Funviralpark Following the verdict, Gascon thanked Megan for her testimony and condemned the harassment and ridicule she experienced after coming forward with her account of being shot.
“Despite repeated and grotesque attacks, you have testified of incredible courage and vulnerability,” Gascon said. “Women, especially black women, are afraid to report crimes such as assault and sexual violence because they are so mistrusted.”
Lanez was taken into custody immediately after the verdict. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for his January 27th. Lanez faces her maximum sentence of 22 years and 8 months.
“The jury got it right. We are grateful that justice was given to Meg,” Megan’s attorney, Alex Spiro, told The Washington Post in an email following the verdict.
Lanez’s attorney, George G. Mgdesyan, said the defense team may appeal.
“We are shocked by the verdict,” Mgdesyan told The Post. “There was not enough evidence to convict Mr. Peterson. We believe this case has not been proven beyond a reasonable doubt. We will consider all options, including appeal,” it said. rice field.
A jury of seven women and five men deliberated for about a day after closing arguments ended on Thursday.
During the summer of 2020, reports of an alleged violent incident between Lanez and Megan circulated after a party in Los Angeles’ Hollywood Hills neighborhood on July 12.Megan was the first to detail a “traumatic night” on July 15 on Instagram, saying she “suffered a gunshot wound” and underwent surgery to remove the bullet, prompting an influx of online harassment directed at her. in the murmured Two days later, on how black women are “vulnerable” and “hold many things to protect the feelings of others without considering their own feelings.”
The following month, Megan publicly accused Lanez of shooting herself in the foot after an argument.
In October 2020, Lanez was charged with one felony count of assault with a semi-automatic weapon and one count of carrying a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle. Earlier this month, during jury selection for the case, prosecutors launched his third indictment of firing a firearm with gross negligence. Lanez pleaded not guilty to all three felony counts.
The trial began in December after several delays. Megan gave an emotional testimony, noting that she experienced depression and suicidal thoughts because of how she was treated after speaking about her encounter with Lanez.According to the Los Angeles Times, “If he knew I had to undergo this torture, he would have shot and killed me,” she said.
Before the shooting, Megan said she and Lanez had become intimate and even had a sexual relationship over the loss of their mother, The Times reported. She and Lanez got into an altercation while leaving the show, and the shooting allegedly took place when Lanez told Megan to “stop lying” about the nature of her relationship with her best friend, Kelsey Harris. I got
Megan testified that Harris, who she believed Megan had “fell in love with” Lanez, was also in the SUV with Lanez’s bodyguard. After Megan said she asked her to get out of her car, things escalated for her, and Lanez shot her while yelling “Dance, b—-“.
“I was shocked. I was hurt. I didn’t know if this was really happening.
When asked why she initially told authorities it was the injury from stepping on the glass, Megan said, “I didn’t feel safe with the police,” NPR reported. said he grew up wary of the police, saying, “In the black community, in my community, cooperating with the police is really unacceptable.
Harris, now a former friend of Megan’s, also said in court that she had previously lied about what happened that night. Harris told prosecutors that he threatened to shoot her inside the SUV before starting to shoot the .The Associated Press reported that Harris explicitly stated in the recording that Lanes was “shooting a gun.”
According to the Associated Press, prosecutors were allowed to play all 78 minutes of the recording. According to Rolling Stone, she denied Lanez threatened her and said she could not remember him shooting Megan.
At one point, Harris denied seeing Lanez fire the gun at all, reported Rolling Stone. She said her physical health suffered from a combination of anxiety, postpartum problems, and grief stemming from the death of a loved one.
Harris was a key witness for prosecutors, who expected her to corroborate that Lanez fired the firearm. Harris’ testimony instead contradicted her statement, but Rolling Stone reported that she sent Megan’s bodyguard a three-line text message that night that read, “Help / Tory shot Meg / 911.” He told the court that the text was “based on assumptions.”
The defense called a man named Sean Kelly, who said he witnessed the alleged shooting from his bedroom window. According to Rolling Stone, Kelly testified to first seeing a muzzle flash on a woman’s hand.However, Kelly later said he witnessed a “lesser gentleman” shouting “torrents of abuse” while firing several shots in which the woman appeared to fall to the ground. Said His client is about 5ft 2.
Megan continues to face rampant harassment and ridicule over the alleged affair. She’s still a stallion,” he rapped.Megan reacted on twitteraccuses male rappers like Drake of ‘dog pills'[ing] To black women,” he demanded, “Stop using my shooting for influence.”
According to The Times, while testifying, Megan said, “This whole story isn’t about shooting. It’s just about who I’ve been having sex with.”
She continued, “When people talk about Megan Thee Stallion getting shot, all the headlines are ‘Megan Thee Stallion on trial’ and I’m not on trial!”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
