A$AP Rocky embraced his partner, Rihanna, in a jubilant moment on Tuesday after a Los Angeles courtroom read the not-guilty verdict in his gun assault case. The rapper, whose legal name is Rakim Mayers, had been facing two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm.
After a three-week trial, the jury deliberated for just three hours before delivering the verdict, sparing him from a potential prison sentence of over 20 years. As the jury exited, Rocky expressed his gratitude, saying, “Thank y’all for saving my life.”
The courtroom erupted in excitement as Rocky leapt into the gallery, where Rihanna sat with his mother and sister. The couple, visibly emotional, shared a heartfelt embrace.
Before the trial, Rocky rejected a prosecution offer of six months in jail, choosing instead to fight the charges. The jury ultimately found reasonable doubt in his case.
Rihanna, who attended parts of the trial with their two young sons, also hugged the defense team in celebration. After the verdict, the couple navigated through a swarm of reporters and fans to reach a waiting SUV.
“This whole experience has been crazy for the past 4 years,’ Rocky said amid the mob scene. ”I’m thankful and it’s blessed to be here right now to be a free man talking to y’all.”
District Attorney Nathan Hochman said he respected the jury’s decision.
“Our office remains committed to seeking accountability for those who break the law, no matter their status or influence,” Hochman said in a statement. “Fame does not place anyone above the law, and we will not waver in our pursuit of justice for victims and the community.”
The verdict came at the height of Rocky’s fame, if not the pinnacle of his music career. The three-time Grammy nominee, fashion mogul and actor has a banner year in the works, and can now look to it without the threat of prison hanging over him.
He is scheduled to headline the Rolling Loud music festival in March; he is one of the celebrity co-chairs of fashion’s biggest night, the Met Gala, in May; and he stars with Denzel Washington in director Spike Lee’s film “Highest 2 Lowest,” set for release in early summer.
Prosecutors and their witnesses said that he was beefing with a former friend, A$AP Relli, with whom he had been in a crew who called themselves the A$AP Mob since high school. They said the two men met up in Hollywood on Nov. 6, 2021, and after a scuffle, Rocky pulled the gun and fired twice at Relli, who said one of the shots grazed his knuckle but was not seriously hurt.
“They saw through this mirage of a case,” Tacopina said. “He turned down a plea for almost no jail time because he was innocent.”
In his closing argument, Deputy District Attorney John Lewin urged the jurors not to be influenced by the celebrity or family aspects of the case and suggested Rihanna bringing the kids to closing arguments was an attempt to manipulate the jury.
“You are not allowed to consider how this might affect Rihanna and his kids,” the prosecutor said. “We are all responsible for our own actions in the world.”
After the verdict, Tacopina said outside the courthouse that “Rocky did not want her here, I will tell you that.”
He said Rocky “wanted to shield her from this. Wild horses couldn’t keep her away.”
Rocky was more than 30 minutes late for the reading of the verdict, and looked shaken and tense as he waited for it.
“There was a moment when before we heard the words from the clerk, he didn’t know if he was going to be spending the next two decades in jail or going home,” Tacopina said.
Then came the explosion of the emotion, and the leap into the crowd.
“I didn’t know how athletic he was,” Tacopina said. “That was raw emotion, you guys got to see that. Even for us it was insane.”
