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Johnny Nunez / Contributor via Getty Images and Savion Washington / Staff via Getty Images
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Tory Lanez attends the 1990 Farewell Party and Megan Thee Stallion attends the Gold House 4th Annual Gold Gala at The Music Center
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Key Takeaways:
- A California appeals court upheld Tory Lanez’s conviction in the 2020 Megan Thee Stallion shooting.
- Judges found the alleged trial errors either unfounded or legally insignificant.
- Lanez can still petition the California Supreme Court, but his 10-year sentence remains in place for now.
On Wednesday (Nov. 12), a California court denied Tory Lanez’s appeal of his guilty verdict in the 2020 shooting of Megan Thee Stallion.
A three-judge panel from the California 2nd District Court of Appeal issued a ruling affirming the conviction. In a 46-page opinion obtained by court reporter Meghann Cuniff, they concluded that the eight errors Lanez claimed occurred during his trial and sentencing were either not errors or considered harmless.
Among the points addressed was Judge David V. Herriford’s decision to allow prosecutors to introduce an Instagram post and play Kelsey Harris’ recorded interview. “Neither Peterson nor his counsel ever told the court that Peterson wished to testify, but was deterred by the prospect of impeachment by the prosecution,” the appellate court said.
They also addressed Lanez’s ethics complaint against his former attorney, Shawn Holley, whom he claimed had ties to Roc Nation. “We find no prejudicial error and, accordingly, affirm Peterson’s conviction,” the justices ruled. “As we find no ineffective assistance of counsel or prejudicial trial court error, we also find no cumulative error.”
The “Say It” singer, who is serving a 10-year sentence, hasn’t responded to the ruling at the time of reporting. However, he still has the option to petition the California Supreme Court for review.
As previously reported, Lanez was convicted in 2022 on three felony counts: assault with a semiautomatic firearm, discharging a firearm with gross negligence, and carrying a loaded, unregistered gun in a vehicle. After beginning his sentence the following year — with 305 days credited for the time he spent on house arrest — the Canadian artist has filed several appeals, all of which have been unsuccessful.
In May, Megan addressed the misinformation claiming Lanez didn’t shoot her, despite the case already being “resolved in the court of law.” She wrote on TikTok, “At what point are y’all gonna stop making me have to relive being shot by Tory!? At what point are Tory and y’all fans gonna stop lying? Like, how much is the check to keep harassing me? Why is this happening every day?”
See the full post below.