The rapper was found not guilty of felony assault following a high-profile trial in Los Angeles. The couple exited the rapper’s trial on Tuesday surrounded by reporters and fans. In a video shared on X, someone could be heard asking Rocky (real name Rakim Mayers): “A$AP how does it feel losing your childhood best friend?”.
Rihanna span around to address the comment, responding curtly: “How do you think it feels?”. On X/Twitter, many people applauded Rihanna for defending her partner. “Rihanna had to check someone for asking a weird af question,” one wrote. “Oh she don't play about her man like that was so unnecessary and insensitive as a question tho,” another added, while a third agreed: “That was so unnecessary, but Rihanna handled it perfectly.”.
On the eve of trial, Rocky turned down a prosecution offer of just six months in jail, along with probation and other conditions, if he would plead guilty to one count. Prosecutors alleged that Rocky twice fired a gun at Relli, real name Terrell Ephron, when they met up in Hollywood on November 6, 2021. The pair were part of a crew who called themselves the A$AP Mob since high school.
Relli was the key witness for the prosecution. In his testimony, which made up the bulk of the prosecution’s case, he said his knuckles were grazed by one of the shots, but he was otherwise uninjured. The defense argued that Rocky fired blanks from a prop gun that he picked up from a music video set for protection.
Rocky’s lawyer Joe Tacopina said in his closing argument that Relli is “an angry pathological liar” who “committed perjury again and again and again and again.”. Upon hearing the verdict, Rocky turned and ran to embrace jubilant supporters behind him – falling over as he did so.
“Thank y’all for saving my life,” he told jurors as they left the courtroom. He left the trail with Rihanna who attended much of the trial and brought their two toddler sons — RZA, two, and Riot, one — to closing arguments. Outside the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center, Rocky spoke to the press, expressing his gratitude for God and the jury.
“I really want to thank the jury for making the right decision. I’m just so thankful. This is crazy right now,” he said. “This whole experience has been crazy, for the past four years, but I’m thankful, nonetheless, I’m thankful. Blessed to be here right now, to be a free man talkin’ to y’all. Thank you.”.
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