Tory Lanez Trial Over Megan Thee Stallion Shooting Begins
Tory Lanez’s shooting trial began Monday (December 12) with opening statements, over two years after Megan Thee Stallion accused him of inflicting “great bodily injury” on her.
In a criminal complaint, prosecutors said Lanez, whose legal name is Daystar Peterson, fired a gun at a victim identified as “Megan P.” This occurred after she got out of an SUV during an argument in the Hollywood Hills on July 12, 2020. Megan’s legal name is Megan Pete. Jury selection in the case began December 5 and the trial is expected to last about eight days, USA Today reports.
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Lanez, 30 told Megan, 27, to “dance” as he shot at her feet during an argument, a jury has been told. Per BBC, prosecutors said the rappers got into a row as they drove away from a pool party at Kylie Jenner’s house. Jurors in Los Angeles heard Megan insulted Tory and demanded to be let out of their luxury car before he fired five rounds at her. Megan left a trail of blood at the scene before getting back into the vehicle, which was subsequently stopped by police. A gun that was still warm to the touch was found on the floor near where Lanez had been sitting, prosecutor Alexander Bott said. Minutes after the shooting, a female friend texted Meg’s security detail, saying: “Help… Tory shot meg.”
In a later phone call, Lanez “profusely apologized for his actions” and claimed he was “just too drunk,” jurors were told. Tory Lanez’s lawyer George Mgdesyan said the jury needed to keep an open mind and that this was a “case about jealousy.” He told the court he would prove the accusations were lies. Earlier hearings have been told that Megan Thee Stallion initially told doctors her injured feet had been cut on broken glass. She initially denied Lanez had shot at her, but later said she had done so for fear he would get into trouble. Several bullet fragments were removed from her feet, but some remain and she told investigating officers that she had difficulty walking in certain shoes. Megan Thee Stallion then posted a since-deleted video to Instagram Live in which she said, “Tory shot me. You shot me and you got your publicist and your people… lying… Stop lying.”
As we’ve previously reported, Lanez was officially charged in October 2020 for the shooting of the Houston rapper. At first, Los Angeles police reported the incident only as shots fired, a woman with foot injuries and a man arrested on a weapons allegation. Megan revealed a few days later that her foot injuries came from gunshots. Lanez pleaded not guilty to felony assault in November 2020.
