Tory Lanez sentenced to 10 years in shooting of rapper Megan Thee Stallion

A Los Angeles judge sentenced Canadian rapper Tory Lanez to 10 years in prison for shooting and injuring hip-hop star Megan Thee Stallion, the Associated Press reports.

Lanez, whose legal name is Daystar Peterson, was found guilty in December 2022 of three felonies, including assault with a semiautomatic firearm, having a loaded and unregistered firearm in a vehicle, and discharging a firearm with gross negligence, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón told The Washington Post last year.

He was originally set to be sentenced in January. But sentencing was delayed after he obtained new attorneys and filed a motion for a new trial, which was denied in May. He faced a maximum sentence of 22 years and eight months, as well as deportation to his home country of Canada.

Prosecutors previously asked a judge to sentence Lanez to 13 years in prison, after he was convicted of shooting hip-hop star Megan Thee Stallion in the feet in 2020.

Megan called for a stiff sentence for Lanez in a written statement read aloud during a hearing at Los Angeles County Superior Court on Monday, the Associated Press reported.

“Since I was viciously shot by the defendant, I have not experienced a single day of peace,” said Megan, whose legal name is Megan Pete.

Her statement cited emotional suffering caused by his “heinous” actions after the shooting, including writing social media posts that led people to attack her online.

Megan said she considered speaking in person but “simply could not bring myself to be in a room with Tory again.”

Lanez’s lawyers had asked the court to sentence him to probation instead of a lengthy prison term. In a 41-page memo filed last week, Lanez’s lawyers argued that he would also benefit from a residential drug treatment program.

“Assuming the allegations are true, Mr. Peterson’s psychological, physical and childhood trauma were a factor in the commission of the offense,” read the memo, portions of which were shared by Meghann Cuniff, a journalist who has been following the case.

Lanez’s father, Sonstar Peterson, told the judge on Monday that his youngest child was 11 when his mother died, calling it a trauma that “I don’t think anybody ever gets over.”

Judge David Herriford received 76 letters, including a handwritten one from Lanez’s 6-year-old son, according to Cuniff. The mother of his son, Raina Cassagne, called Lanez “the most supportive” and “the funnest father.”

In a letter to the judge, rapper Iggy Azalea pleaded for a “transformative, not life-destroying” sentence for her fellow artist. Other witnesses, including a police chief in Missouri and a state representative, mentioned Lanez’s charitable giving.

In her statement, Megan said Lanez “has blamed the system, blamed the press, and as of late has tried to take advantage of his childhood trauma.”

Herriford said Lanez had a clear lack of remorse, but the judge added that he wouldn’t allow that to be a factor because the defendant has a right to maintain his innocence, the Associated Press reported.

Representatives for Lanez and Megan did not respond to requests for comment Monday morning.

The shooting happened in the early hours of July 12, 2020, after the two shared a ride to leave a party hosted at the Hollywood Hills home of reality star Kylie Jenner. According to testimony, Lanez fired several shots at Megan after she exited the vehicle following a fight.

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