Music artist Tory Lanez arrives for the 59th Annual Grammy Awards held at the Staples Center on February 12, 2017 in Los Angeles. File photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI
Megan Thee Stallion attends the annual Billboard Music Awards held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on May 15, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. File photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI
23 Dec (UPI) — Canadian rapper Tory Lanez was convicted on Friday of shooting fellow artist Megan Thee Stallion in both feet after a dispute in 2020.
Lanez, 30, was found guilty of three charges, including assault with a semi-automatic pistol, carrying a loaded and unregistered firearm in a vehicle and recklessly discharging a firearm. The New York Times And CNN reported.
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The verdict was reached by the jury after seven hours of deliberation over two days after a nearly two-week trial.
Lanez, who was out on bail, was taken out of the courtroom in handcuffs after the sentencing. He previously pleaded not guilty to facing up to 22 years in prison pending his sentencing – which is scheduled for January 27 – and possible deportation to Canada.
According to reports, Megan Thee Stallion, who previously testified in the case, was not present in the courtroom for the sentencing.
During her testimony, the hip-hop artist said she was riding in a car with Lanez and her former friend and assistant Kelsey Harris on the way home from an event at reality star Kyle Jenner’s home.
Lanez wanted Megan to tell Thee Stallion Harris that the two had been intimate, which led to a tense situation in the car, she testified. She testified that she then got out of the car and walked away when Lanez yelled at her to “dance” before shooting her.
Lanez’s attorneys argued during the trial that Harris and Megan Thee Stallion had argued about him that night, suggesting the assistant may have been motivated to shoot her friend, the New York Times reported.
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón told CNN in a statement that Megan Thee Stallion “showed incredible courage and vulnerability” by testifying in the case.
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