A Los Angeles jury on Friday ruled in favor of Grammy Award-winning hip-hop star Megan Thee Stallion, finding Canadian rapper Tory Lanez guilty of three felonies in a 2020 shooting.
The 27-year-old performer, whose legal name is Megan Pete, had testified in court that Lanez shot her in the feet five times while leaving a house party. According to the Associated Press (AP), Lanez, 30, whose legal name is Daystar Peterson, was found guilty of assault with a semiautomatic firearm; having a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle; and discharging a firearm with gross negligence.
Lanez could face up to 22 years in prison at his sentencing, scheduled for January 27, according to a release from the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
The trial was closely watched by fans of both artists. Megan Thee Stallion has been continually praised for her bravery after testifying against Lanez, including for her choice to wear a purple pantsuit during the trial, a symbol of royalty and the strength of women in the United States who fought for suffrage.
In October, the artist wrote in a New York Times op-ed that she had been initially silent about the altercation with Lanez “out of fear for myself and my friends.”
“Even as a victim, I have been met with skepticism and judgment,” she wrote. “The way people have publicly questioned and debated whether I played a role in my own violent assault proves that my fears about discussing what happened were, unfortunately, warranted.”
During the trial, Lanez maintained his innocence, and his legal team argued in closing statements that Megan Thee Stallion was lying about the shooting. According to AP, Lanez’s attorney George Mgdesyan claimed that the female artist had actually been shot by one of her friends who was “in a jealous fight over Lanez” with the hip-hop star while leaving the party.
“Megan Pete is a liar,” Mgdesyan said. “She lied about everything in this case from the beginning. She lied under oath here.”
Users took to Twitter to express their support for Megan Thee Stallion following the verdict, as phrases like “Happy for Meg” and “#ProtectBlackWomen” started trending Friday night. Congressman Jamaal Bowman, a Democrat from New York, wrote in light of the news that he was wishing the artist “well on her healing journey.”
“Believe and Protect Black women,” Bowman added.
Activist Jamira Burley also reposted news of Lanez’s conviction, and asked users if they believed Megan Thee Stallion now that a verdict was reached.
“For all those that kept saying we should wait for the verdict … do you believe Megan now?” Burley wrote. “Or is there another excuse you have for not believing Black women when we say we’ve been harmed?”
Entrepreneur Fisayo Longe posted that she had “tears of joy” over the jury’s decision, adding that she “really did not expect justice because I am so hurt and so jaded by this awful world.”
“Please believe women,” she wrote. “Please stop treating Black women so terribly. PLEASE.”
Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón also issued a statement praising Megan Thee Stallion’s “incredible courage and vulnerability” during the trial.
“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,” read Gascón’s statement.
“Women, especially Black women, are afraid to report crimes like assault and sexual violence because they are too often not believed,” he continued. “This trial, for the second time this month, highlighted the numerous ways that our society must do better for women.”
Gascón was referring to disgraced Hollywood film mogul Harvey Weinstein’s guilty verdict reached on Monday in Los Angeles, in which the producer was found guilty on three charges of sexual assault. Weinstein, who was already sentenced to 23 years in prison in New York, could face up to 24 years for this week’s charges.
On Friday, Megan Thee Stallion’s lawyer Alex Spiro said that the “jury got it right. I am thankful there is justice for Meg.”
Newsweek has reached out to Mgdesyan for comment.
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