Rapper A$AP Rocky was found not guilty today in a Los Angeles court of all charges related to an alleged shooting incident involving his former friend, Terell “A$AP Relli” Ephron, that occurred in November 2021. The jury’s decision follows Rocky’s rejection of a plea deal that would have resulted in a six-month prison sentence and a seven-year suspended sentence.
Rocky, whose legal name is Rakim Athelaston “A$AP Rocky” Mayers, faced two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm. However, his defense team successfully argued that the prosecution lacked sufficient evidence to prove the allegations. Despite Ephron’s claims that Rocky pulled a gun on him during a dispute outside a hotel and fired several shots—one of which allegedly grazed Ephron’s knuckles—the defense contended that the gun was a prop used for a music video and that police had failed to find any physical evidence to support the charges.
Police, who arrived at the scene shortly after the reported incident, found no shell casings, no firearm, and no physical evidence on the ground. The defense emphasized that the police conducted a thorough search of the area, and Rocky’s lawyer, Joe Tacopina, argued that the absence of such evidence strongly suggested that no shooting had occurred. “There’s a reason that 10 police officers searched and didn’t find shell casings there. There’s a reason. Not because they were blind or they were drunk or because they didn’t want to find it. It’s because they did a thorough job,” Tacopina stated outside the courtroom earlier in the case.
The prosecution, led by Deputy District Attorney Paul Przelomiec, sought to discredit the defense’s claims. He questioned why Rocky would use a prop gun as a weapon if Ephron knew it was fake. Przelomiec also highlighted a recorded phone call in which Ephron referred to a real gun, supporting his version of events. However, the jury ultimately sided with Rocky, finding the evidence insufficient to convict him on either charge.
Rihanna, Rocky’s partner and mother of his children, was present in the courtroom throughout the trial, offering support to her partner during the proceedings. After the verdict was read, Rocky expressed gratitude to the jury, saying, “Thank y’all for saving my life. Thank y’all for making the right decision.”
In addition to the criminal trial, Ephron had previously filed a civil lawsuit against A$AP Rocky, accusing him of both the alleged shooting and defamation. The outcome of the criminal trial is likely to impact the ongoing civil litigation.