Tory Lanez has refused to testify in his own defense in the ongoing trial where he is accused of shooting Megan Thee Stallion.
Lanez (real name Daystar Peterson) is accused of shooting Megan (real name Megan Pete) in the leg in July 2020 during an argument that broke out after a pool party at the home of reality TV star Kylie Jenner in California.
He faces three felony charges, all of which he denies: one count of assault with a semi-automatic firearm; one charge of carrying a concealed, loaded and unregistered firearm in a vehicle and a third charge of discharging a firearm by gross negligence.
If convicted, Lanez faces 22 years and eight months in prison in addition to deportation because he is a Canadian citizen.
Appearing in court yesterday (December 21), Peterson told the judge before opening statements (via Rolling Stone): “I won’t testify.”
During the afternoon session, Megan’s lawyer Alexander Bott called the trial “a case about a guy who shot a girl, people saw it, and then he apologized for it,” saying that the alleged incident occurred because of “nothing more than a bruised ego.” .
He added, “You know what? Megan found the courage to confess. She found the courage [to say] what the defendant did to her, and after more than two years of this torture, it’s finally time for you, the jury, to find the defendant guilty.”
Elsewhere, Bott referred to the testimony of Megan’s former assistant Kelsey Harris, who appeared as a witness last week and appeared to recant an earlier claim that Peterson had threatened her with a gun.
“At the time, she was only thinking about Megan,” Bott said. “I just want to stop here for a second. The defense is asking you to believe that Kelsey Harris shot Megan that night and then comforted her and [held] Megan’s bleeding feet on her.
“Are these the actions of the girl who just shot Megan?” he added. “Within five minutes of the shooting, she sends this text message. Is Kelsey some kind of sophisticated crime boss that I didn’t know about when she frames the defendant for five minutes? Protection doesn’t make sense.”
In response, defense attorney George Mgdeseyan said the prosecution’s statement is “full of holes,” adding, “Megan Peet is a liar.”
Last week (December 13), Megan gave emotional testimony in court. According to Billboard, speaking in a Los Angeles court, Pete was visibly agitated and told prosecutors she was “nervous” to testify.
She also cried repeatedly when she talked about depression and suicide. “I wish he would just shoot me if I knew I would have to go through this torture,” she said (via LA Times).
The final debate on the case continues today (December 22).
