Rapper A$AP Rocky‘s criminal trial for shooting his former friend kicked off Tuesday with his lawyer rejecting a second plea deal, claiming the gun involved was actually a ‘prop gun’.
Rocky arrived at the courthouse, maintaining his status as a fashion icon, as he made a striking entrance for the first part of his trial – selecting a 12-person jury.
Sporting gold-rimmed glasses, a gold loop earring in each ear and wearing his hair in corn rows, he walked into the courtroom flanked by his legal defense team, led by one-time Donald Trump lawyer, Joe Tacopina.
Earlier Tuesday, Rocky, 36, and his legal team had the chance to accept a plea deal in which he would plead guilty to one of the assault charges in exchange for a seven-year suspended sentence, 180 days in jail and three years probation.
The second felony charge would have also been dismissed.
Rapper A$AP Rocky’s criminal trial for shooting his former friend kicked off Tuesday in Los Angeles. In a separate courtroom from the jury selection, his lawyer Joe Tacopina turned down a second plea deal presented by the prosecution
A$AP Rocky arrived at court Tuesday for jury selection in his trial. Earlier his attorney had rejected a plea deal that would have seen him serve 180 days in prison
Terell Ephron, whose stage name is A$AP Relli, allegedly received an injured hand after Rocky shot at him
But Tacopina turned down the offer, telling LA Superior Court Judge Mark Arnold that the gun Rocky shot ex-buddy Terell Ephron with was actually a ‘prop gun’ – a fake firearm used in movies.
It was the second time that Rocky’s defense lawyers have blown off a prosecution plea deal.
After the first deal was presented last Wednesday, Tacopina told DailyMail.com: ‘He did not commit a crime’ and called the LA District Attorney’s case against Rocky ‘fundamentally weak.’
In a separate room from the plea deal hearing, the process of selecting 12 jurors, plus alternates, from a pool of more than 100 men and women was underway – it is expected to take two days.
After excusing around 15 prospective jurors due to practical hardships – including effects from the wildfires in LA – Judge Arnold swore in the others.
Rocky arrived at the courthouse maintaining his reputation for being a fashion icon, sporting a pair of gold rimmed glasses, a leather trench coat over a charcoal-gray suit, an off-white shirt and a light gray, polka-dotted tie
LA Superior Court Judge Mark Arnold said nobody is ‘entitled to any benefit because of the status in life or how much money they have’
Judge Arnold told them: ‘Nobody, no matter who they are, is entitled to any benefit because of their status in life or how much money they have, or by the same token nobody is supposed to suffer any harm by their status in life or any money that they do or don’t have.’
Pointing out Rocky – real name Rakim Mayers – to the jury, he added, ‘Mr. Mayers is an entertainer. His stage name is A$AP rocky. His life partner is also an entertainer. Her name is Rihanna. She is a singer, and actress.
‘Because Mr. Mayers is an entertainer, a celebrity, that cannot harm him, and it cannot benefit him.’
One juror said she was a TV executive for many years and shares a chiropractor with Rihanna.
She said: ‘I think I supported hip-hop artists from 1995 to 2009 in my profession. I still am attached to the community.’
Judge Arnold asked her: ‘Are you willing to treat Mr Mayers as you would anybody else who sits in that chair?’ She responded, ‘Of course.’
A$AP Rocky and his superstar girlfriend Rihanna were seen in New York City on January 2
‘Mr. Mayers is an entertainer,’ the judge told prospectve jurors. ‘His stage name is A$AP Rocky. His life partner is also an entertainer. Her name is Rihanna. She is a singer, and actress’
Tacopina told Judge Arnold that the gun Rocky shot ex-buddy Ephron with was actually a ‘prop gun’ – a fake firearm used in movies
One juror admitted to Googling the case and seeing a headline as they stood in the hall, to which Judge Arnold said that such stories should not infect their judgment.
Judge Arnold also dismissed a prospective juror who told the court that he does ‘not fundamentally believe in the need to have a gun for private use’.
But he refused to dismiss another who said he was ‘opposed to guns’ after the potential juror admitted that he ’just wanted to get out of jury duty’.
Once the jury is picked, prosecutors and defense attorneys will make their opening statements to the court.
Rocky has pleaded not guilty to two felony charges of assault with a semiautomatic firearm and he’s facing up to 24 years in prison if convicted of both.
The charges arise from a November 2021 confrontation in Hollywood between Rocky and fellow rapper Ephron, whose stage name is A$AP Relli. He was a member, with Rocky, in the ASAP Mob rap group that started in Harlem in 2006.
He has been free on bail of $550,000 since his arrest.
Rihannadid not show up Tuesday at Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in downtown Los Angeles
Rocky and Rihanna share two children, RZA Athelston Mayers, two, and Riot Rose Mayers, 16 months
Rihanna – mother of Rocky’s two young children – did not show up Tuesday for the jury selection.
This is despite her getting an invitation in October from Judge Arnold to come to criminal court to support her boyfriend.
At a preliminary hearing, prosecutors presented surveillance camera footage and testimony from Ephron and cops to support their allegation that during the argument, Rocky pointed a handgun at Ephron, then fired it twice toward him injuring his hand.
Ephron himself testified that Rocky held the gun to his stomach and said ‘I’ll kill you right now,’ before firing off rounds.
Tacopina has challenged the prosecution’s case, saying there wasn’t enough proof that a shooting had even happened and calling the surveillance video evidence and witness testimony ‘inconclusive’.
Ephron has filed a separate civil assault and battery lawsuit against Rocky which is on hold pending the outcome of the criminal trial.
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