ASAP Rocky has been found not guilty

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Rapper A$AP Rocky, legally known as Rakim Mayers, was acquitted Tuesday of two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm. The charges were related to a 2021 incident where Mayers was accused of firing a gun at his former friend, Terell Ephron, professionally known as A$AP Relli. The Los Angeles jury, comprising seven women and five men, delivered the unanimous not guilty verdict after approximately three hours of deliberation, concluding a three-week trial.

Prosecutors alleged that on November 6, 2021, Mayers discharged a firearm at Ephron during a dispute on a Hollywood street, with one bullet reportedly grazing Ephron's knuckles. The defense countered that Mayers fired blanks from a prop gun obtained from a music video set and acted in self-defense.

The trial garnered significant attention, partly due to Mayers' status as a Grammy-nominated artist and his relationship with superstar Rihanna. Rihanna attended much of the trial, often accompanied by the couple's two young sons.

As the jury reached the verdict in the gun trial and announced that ASAP Rocky was not guilty on his first count the rapper dove into the arms of long time girlfriend and mother of his two kids Rihanna. As the judge told him that they were not done reading his sentence the stress and nerves were visibly back on Rockys shoulders. To the luck of the famed rapper he was found not guilty on all counts. As the jurors left the Los Angeles court room Mayers told them “Thank y’all for saving my life.”