On Friday night, a Los Angeles jury convicted Tory Lanez. Three charges were brought against him in connection with an incident in which Megan Thee Stallion (real name Megan Pete), a female rapper, was shot in July 2020.
Lanez and his lawyers continued to insist that Lanez was innocent after the verdict was read. Lanez also stated that Lanez was very disappointed, very disappointed, and shocked but that he believes that the truth will come out.
The case became a major flashpoint of contention, particularly in liberal circles, due to the online response Pete received when she initially told her story in 2020. Pete claims that, after an argument, Lanez “was holding the gun pointing at me,” and that he said “dance b**ch” before shooting her in the feet. “I froze … I felt shocked.”
Pete made her story public in 2020. She says she received significant backlash from online commenters, who doubted her authenticity. She wrote an opinion piece for The New York Times titled “Why I speak out in support of black women.”
Throughout the trial, Lanez and his team did not dispute that Pete had been shot; rather, they attempted to portray Lanez as the victim of mistaken identity. The trial was beset by controversy regarding the witnesses, including regarding Pete’s former friend Kelsey Harris, who texted Pete’s bodyguard Justin Edison “Help Tory shot Meg 911” immediately after the incident. At trial, Harris changed her story, saying, “I don’t know why I said that to Justin. I didn’t see anything happen.”
Edison was scheduled to testify at trial. He disappeared just one day before his scheduled testimony. During jury deliberations, he reappeared.
Pete and a variety of forensic experts testified along with the officers who responded to the scene.
Following the verdict, Pete’s attorney Alex Spiro told ABC News, “The jury got it right. I am thankful there is justice for Meg.”
