Tory Lanez has been found guilty of shooting Megan Thee Stallion, but the Canadian star’s father doesn’t agree with the verdict and has blasted the trial for being corrupt.
On Friday (December 23), Lanez (real name Daystar Peterson) was found guilty of all three charges levied against him in his felony assault trial related to the 2020 shooting of the “Hot Girl Summer” rapper.
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The three counts were felony assault with a semiautomatic firearm, possession of a concealed, unregistered firearm and discharging a firearm with gross negligence. Lanez pleaded not guilty to all three.
Jurors concluded he fired at the feet of Stallion in a fit of rage following an argument after an alcohol-fueled party at the Hollywood Hills home of Kardashian family member Kylie Jenner.
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Tory Lanez, who opted not to testify, faces up to 22 years in prison and deportation to his native Canada. Sentencing will take place on January 27, 2023.
“We are shocked by the verdict. There was not sufficient evidence to convict Mr. Peterson. We believe this case was not proven beyond a reasonable doubt. We will be exploring all options including an appeal,” Lanez’s defense lawyer George Mgdesyan said in a statement.
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Lanez isn’t the only one disappointed with the verdict. The singer/rapper’s father, Sonstar Peterson, expressed his anger about the outcome both inside and outside the LA courthouse where his son was found guilty.
According to Rolling Stone, Sonstar branded the court system “wicked” and pointed out two prosecutors in particular. “You two, you are wicked, you are evil,” he said before being forcibly removed from the courtroom.
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Law & Crime reporter Meghann Cuniff, who was present at the trial, added that it was a “crazy and downright scary scene in the courtroom as [Tory Lanez’s] father and stepmother screamed about [wicked] injustice.”
A video from The Shade Room later surfaced of Sonstar outside the courthouse delivering an impassioned address to reporters, where he called out Megan Thee Stallion’s management company Roc Nation as well as its founder JAY-Z.
“I just stood here in this Los Angeles and witnessed the worst miscarriage of justice that this world has ever seen. You want to know how I feel, I’ll tell you exactly how I feel,” Sonstar began.
He then read out a list of names that included Megan’s lawyer Alex Spiro, Desiree Perez the COO of Roc Nation, “and the whole wicked system of Roc Nation, including you JAY-Z.
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He continued to lay in to Jigga, adding: “You who say you rose from the gutter, but you have traded and bartered the souls of young men, and you’re still doing it.”
Lanez’s father then started claimed the trial was corrupt and accused witness Sean Kelly of being in cahoots with prosecutors. “I’ve seen so much evidence buried in this,” he exclaimed. In a separate video, he promised Roc Nation would “crumble.”
The prosecution and Tory Lanez’s attorney had been at odds since the start of the trial on December 12. And as both sides made their final arguments to the jury on Wednesday (December 21) and Thursday (December 22), each highlighted moments from the trial which they felt had gone their way.
According to Los Angeles Times reporter Jonah Valdez, who shared notes from the trial via Twitter, prosecutors brought the jury’s attention back to previous testimony by three firearms experts regarding the absence of DNA evidence on the gun. Prosecutors, on the other hand, redirected the jury to consider the firsthand account provided by a number of witnesses.
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In a statement on Thursday afternoon (December 22), the Los Angeles Superior Court office of public information announced that a few minutes before the end of their session, the jurors requested that Judge David Herriford provide “a better definition of the word ‘willfully’ and ‘on purpose’” for the sake of their deliberation.
The jury had been given the option of continuing their deliberation after the Christmas holiday if they were unable to reach a decision on Thursday. Instead, they decided to resume on Friday morning.
