The drama between Tory Lanez and Megan Thee Stallion just took another unexpected twist. A year after Tory was sentenced to 10 years in prison for allegedly shooting Megan in the foot back in July 2020, some new claims have surfaced. Tory’s driver recently spoke out, saying he never saw Tory grab a gun or try to shoot anyone. Instead, he claims it was Megan’s friend, Kelsey, who had the gun, and Tory was actually trying to disarm her. Now, Tory’s defense team is using this testimony to push for a retrial, but the Attorney General isn’t buying it, insisting that the evidence against Tory is still solid.
This case has been controversial from the start, with social media heavily influencing public opinion. Megan’s supporters argue this is just another example of Black women being disregarded and blamed for their own suffering. On the flip side, Tory’s fans have been pushing the idea that he was set up, with some even suggesting it was all orchestrated by Megan’s label, Roc Nation. The big question now is whether this new testimony will make any difference, or if it’s too late to change the outcome.
So, what’s the deal with this new testimony from Tory Lanez’s driver? Could it actually shake things up and lead to a new trial, or is Tory still up against it? Jaquan, the driver, is saying he saw Megan Thee Stallion’s friend Kelsey with a gun. He claims Tory saw the gun too and tried to get it away from her. According to Jaquan, while they were fighting over the gun, it accidentally went off. He also says the prosecution wouldn’t let him testify, which could have been crucial for Tory’s appeal.
To give you some context, Megan first named Tory as the person who shot her during an Instagram Live in August 2020. She said she tried to protect him at first, but once he started spreading false stories through blogs, she decided to go public.
“Yes, this n***a Tory shot me! You shot me, and now you’ve got your publicist and people lying to the blogs. Stop lying! Why lie? I don’t understand. I tried to keep it off the internet, but you’re dragging it now!”
Megan didn’t file charges herself; instead, the state of California took action. By October 2020, the LA County District Attorney charged Tory with two felonies. The DA said: “Rapper Tory Lanez has been charged with shooting artist Megan Thee Stallion during an argument. Lanez, whose real name is Daystar Peterson, allegedly shot Megan in the feet during a dispute in the Hollywood Hills on July 12th. The 28-year-old rapper was arrested that night but was released after posting bail. He now faces two felony charges, and a protective order was issued, keeping him at least 100 yards away from Megan and forbidding him from contacting her.”
In April 2022, Tory was arrested for breaking that protective order but got out after posting bond. Then, in October, he was put on house arrest after a fight with August Alsina. He was released from house arrest on December 5th, 2022, to prepare for his trial, which began the next day. Prosecutors also added a charge for discharging a firearm with gross negligence.
Now, Tory’s facing a third felony charge for negligent discharge of a firearm, which definitely isn’t good news for him. The trial started on December 12th, with both the prosecution and Tory’s defense laying out their cases.
In their opening statements, LA County prosecutors Kathy Ta and Alexander Bott claimed that Tory Lanez shot Megan Thee Stallion five times, causing serious injuries. They argue that Tory either aimed directly at Megan’s feet or recklessly fired a gun near her, resulting in her injuries.
On the flip side, Tory’s defense lawyer painted a different picture. He argued that the whole incident stemmed from Megan’s jealousy of Kylie Jenner and her friend Kelsey Harris, who were both at the scene. According to the defense, Megan got drunk and upset after seeing Tory interact with Kylie at a pool party. She allegedly demanded Tory leave with her, which led to a heated argument between Megan and Kelsey in the car after Tory revealed he’d been intimate with Megan. The defense claimed that Megan and Kelsey then got out of the car and started fighting, and during the scuffle, Kelsey supposedly grabbed Tory’s gun and shot Megan.
On the second day of the trial, Megan took the stand and shared her side of the story. She described how, after a fight with Kelsey and Tory in the car, she got out and started walking away. She heard Tory yell, “Dance, b***h!” and saw him hanging out of the car window with a gun, before he began shooting. Megan broke down in court while talking about the pain she’s still feeling in her feet and the relentless public scrutiny. She said, “This isn’t just about a gun. This is about who I had sex with,” and added that she felt tormented by the whole situation, even wishing she’d been shot instead of enduring this ordeal.
Megan also revealed that Tory tried to silence her and Kelsey by offering them hush money. She said Tory offered her $1 million to stay quiet and expressed his concern about being on probation for a previous gun charge.
As for the gunshot residue, both Tory and Kelsey had traces of it on them. Tory’s lawyer argued that this means Kelsey was the one who fired the gun and that Tory only had residue because he was trying to stop her. The prosecution countered, noting that gunshot residue spreads quickly, so if Kelsey was near Tory when the gun was fired, it makes sense that both would have residue on them.
This morning, rapper Tory Lanez was sentenced to 10 years in prison after being found guilty of shooting Megan Thee Stallion.
In court, Megan’s former best friend and assistant, Kelsey Harris, took the stand under immunity. Her testimony frustrated prosecutors as she frequently said, “I honestly don’t remember July of 2020,” attributing her fuzzy recollection to a night of heavy drinking. Earlier in September, Deputy District Attorney Kathy Ta had recorded an interview with Kelsey where she detailed the events of that night. But today, Kelsey contradicted her earlier statements, admitting she lied to protect herself.
Prosecutors introduced text messages Kelsey allegedly sent to Megan’s bodyguard right after the shooting, which read, “Help. Tory shot Meg. 911.” When questioned about these texts, Kelsey said they were based on assumptions. Under cross-examination, she also couldn’t recall if Tory had offered her $1 million, though she insisted he never bribed or threatened her.
Tory Lanez decided not to testify in his defense. His lawyer argued that Kelsey was the real shooter, calling the prosecution’s case full of holes and labeling Megan a liar. Despite these claims, the jury convicted Tory on all three felony charges.
After the verdict, Tory was immediately taken to jail. On August 8, 2023, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the shooting.
“I’ve seen the trauma she’s gone through over the past three years, and I’m incredibly relieved for her,” the judge said.
This comment wrapped up the high-profile trial that had seen two former friends and their fans clash. The case had been a constant topic on social media, filled with rumors and doubt about whether Megan Thee Stallion, whose real name is Megan Pete, had actually been shot. The broader issue of violence against Black women and girls—a persistent national crisis—was also in the spotlight. Sadly, women of color often don’t come forward because they fear they won’t be believed.
As you might expect, reactions on social media were all over the place. Supporters of Tory Lanez claimed that Megan’s label, Roc Nation, had set him up, while Megan’s fans felt she finally got the justice she deserved. One Tory supporter called the verdict a setup and suggested Megan and Roc Nation had been plotting all along. In response, someone else fired back, “If you’d rather believe Jay-Z and Roc Nation orchestrated a huge conspiracy against Tory Lanez than accept that he got angry and shot someone, you’re seriously out of touch.”
Meanwhile, Tory’s dad had a major meltdown outside the courtroom, going off on everyone, accusing the prosecutors of being wicked, and ranting about Jay-Z and Roc Nation. He even vowed to take down anyone he thought was part of a conspiracy against his son and warned that Roc Nation would crumble. Tory himself was reportedly shocked by the verdict, according to his lawyer, who confirmed that Tory would keep fighting to clear his name.
Then, just when we thought the story couldn’t get any crazier, a new twist emerged. Tory’s driver, Jaquin Smith, came forward with a never-before-seen affidavit. He claimed that while he didn’t see who fired the gun, he did see Kelsey Harris holding it during a fight with Megan. According to Smith, Tory tried to wrestle the gun away from Kelsey. His affidavit says, “Miss Pete and Miss Harris started fighting. I pulled over to stop them. Both women got out of the car and kept fighting, both verbally and physically. I broke up the fight and was pulling Miss Pete toward the back of the car when I saw Miss Harris with a gun. Mr. Peterson (Tory Lanez) ran toward Miss Harris and tried to take the gun from her. I was still pulling Miss Pete and didn’t see who actually fired the gun.”
But that’s not the end of the story. The driver claimed he wanted to share some important evidence during Tory Lanez’s trial, but the DA wouldn’t let him. He said, “The district attorney wasn’t ready to question me, and then they didn’t get back to me because of the holidays and the court schedule. I really think I should’ve been allowed to present this evidence at the trial.”
After the driver’s testimony came out, Tory’s defense team asked for a new trial, but their request was quickly shot down. On July 29th, the California Attorney General’s office decided not to accept the new evidence. Legal reporter Megan Cifuentes explained, “Tory Lanez claims that his driver’s statement is new evidence in the Megan Thee Stallion shooting case, but the state says he knew what the driver would say and just didn’t call him to testify.”
Cifuentes also pointed out that the Attorney General’s response highlighted the strong evidence against Tory, with Megan’s testimony backed up by plenty of other proof. However, some of Tory’s fans think there’s something shady going on, insisting he was set up. On the flip side, Megan’s supporters believe Tory messed up his own case by not testifying and by not calling the driver as a witness when he had the chance.
One person said, “How come Tory’s lawyer didn’t call this witness? The defense team could have used him, and since they knew about this info during the trial, it’s not new evidence that would warrant a new trial.”
Another fan added, “Tory didn’t do himself any favors. If I were him, I would have gotten on the stand when Megan testified and said, ‘Yes, I didn’t shoot her.’ He should have taken this more seriously.”
So, what do you think? Are you with the people who think Tory was set up by Megan and Roc Nation, or do you believe he’s just trying to deflect because he’s guilty? Drop your thoughts in the comments below