Tory Lanez Sentenced to 10 Years in Megan Thee Stallion Shooting Case
Cuniff quoted Lanez as saying, “We both lost our mothers. We would sit there and drink, and drink until we got numb.” He reportedly added that, with regards to the shooting, “I said some very immature things that I shouldn’t have said. I revealed some secrets I shouldn’t have revealed.”
TMZ added that the verdict elicited “serious pain” from Lanez’s assembled loved ones, as “several members—including his dad and stepmom—shouted, ‘This system stands before God!’ Some of his family members were even escorted out of the courtroom.”
Judge Herriford acknowledged that it was “difficult to reconcile” the Lanez who shot Megan with, the Associated Press writes, “the kind, charitable person and good father many people described Lanez as being during the sentencing hearing.”
District Attorney George Gascón was scheduled to address Lanez’s sentencing in a press conference at the Hall of Justice in Los Angeles.
Sentencing was expected to wrap up on Monday but was postponed to Tuesday. During Monday’s proceedings, notably, Cuniff reported that Judge Herriford had received more than 70 “letters of support” for Lanez. Among the letters was one from Iggy Azalea, who later spoke out about the letter being revealed, saying she “never intended to publicly comment.”
Azalea also clarified the contents of the letter, noting that she does not “‘support’ anyone” but was instead calling for a more rehabilitative sentence in the case.
Also in Monday’s hearing, Deputy District Attorney Kathy Ta read a statement from Megan Thee Stallion. In the statement, per USA Today, the 28-year-old said she “could not bring myself to be in a room with Tory again” after the shooting.
“Since I was viciously shot by the defendant, I have not experienced a single day of peace,” Megan said in the statement. “Slowly but surely, I’m healing and coming back, but I will never be the same.”
Tory Lanez was found guilty in the widely publicized case last December, with a jury convicting him on multiple charges including assault with a semiautomatic firearm. In a statement at the time, Gascón noted that Lanez was then facing a maximum sentence of more than 22 years behind bars.
“Women, especially Black women, are afraid to report crimes like assault and sexual violence because they are too often not believed,” Gascó said in December. “This trial, for the second time this month, highlighted the numerous ways that our society must do better for women.”
While sentencing was initially slated for January, it was ultimately delayed. In June, for example, Cuniff reported that sentencing in the case had been pushed back to early August.
In May, Deputy Los Angeles County District Attorney Alexander Bott told reporters he was expecting Lanez to receive a sentence of at least nine years due to the nature of the conviction against him.
“So I would say that, any time you point a gun at someone and pull the trigger five times, that’s an action that could easily kill a person,” Deputy Los Angeles County District Attorney Alexander Bott said at the time. “I think that’s an action that deserves serious consequences.”
Earlier this year, Megan Thee Stallion spoke out for the “final time” on the shooting. In a piece for Elle in April, as told to Evette Dionne, Megan reflected on having “truly survived the unimaginable” over the past three years. She also shared a message for those in the industry who made light of the shooting or used it in their own work, saying “these individuals tried to justify my attacker’s actions.”
Days before Monday’s sentencing, it was reported that Lanez’s lawyers were arguing for probation in their client’s case instead of time behind bars.
