Tory Lanez’s attorney argues his conviction for Megan Thee Stallion shooting should be thrown out as the trial was marred by inaccuracies

Tory Lanez Attends The 1990 Farewell Party - Source: Getty
Tory Lanez at the 1990 Farewell Party in Miami, Florida. (Image via Getty/Johnny Nunez)

Tory Lanez is still reportedly pushing to have his conviction in the shooting of Megan Thee Stallion overturned. Hot New Hip Hop has reported that Tory Lanez, who is currently serving a decade-long sentence behind bars, saw his lawyer allege that his trial was unfair. Per the outlet, Laura L. Cepero told a group of judges that she had "unwavering belief" that her client is innocent, and that the DNA evidence was misinterpreted.

“It is actually marginally more likely that another member of the African American population touched this gun over Mr. Peterson,” Cepero alleged, per Billboard. “If our jury had heard that Mr. Peterson maybe one in a million touched the gun, I believe that would have been enough to tip that scale and show reasonable doubt.”

Judges shut down Tory Lanez's lawyers' claims that he was innocent: Read more

Digital Music News reported that the judges have since rejected Tony Lanez's two Habeas Corpus petitions, including his claim that the DNA found on the gun used in the shooting was not his. Their other argument was that the rapper's due process rights had been violated.

“Aside from the fact that petitioner is contending that his own DNA expert failed to provide industry-accepted methodology, this issue could have been, but was not, raised on appeal in the context of ineffective assistance of counsel,” the judges wrote.

According to Hot New Hip Hop, they continued:

“Petitioner has failed to [show] that additional DNA testing would establish a claim of actual innocence. Both parties’ experts at trial agreed that DNA testing of the magazine showed none of petitioner’s DNA was present, and as to the gun itself the inconclusive findings could neither exclude nor include petitioner as a minor contributor to the DNA found on the gun.”

Tory Lanez's other attorney, Crystal Morgan, however, told the panel, per the outlet:

“We believe the most compelling arguments are the testimony of Ms. Kelsey Harris when looking at the confrontation clause, prosecutorial comments in the opening and closing statements, and Brady violations that cumulatively occurred throughout the trial."

She was referring to Megan Thee Stallion's friend.

“As Ms. Harris stated, ‘I didn’t tell the truth.’ So we can’t rely on these statements from her own words. And this did greatly prejudice [Lanez]. Because in that interview [with the DA’s office], Ms. Harris said, ‘My friend and I were attacked, and it was this man’s fault.’ Then at trial, she did not verify those statements. But the jury still heard,” Morgan said.

She continued,

“There were also problems in closing arguments, which contained inaccuracies – and it presented the evidence in a way that misconstrued the actual results. Here, I’m specifically talking about the DNA evidence. As far as the firearm goes, they also found four different [DNA] samples, one of which was a 90% male contributor. But [Lanez] was excluded from being that 90% contributor. Therefore, telling the jury [during closing arguments] don’t be fooled when you hear he’s excluded is just not quite as the evidence showed."

Tory Lanez, whose real name is Daystar Peterson, also had his lawyers strongly argue that he "never shot anybody." The Los Angeles Times reported that Megan Thee Stallion’s team has since released a statement:

“Tory Lanez was tried and convicted by a jury of his peers and his case was properly adjudicated through the court system,” they wrote, per XXL Magazine. “This is not a political matter — this is a case of a violent assault that was resolved in the court of law.”

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Edited by Yesha Srivastava