in a pool of blood. He died from a single gunshot wound to the heart.
Darnell Jordan was escorted to the detective bureau. He was shown six pictures. The detective asked him, “who do you know in these pictures?” Jordan told the detective he recognizes C-Murder, and then the detective asked Jordan to sign the back of the picture. Six days after the shooting, C-Murder was arrested. While under oath, Darnell Jordan claimed C-Murder was the shooter. After fifteen days of testimony, Corey Miller was found guilty of murder.
He was granted a retrial in 2006. Miller was placed under house arrest. The retrial began in August of 2009. Authorities tracked down Kenneth Jordan and took him into custody on a material witness bond. Kenneth Jordan took the stand and said Miller shot Thomas. Once again, Darnell Jordan, (no relation to Kenneth), testified that Miller shot Steven Thomas. During the trial, instead of addressing him by his government name, the prosecutor intentionally called him C-Murder. The prosecutor also quoted violent lyrics from Miller’s songs. Corey Miller was found guilty of 2nd-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. Miller was convicted on a 10-2 vote. At the time, Louisiana was one of the only states you can convict someone for life in prison with a non-unanimous vote. In 2018 voters decided to end non-unanimous juries in Louisiana, but the change wasn’t retroactive.
In June of 2018, Kenneth Jordan recanted his testimony. “I know that the individual who I saw shoot the gun was not Corey Miller,” Jordan stated in an affidavit. Jordan also admitted the fact that investigators threatened to charge him with a felony crime if he didn’t identify Miller as the shooter. At the time, his infant’s death was under investigation. Six days later, Darnell Jordan recanted his testimony. In a written statement, he said detectives tricked him into identifying Miller as the shooter.
Corey Miller’s legal team demanded a new trial, but in January of 2019, a judge ruled a new trial will not be granted. All the evidence, in this case, points to Miller being an innocent man who is incarcerated for a crime he didn’t commit.
Corey Miller’s ex-girlfriend and R&B singer Monica vowed to do everything she could to help Miller get out of prison. Kim Kardashian announced she is joining Monica and lobbying for the release of Corey Miller.
