Canadian rapper Tory Lanez has been given a 10 year jail term on Tuesday. He has been found guilty of shooting fellow musician Megan Thee Stallion during a dispute in 2020. He was convicted for the same more than seven months back.
Judge David Herriford gave the sentence to the 30-year-old rapper whose real name is Daystar Peterson. The hearing was conducted in Los Angeles Superior Court. The sentence came in late due to several delays.
On December 23, a jury convicted Lanez guilty of assault with a semiautomatic handgun, carrying a loaded, unregistered firearm inside of a moving vehicle, and negligently firing a firearm.
Following a pool party in the Hollywood Hills in July 2020, Lanez was charged with shooting Grammy-winning rapper Megan Thee Stallion, 28, wounding her feet.
The trial for the court case went on for two weeks wherein, Stallion told the court that before the shooting took place the two singers had heated argument during which they were attacking each other’s’ music careers.
Megan Thee Stallion, also known as Megan Pete, required surgery and stayed in the hospital for four days before being able to walk once more with the help of physical therapy.
She prepared a statement that was read in court on Monday despite not attending the sentencing hearing because, according to the New York Times, she couldn’t bear to be in the same room as Lanez.
The statement read, “He not only shot me, he made a mockery of my trauma. This is a statement for all survivors that their lives matter and there is zero tolerance for the torture that accompanies violence.”
The defence attorney for Lanez, Jose Baez, told reporters outside the courthouse that he believed the punishment was excessive and that Lanez would appeal his conviction because he felt he had not been given a fair trial. Lawyers for Lanez had asked for a probationary sentence.
“I have seen homicide case, other cases where there’s a death and the person still gets less than 10 years. It’s just another example of somebody being punished for their celebrity status, someone being utilized as an example,” Baez said.
In 2021, Megan Thee Stallion won Grammys for best rap performance, best rap song, and best new artist. She has also received six other nominations.
After the case’s December verdict, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon, whose office prosecuted it, claimed that women, particularly Black women, are hesitant to report crimes like assault and sexual abuse because they are all too frequently disbelieved.
After giving the verdict, Gascon told reporters that “The fact that Ms. Pete is a successful entertainer has brought the spotlight on the important issue of violence against women.”
