"so overcome with marijuana when questioned by detectives that he could not remember the events of the month"

Johnson said in court Thursday that the trial will delve into the hip-hop music culture and the notion that a secret society called the Illuminati has control over the success of some performers.

It was the belief that a sacrifice had to occur in order to join the Illuminati that allegedly incited El-Amin, Johnson said. Investigators recovered more than a pound of marijuana from the Athens Avenue home, according to the search warrant, as well as literature dealing with the Illuminati and its alleged connection to the music industry.

Harris, in denying bond for El-Amin, who waved happily to family members in the courtroom Thursday, said he was concerned about Johnson’s representations that El-Amin claimed no knowledge of what occurred in December because of the amount of marijuana he had smoked.

Read More | "June trial set for would-be rapper accused of malicious wounding" | Bill McKelway | Richmond Times-Dispatch | via @erwinmontgomery