A panel of judges for the U.S. Court of Appeals in Atlanta on Thursday shot down Grammy-winning reggae artist Buju Banton's appeal on federal drug charges. The judges also reversed the lower court's decision to throw out a gun charge. Now the same judge who decided there wasn't enough evidence to hold Buju accountable for the gun will have to decide whether to grant a new trial on the gun charge.
As extensively documented by the New Times, the case against Buju was built by a confidential informant with clear financial motives to the see the singer convicted and a lengthy criminal record, including getting caught bringing an astonishing 700 kilos of cocaine into the U.S.