Tory Lanez is pushing for a new trial, but prosecutors are calling his claims baseless. The Toronto rapper, whose real name is Daystar Peterson, was convicted in December last year of shooting Megan Thee Stallion and severely injuring her foot. The guilty verdict sent shockwaves throughout his camp and supporters, leaving him spending the Christmas holiday behind bars.
Since his incarceration, Tory Lanez has hired a new team of lawyers who filed a motion requesting a new trial stating that their client was deprived of a fair trial. “The only acceptable remedy for this miscarriage of justice is a new trial,” defense lawyers said in their motion for a new trial.
A key piece of evidence at the center of the defense motion for a new trial is a comment allegedly made by Tory Lanez on Instagram in September 2020, when he allegedly stated that Kelsey Harris, who is Megan Thee Stallion’s former best friend turn witness, was not the shooter.
In legal documents obtained by Urban Islandz on Saturday, attorneys Kathy Ta and Alexander Bott, who filed on behalf of the District Attorney’s office, opposed the motion for a new trial pointing out “baseless” claims from the defense and arguing that there are several key reasons why Peterson isn’t entitled to get a new trial.
The D.A.’s office states that the defendant (Tory Lanez) should only get a new trial if the defense can “demonstrate a reversible error or other defect.” Prosecutors further stated that the arguments put forward by the defense for a new trial are primarily about facts in the case that defense lawyers did not challenge during the December trial. Hence there is no argument for “defect.”
Additionally, the District Attorney’s office pointed out that Tory Lanez was not denied his right to counsel or any of the evidence. A defendant’s right to counsel is a fundamental Sixth Amendment right. In their legal documents, lawyers for the D.A.’s office pointed out that the alleged “improper” evidence was not objected to by the defendant’s attorneys during the original trial.
Lawyers also disputed Tory Lanez’s claims that his right to due process was violated since he wasn’t allowed to testify during the trial. Defendants, usually through counsel by their attorneys, have the right to decide whether or not to testify in their trial.
According to Law & Crime reporter Meghann Cuniff, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge David J. Herriford set a hearing for April 10th to consider Tory Lanez’s motion for a new trial.
“Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge David J. Herriford is scheduled to consider Lanez’s new trial request Monday (April 10) at 10:30 a.m. Lanez was to be sentenced that day if Herriford rejects the motion, but the sentencing is now expected to be delayed to late April or early May,” Cuniff wrote.
Los Angeles County prosecutors say the evidence of Tory Lanez's guilt in the 2020 shooting of Megan Thee Stallion is "overwhelming."
I've got all the details on their newly filed opposition to his motion for new trial. https://t.co/IsR24s0ShU
— Meghann Cuniff (@meghanncuniff) April 7, 2023
Among the new lawyers, Tory Lanez hired is prominent criminal defense lawyer Jose Baez. The defense is hoping that a new trial will be granted, giving them a chance to exonerate the embattled rapper.
Tory Lanez was found guilty on December 23, 2022, of felony assault with a semiautomatic firearm, discharging a firearm with gross negligence, and possession of a concealed, unregistered firearm. The trial was related to the July 2020 shooting of Houston rapper Megan Thee Stallion, in which bullet fragments injured her leg following a fight with the rapper and her former best friend. Tory was arrested after the incident and had been out on bail leading up to the trial.
