Updated December 23, 2022 at 7:12 PM ET
Rapper Tory Lanez was convicted in his assault trial, two years after he shot rapper Megan Thee Stallion in the feet.
A Los Angeles jury on Friday found Lanez guilty on all three felony charges: assault with a semi-automatic firearm, possession of a concealed, unregistered firearm, negligent discharge of a firearm. He pleaded not guilty.
The Canadian rapper is facing up to 22 years in prison for the charges.
From conflicting testimonies to rescheduled hearings to the involvement of fan bases and even fellow musicians, the hip-hop scene has been divided over the case.
Here are key events that have led up to this moment.
April 23, 2020
Footage of Lanez and Stallion hanging out together — during the height of the pandemic when health officials asked people to social distance — is shared across social media.
July 12, 2020
Lanez is pulled over and arrested for carrying a concealed firearm in his vehicle. Stallion, who is present during the arrest, is taken to the hospital because of a foot injury.
In what TMZ reported was footage of the arrest, a person can be heard in the video saying, "Megan, are you OK?"
July 15, 2020
In a since-deleted Instagram post, Stallion says she suffered gunshot wounds the night of Lanez's arrest.
"On Sunday morning, I suffered gunshot wounds, as a result of a crime that was committed against me and done with the intention to physically harm me," Stallion wrote. "I was never arrested, the police officers drove me to the hospital where I underwent surgery to remove the bullets."
July 17, 2020
Stallion discusses the backlash she's received since revealing what happened.
"It might be funny to y'all on the internet and just another messy topic for you to talk about but this is my real life and I'm real life hurt and traumatized," Stallion wrote on Twitter.
Black women are so unprotected & we hold so many things in to protect the feelings of others w/o considering our own. It might be funny to y’all on the internet and just another messy topic for you to talk about but this is my real life and I’m real life hurt and traumatized.
— TINA SNOW (@theestallion) July 17, 2020
Aug. 20, 2020
Stallion publicly identified Lanez as the person who shot her.
"You shot me, and you got your publicist and your people going to these blogs, lying and s***," Stallion said on Instagram Live. "Stop lying. Why lie? I don't understand. I tried to keep the situation off the internet, but you're dragging it."
Sept. 25, 2020
Lanez — whose legal name is Daystar Peterson — releases DAYSTAR, an album packed with lyrics that assert his innocence and cast doubt on whether Stallion was shot.
"How the f*** you get shot in your foot, don't hit no bones or tendons?" Lanez raps on "Money Over Fallouts."
Oct. 4, 2020
Stallion's performance on Saturday Night Live includes references to the shooting. Rapping in front of a backdrop with the words "Protect Black Women," Stallion comments on racism, sexism and gun violence.
Oct. 8, 2020
The Los Angeles County district attorney's office charges Lanez with felony assault with a semiautomatic firearm.
"On July 12, the defendant and the 24-year-old victim got into an argument while riding in an SUV in the Hollywood Hills," prosecutors said in a news release. "The victim exited the vehicle and Peterson is accused of shooting several times at her feet and wounding her." (Stallion was actually 25 at the time.)
Lanez is also charged with carrying a loaded and unregistered firearm in a vehicle as well as "a gun allegation and that he personally inflicted great bodily injury," according to the release.
Oct. 13, 2020
A judge issues a protective order against Lanez, forbidding him from getting within 100 yards of Stallion.
"You have been served orally and the court is ordering your attorney to provide you with that protective order," Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Miguel Espinoza told Lanez, according to the New York Daily News.
In an op-ed for The New York Times published the same day, Stallion discusses the alleged assault by Lanez.
"I was recently the victim of an act of violence by a man," she writes. "After a party, I was shot twice as I walked away from him. We were not in a relationship. Truthfully, I was shocked that I ended up in that place."
Nov. 20, 2020
Stallion releases Good News, an album containing a track that references the case.
"Imagine n***** lyin' 'bout shootin' a real b****," Stallion raps on "Shots Fired." "Just to save face for rapper n***** you chill with."
July 25, 2021
Lanez violates the protective order after attending — and performing — at that year's Rolling Loud festival. Lanez performed alongside rapper DaBaby just moments after Stallion left the same stage.
As a result, a judge increased his bail from $190,000 to $250,000 the following month.
Dec. 14, 2021
During testimony at a preliminary hearing, Los Angeles Police Department detective Ryan Stogner revealed more details of the alleged assault.
Lanez allegedly yelled "dance, b****!" as he fired at Stallion, who he described as being "half in, half out" of the car.
"Megan immediately felt pain to her feet, observed blood, fell to the ground, and then crawled to an adjacent driveway of a residence. ... She described her injuries as bleeding profusely," Stogner said, according to Rolling Stone.
Feb. 23, 2022
A social media post falsely claims that a pre-trial hearing revealed that Lanez's DNA was nowhere to be found on the gun. The misinformation gains traction.
March 11, 2022
Lanez releases "Cap," which contains lyrics aimed at Pardison Fontaine, Stallion's boyfriend. The diss track's release follows a back-and-forth the two had on Twitter weeks earlier.
April 16, 2022
Stallion performs a song at Coachella with references to Lanez. Ahead of her performance, Stallion teased the new song — later released under the name "Plan B" — online.
I got this song that I recorded and every time I play it for a woman they start jumping and clapping 😂 I think I wanna perform it at Coachella for the first time before I actually drop it
— TINA SNOW (@theestallion) April 7, 2022
April 24, 2022
Stallion appears on CBS Mornings in her first televised interview directly addressing the shooting.
"He is standing up over the window shooting. And I didn't even want to move. I didn't want to move too quick," she said. "I don't know if he's going to shoot something that's, like, super important. I don't know if he could shoot me and kill me."
Aug. 12, 2022
Stallion drops the album Traumazine, which includes another song that references the shooting.
"I feel like Biggie, who shot you?" Stallion raps on "Who Me." "But everybody know who shot me, b****."
Sept. 18, 2022
Singer August Alsina claims that Lanez assaulted him. Alsina shared a photo of himself in an elevator, with blood on his face, detailing his exchange with Lanez.
"There was never a 'fight'!" Alsina writes in the lengthy post. "Simply an Assault. Dude has no real friends, and is on a crash out mission."
Sept. 23, 2022
Rapper DaBaby releases Baby on Baby 2, an album that features the song "Boogeyman," with lyrics referencing the incident.
"You play with me, that s*** was childish," DaBaby raps. "The day before she said that Tory Lanez shot her, I was f***** on Megan Thee Stallion."
Oct. 4, 2022
In an interview with the Off the Record podcast, Lanez acknowledges the trial and the decades of prison time he could face.
"Guys, I am actively facing 24 years next month," he said.
Oct. 26, 2022
Lanez is placed under house arrest until the trial begins. He's also ordered to wear an ankle monitor at all times. The decision is made citing another violation of Lanez's bail in which he allegedly attacked singer August Alsina.
Nov. 4, 2022
Rappers 21 Savage and Drake release a new album, Her Loss. It includes "Circo Loco," where Drake references the shooting and casts doubt on Stallion.
"This b**** lie 'bout getting shots, but she still a stallion," Drake raps. "She don't even get the joke but she still smiling."
Dec. 5, 2022
Jury selection for the trial begins in Los Angeles. Prosecutors also added a third felony charge, discharging a firearm with gross negligence, although it ultimately will not affect the length of imprisonment if Lanez is convicted.
Dec. 12, 2022
The trial officially begins with opening statements from both Los Angeles County prosecutors Kathy Ta and Alexander Bott, as well as defense attorney George Mgdesyan. The prosecution sets out to prove the shooting was motivated by Lanez being spurned by comments about his rap career. On the other hand, the defense argues that the case was one based on jealousy, saying his client was definitely not the shooter and asserted that "Nobody heard anyone say, 'Dance, b****!"
Three officers, one who responded to the crime scene and two who made the arrests, testified along with a detective. Through evidence and the officials' respective testimonies, it is established that there was gunshot residue found on both Peterson and Kelsey Harris.
Dec. 13, 2022
Stallion takes the stand as a witness for the prosecution and testified in detail about the night of the shooting. She recounts on record that Lanez tried to instigate a fight between herself and Kelsey Harris, her former assistant. Stallion also testifies she saw Lanez shoot at her.
Stallion also said she suffered from suicidal thoughts in the aftermath.
"I don't feel like I want to be on this earth," she testifies. "I wish he would have just shot and killed me, if I knew I would have to go through this torture."
Stallion also said that she and Lanez had an intimate but not exclusive relationship before the night of the shooting.
Dec. 15, 2022
While taking the stand, Harris testified that she did not see Lanez shoot Stallion and did not hear him say "dance, b****!"
The testimony is a major blowback for the prosecution because Harris previously told authorities that Lanez had also threatened her. In recanting her story, Harris further casted doubt that Lanez attacked Stallion.
The prosecution, which granted Harris immunity for her testimony, worked to convince jurors that the original testimony is the correct one. They asked her about whether Lanez had made bribes, sharing text messages between Harris and Stallion, and having Harris confirm that she herself did not shoot Stallion.
Dr. Lee Hurano, the surgeon who operated on Stallion in the same month as the attack, also provided testimony that Stallion was indeed shot. He showed X-rays that confirmed there are still "foreign metallic bodies" in her feet.
Dec. 16, 2022
After the continued hesitancy of Kelsey Harris' during her in-court testimony, and Defense attorney Mgdsesyan's insinuation that Harris was being coerced by the District Attorney's Office, the DDAs moved to have Harris' entire September 2022 interview admitted into evidence. In her 80-minute interview that was played in court for the jury and the public, Harris sounded more relaxed and sure of her recollection of the night, saying that Tory Lanez did attack both her and Megan.
Later in the day, two DNA experts (one from defense and one from prosecution) testified that Lanez's DNA was not found on the magazine of the gun found on the scene, but came back inconclusive for being found on the firearm itself.
Dec. 19, 2022
Kelsey's full lyrics to the song "Bussin Back" were admitted into evidence by the prosecution after Defense attorney Mgdsesyan attempted to recite a portion of the lyrics to Harris while she was testifying. The purpose of submitting the full lyrics was to show that the content was the song states that Harris was not the shooter.
In the afternoon session, EJ King (real name Eric Culberson) was called as a witness for the defense. As Megan's ex-stylist, EJ testified to what happened at the pool party; How intoxicated Megan, Kelsey and Tory were and how although he was intended to give them a ride home, Megan and Kelsey instead left once with Tory's driver then came back for Tory. EJ also testified that when Megan doesn't have security around, he knows she keeps tasers and mace to protect herself. When asked if he's ever seen Megan or Kelsey carry guns he answered, "Not that I recall."
Dec. 20, 2022
The defense called Sean Kelly, the 911 caller who witnessed a portion of the assault from his bedroom window. During his testimony, Kelly waffled back and forth about the sequences of events he witnessed, saying "I never saw a gun" and that both Tory and Kelsey were near the "muzzle flash."
Dec. 23, 2022
After the jury deliberated for two days, Tory Lanez is convicted on all three felony charges; assault with a semi-automatic firearm, possession of a concealed, unregistered firearm, negligent discharge of a firearm. He was taken into custody as soon as the verdict was read in court.
Sidney Madden, Gabby Bulgarelli and Sam Leeds all contributed to this reporting.
If you or someone you know may be considering suicide or is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. For suicide prevention resources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, click here.
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