Screams were heard inside the courtroom upon the reading of the verdict as Rocky ran to the back of the room to hug his longtime partner, Rihanna, who appeared inside the court on multiple occasions throughout the nearly month-long trial. Rocky, whose legal name is Rakim Mayers, had faced up to 24 years in prison if convicted of all charges.
Prosecutors had alleged he shot in the direction of his former friend, Terell Ephron, near a Hollywood hotel in 2021. Ephron, another former member of the hip hop collective A$AP Mob who previously went by A$AP Relli, has said he was left with bullet-graze wounds above his knuckles. He testified that Rocky had allegedly threatened to kill him the same night.
The defense accused Ephron of fabricating evidence, committing perjury and attempting to extort Rocky, saying the rapper had a prop gun that only fired blanks which he carried around for security.
Rakim Mayers, aka A$AP Rocky, appears in court during his felony assault trial. Getty ImagesAs closing arguments got underway late last week, Rihanna appeared inside the downtown LA courtroom with the couple's 2-year-old and 1-year-old sons with her for the first time, the Associated Press reported.
Why A$AP Rocky is on trial in Los Angeles
While he said he couldn't remember certain details, he told jurors Rocky had moved the gun as he pointed it, saying "He was looking for a spot to shoot me."
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 29: A$AP Relli testifies during the A$AP Rocky trial for felony assault charges at Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center on January 29, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. Getty ImagesThe former friends were near the intersection of Argyle and Selma avenues, an area of Hollywood just around the corner from the Walk of Fame, when prosecutors say Rocky opened fire.
"When he shot the first shot, I felt my hand hot," he told jurors from the witness stand last month, saying he grabbed another person there that night and "used him as a shield" to try dodging the gunfire. "I'm just trying to like not get hit at this point," Ephron said.
"It wasn't hard for me to find the bullets because I knew exactly where I got shot at," he said.
"What you'll learn is that Relli returned to that scene an hour later," Tacopina said of Ephron, referring to him by his former artist name of A$AP Relli. "And he attempted to fabricated evidence... This is some offensive stuff."
The defense has argued the rapper could also be found not guilty on the basis of self defense. Both the prosecution and defense has agreed that Rocky and two other men who were with him that night walked away after the first of two confrontations in Hollywood on the evening of Nov. 6, 2021, and that Relli followed them before the second confrontation. However, prosecutors have argued Rocky was the aggressor when he allegedly pulled out the gun and then allegedly opened fire during the second incident.
While arguing that Ephron attempted to extort Rocky, the defense presented recordings which a witness for the defense, Wally Sajimi, testified he made in 2022. On the recording, a voice resembling Ephron's says he will accept being paid to stop taking part in the case against Rocky. "Once I walk away, when I get my cash, the case will get way weaker," the voice on the recording says.
LOS ANGELES, CA - FEBRUARY 14: Rihanna and A$AP Rocky are seen leaving court on February 14, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by DUTCH/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images) DUTCH/Bauer-Griffin"Mr. Ephron wants to be paid because he was the victim of a real crime by a real gun," Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Paul Przelomiec told jurors last week. "In that couple minutes, he tells the exact same details that he told you when he testified in this case."
During closing arguments, Przelomiec told jurors that witnesses who testified for the defense never told law enforcement that Rocky had a fake gun that night when the investigation first got underway. He said the prop gun was only brought up more than two years after the alleged shooting, when those witnesses spoke with Rocky's defense attorneys.
Meanwhile, the defense has honed in what they allege is a lack of credibility in the prosecution's key witness.
"They mean nothing without believing his story," Tacopina said.
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