Tory Lanez Trial: Verdict Reached in Shooting of Megan Thee Stallion

By Ashley Turner

Tory Lanez was found guilty on Friday of three charges related to the shooting of fellow rapper Megan Thee Stallion in Hollywood Hills in July 2020. Lanez pleaded not guilty to assault with a firearm, carrying an unregistered firearm in a vehicle, and discharging a firearm with gross negligence, according to prosecutors, per CNN. He was found guilty of all three counts by the jury. Megan accused Lanez of shooting her in the foot after she exited a vehicle they had been riding in following an argument. Megan explained in her testimony during the trial that there was tension between Lanez, her former friend and assistant, Kelsey Harris, and Lanez, Billboard Magazine reported. According to the artist, Lanez wanted her to disclose that the two of them had been intimate with Harris. However, Megan felt uncomfortable doing so because she knew Harris had a crush on him. Megan said Lanez shot her after she exited the car.

"I started walking away, and I hear Tory yell, 'Dance, b—" she testified, according to Billboard. "I froze. I just felt shock. I felt hurt. I looked down at my feet, and I see all of this blood." After the verdict, LA County DA George Gascón said Megan displayed "incredible courage and vulnerability" during her testimony. "You faced unjust and despicable scrutiny that no woman should ever face, and you have been an inspiration to others across LA County and the nation," he said about Megan. The nine-day trial did not feature Lanez taking the stand in his defense. A verdict was reached by Friday afternoon after the jury, made up of five men and seven women, commenced deliberations on Thursday. According to CNN affiliate KCBS, Lanez was escorted from the courtroom in handcuffs after the verdict was read. The maximum sentence is 22 years in prison, with the possibility of deportation to his native Canada.

Meanwhile, Lanez's father and stepmother protested the court system as well as Megan's record label, Roc Nation, outside the courthouse where their son was taken to jail, in video obtained by TMZ. "I just stood here in this Los Angeles county and witnessed the worst miscarriage of justice that this world has ever seen," Lanez declared." You wanna know how I feel? I'll tell you exactly how I feel. I got some names that I wanna call. Alex Fierro. Desiree Perez and the whole wicked system of Roc Nation, including you, Jay-Z." Lanez's father continued to rail against the rapper and businessman. "You who say you rose from the gutter, but you have trained and bared the soul of young men, and you are still doing it. The only independent witness in this courtroom is a man whose name is Sean Kelly. He came to court. And our attorneys, he would not even shake their hands...."

The man continued to rant with Lanez's stepmother yelling in the background, claiming that "I've seen so much evidence buried in this, and I know exactly what the public out here will say. I say this because I'm a father. See, I am a father of thousands around the world. I'm a father of my kids but a spiritual father to many, and I don't make stupid allegations cause I got nothing better to do. You all have been bartering and trading the souls of young, black, and brown men in this country. "I'm calling on everybody in this country to begin to rise up because your sons have been done dirty, that's what," he exclaimed at the end of his speech. Lanez's father and stepmother also reportedly exploded in the courtroom, according to TMZ. Before being escorted from the courthouse, they screamed and hollered, claiming that the justice system was evil. Tory won't be sentenced until January 27, but according to his family, the case isn't over, and his legal team may file an appeal.

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