After hours of deliberation, a jury cleared A$AP Rocky of felony assault charges in a 2021 shooting case. The verdict quickly sparked discussions online.<\/p>\n
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\nAfter a 13-day trial, the jury at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center acquitted Grammy-nominated rapper A$AP Rocky on February 18 in a felony assault case stemming from a 2021 shooting involving his former collaborator, Terell Ephron, known as A$AP Relli. The verdict, delivered after nearly three hours of deliberation, has sparked netizens’ reactions.<\/p>\n
A netizen’s comment about A$AP Rocky’s not-guilty verdict | Source: Facebook\/kollegekidd
\nA netizen’s comment about A$AP Rocky’s not-guilty verdict | Source: Facebook\/kollegekidd<\/p>\n
Moments after the decision was read, Rocky, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, expressed his relief and gratitude to the jury. “Thank y’all for saving my life,” he told jurors.<\/p>\n
A$AP Rocky reacts in court as he is found not guilty of felony assault in Los Angeles on February 18, 2025 | Source: Getty Images
\nA$AP Rocky reacts in court as he is found not guilty of felony assault in Los Angeles on February 18, 2025 | Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
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\nThe case, according to The New York Times, centered on a dispute between Rocky and Relli, former high school friends and members of the A$AP Mob rap collective. Relli testified that they agreed to meet on the evening of November 6, 2021, in a parking garage near the W Hotel in Hollywood to resolve their differences.<\/p>\n
Relli claimed that Rocky arrived with two men\u2014A$AP Twelvyy, born Jamel Phillips, and A$AP Illz, born Illijah Ulanger. After a brief argument, the groups separated, but the confrontation resumed moments later.<\/p>\n
A$AP Rocky embraces attorney Joe Tacopina in court as he is found not guilty of felony assault in Los Angeles on February 18, 2025 | Source: Getty Images
\nA$AP Rocky embraces attorney Joe Tacopina in court as he is found not guilty of felony assault in Los Angeles on February 18, 2025 | Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
He also alleged that Rocky pulled a gun from his waistband and fired at him, grazing his right hand. Prosecutors presented surveillance footage showing Rocky holding a gun before the shooting to support their case. “The whole thing was like a movie,” Relli testified, describing how Rocky pointed the gun downward before firing the first shot.<\/p>\n
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A$AP Relli testifies in A$AP Rocky’s felony assault trial on January 29, 2025 | Source: Getty Images
\nA$AP Relli testifies in A$AP Rocky’s felony assault trial on January 29, 2025 | Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
The defense countered Relli’s claims, arguing that Rocky had fired blanks from a prop gun, which he had started carrying months earlier on the advice of a security consultant. Witnesses, including Twelvyy, testified that Relli knew the gun was fake and that Rocky intended to protect Illz from being physically attacked.<\/p>\n
A$AP Rocky looks on in court in Los Angeles on February 14, 2025 | Source: Getty Images
\nA$AP Rocky looks on in court in Los Angeles on February 14, 2025 | Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
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\nThe court never introduced a firearm as evidence, and Rocky did not take the stand during the trial. Rocky’s legal team further argued that Relli exaggerated the incident to extort the rapper and bolster his case for damages in an upcoming civil trial.<\/p>\n
A$AP Rocky appears in court with his legal counsel | Source: Getty Images
\nA$AP Rocky appears in court with his legal counsel | Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Rocky’s partner, Rihanna, attended the final verdict of Rocky’s case. Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney John Lewin urged jurors not to be swayed by her presence.<\/p>\n
Rihanna arrives at court for A$AP Rocky\u2019s sentencing in his felony assault trial in Los Angeles on February 18, 2025 | Source: Getty Images
\nRihanna arrives at court for A$AP Rocky\u2019s sentencing in his felony assault trial in Los Angeles on February 18, 2025 | Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
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\nRocky’s attorney, Joe Tacopina, later revealed that the rapper had not wanted Rihanna at the trial. “He wanted to shield her from this. Wild horses couldn’t keep her away,” Tacopina added.<\/p>\n
According to Entertainment Tonight, Rihanna attended several court sessions in support of Rocky, but once, she brought their two sons, RZA, 2, and Riot Rose, 9 months.<\/p>\n
Rihanna and A$AP Rocky leave court in Los Angeles on February 14, 2025 | Source: Getty Images
\nRihanna and A$AP Rocky leave court in Los Angeles on February 14, 2025 | Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
She arrived at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in Los Angeles holding Riot, while another woman carried RZA. Rocky’s mother, Renee Black, and his sister were also present.<\/p>\n
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Following the news of Rocky’s not-guilty verdict, social media erupted with reactions. One supporter posted, “Amen!!!!!!! Now go home to your wife and babies man I’m crying real tears!!! I’m so happy for him.”<\/p>\n
Others speculated about the trial’s outcome. One user wrote, “I know that cost Rihanna a pretty penny \ud83e\udd23\ud83e\udd23\ud83e\udd23\ud83e\udd23\ud83e\udd23\ud83e\udd23\ud83d\ude2c,” while another commented, “When you have money evidence goes missing.”<\/p>\n
Rihanna and A$AP Rocky leave court after his felony assault trial verdict in Los Angeles on February 18, 2025 | Source: Getty Images
\nRihanna and A$AP Rocky leave court after his felony assault trial verdict in Los Angeles on February 18, 2025 | Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
One skeptic acknowledged their initial doubt when A$AP Rocky rejected a plea deal but noted that his decision ultimately led to freedom. A separate user expressed happiness with the trial’s result for both the rapper and Rihanna, while someone else simply called him an “innocent man.”<\/p>\n
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Back in January 2025, according to ABC News, Rocky rejected a plea deal that would have required him to serve 180 days in jail, three years of probation, and other minor conditions in exchange for pleading guilty to an assault with a gun charge.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After hours of deliberation, a jury cleared A$AP Rocky of felony assault charges in a 2021 shooting case. The verdict quickly sparked discussions online. Advertisement After a 13-day trial, the jury at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center acquitted Grammy-nominated rapper A$AP Rocky on February 18 in a felony assault case stemming from a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2190,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2189","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2189","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2189"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2189\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2191,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2189\/revisions\/2191"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2190"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2189"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2189"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2189"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}