Updated on 11/25/2023 at 12:30 pm PT: While A$AP Rocky may still be in a celebratory mood thanks to his new collab with Puma, things may be taking a turn for the worse after a judge officially ruled this week that he must stand trial for the 2021 shooting of his former friend and former A$AP Mob member A$AP Relli.
Per CBS News, Superior Court Judge M.L. Villar made the ruling a day and half of testimony from both Rocky and Relli’s team. The “Purple Swag” rapper was present in the courtroom when he was told he would have to go to trial with the judge citing that “the totality of the video and testimony” showed sufficient enough evidence. The judge also emphasized that preliminary hearings have a “much lower evidence standard than a trial and she was only finding probable cause.”
CBS News has more:
Rocky’s attorney Joe Tacopina established while questioning a police detective that seven officers who searched a sidewalk and street about 20 minutes after the shots were allegedly fired found no evidence of the shooting, and that a pair of 9 mm shell casings in police possession were recovered by Ephron, who returned to the scene about an hour after the standoff. Tacopina played body camera video of the officers, who searched the ground for about 10 minutes. Ephron, who first went to police to report the incident two days later, turned over the shell casings, which the detective said had no recoverable fingerprints on them.
Prosecutors showed a separate video from near the scene where no people are initially visible, but what sounds like two gunshots can be heard. Then a man comes running around a corner, then slows to a walk. The man’s identity is not clear in the video, but Flores testified they have established it is Rocky. LAPD Detective Frank Flores testified under Tacopina’s questioning that no 9 mm pistol was recovered when a search warrant was served on Rocky.
Rocky has pled not guilty to all charges.
See the original story below.
At a time where rapper A$AP Rocky should be mostly focusing on his new bundle of joy—son Riot, of whom he shares with Rihanna alongside their first-born son RZA—it looks like the “Fashion Killa” artist may have yet another legal battle to contend with.
Per legal documents obtained by TMZ on Tuesday, Rocky is now facing a new defamation lawsuit, brought against him by former A$AP Mob member, A$AP Relli. As previously reported by The Root, Relli accused Rocky of shooting him back in 2021. The “L$D” rapper currently faces two counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm with allegations of personally using a firearm. He has pled not guilty.
Now, in the new suit which names both Rocky and his lawyer Joe Tacopina, Relli is alleging that the lawyer “went on a press campaign” after the alleged shooting back in 2021 and defamed his name while doing so. Relli also claims that Tacopina made him out to look like “a liar, a money grabber, and an extortionist” at the direction of Rocky and that their actions have caused him to receive death threats and be ridiculed. He’s seeking unspecified damages.
Speaking to TMZ about the new suit, Tacopina said:
“This is actually nothing more than a publicity stunt which is going to backfire badly. I more than welcome this lawsuit especially because the resolution of the criminal case has not happened yet. This opens up this extortionist to depositions under oath now before the resolution of the criminal case.
It will expose the fraud he committed and unfortunately for his lawyers, it will cause them to be responsible for legal fees in this case. They don’t know the facts of this case or the actions taken by their client. But, I will be more than happy to educate them.
There’s still no word yet on when Rocky will head back to court for the assault charges. If convicted he faces up to 9 years in prison.