Tory Lanez’s appeal for a new trial in the Megan Thee Stallion shooting case was denied on Tuesday (May 9).
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Found guilty in December of assault with a semiautomatic firearm, having an unregistered loaded gun in a vehicle, and discharge with gross negligence, Lanez and his attorneys argued during the hearing Tuesday that the Los Angeles Superior Court made multiple errors in his trial that led to an incorrect verdict. But, Judge David Herriford disagreed.
“The court finds no error, prosecutorial misconduct, or newly discovered evidence,” Herriford said. “Motion denied.”
Now, Lanez, who has been behind bars since his initial verdict at the end of 2022, will be headed toward sentencing. After Lanez’s motion for a retrial was thwarted, Los Angeles district attorney Alexander Bott spoke with reporters about how long the rapper could be sent to prison. Bott, who was part of the prosecution team during Lanez’s trial, said Lanez could be looking at a minimum of nine years in prison.
“The sentencing range on this case is roughly nine years all the way up to 22 years and eight months,” he said. “The minimum would be approximately nine years. The judge could, theoretically, stave certain allegations and get below that, but that would be pretty unlikely.”
Later, Bott explained why a sentence for these crimes would be so high.
“My job as a deputy district attorney is to enforce the laws that are written by the legislature. … I would say any time you point a gun at someone and pull the trigger five times, that’s an action that could easily kill a person, and I think that’s an action that deserves serious consequences,” Bott continued.
Lanez’s sentencing date for his shooting of Megan Thee Stallion has not yet been confirmed, as it was delayed several times to accommodate his appeal. But recently, Bott and Megan asserted how they want this case to be handled sooner rather than later.
“We want to make sure that Megan gets closure as quickly as possible. She wants to put an end to this chapter of her life,” Bott said.
Photo by Johnny Nunez/Getty Images
