Nicki Minaj‘s husband, Kenneth Petty, is reportedly refusing a judge’s order to settle the sexual assault case brought forth against him by Jennifer Hough. The victim is now seeking legal help to put pressure on Petty to move forward. HipHopDX obtained court documents on Monday that show Hough's attorney, Tyrone Blackburn, has demanded a scheduling order. He claims Petty is refusing to cooperate on settlement negotiations.
“We are counsel to Plaintiff Jennifer Hough in the above-referenced matter. I write jointly with counsel for Defendant Kenneth Petty,” Blackburn wrote in his letter to Judge Cho as noted by HipHopDX. “As you know, the Court provided the parties with an opportunity to engage in private mediation. The parties participated in private mediation, but unfortunately, we were unable to reach a settlement. We would like to have a scheduling conference with the court to set a scheduling order.”
Nick Minaj With Kenneth Petty
Hough alleges that Petty harassed her in an attempt to convince her to recant to avoid the National Sex Offender Registry. Hough says Petty offered her $500,000 to drop the case and that Minaj hired private investigators to harass her and her daughter. However, she's since dropped her case against Minaj. As Petty continues to not make progress toward a settlement, the possibility of the case going to trial becomes more and more likely. The judge ordered him to reach a settlement with Hough back in December.
Petty was previously convicted of first-degree attempted rape in 1995. For the conviction, he served over four years in prison. Almost two decades later, he still had not registered as sex a offender, resulting in a judge sentencing him to one year of home confinement and three years of probation.
[Via]