ASAP Rocky Assault Trial Jurors Believed He Fired A Real Gun But Still Found A Reason To Acquit

BY Cole Blake 1339 Views
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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 08: A$AP Rocky attends the Amazon Music Live Concert Series on December 08, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jerritt Clark/Getty Images for Amazon Music)
ASAP Rocky is officially a free man.

While the jury in ASAP Rocky's assault trial found him not guilty in court on Tuesday, many members of the group believed he did fire a real gun at ASAP Relli during their altercation. However, speaking with reporter Nique at Nite for a post-trial interview, one juror explained why they still decided to acquit. "I think we did the best we could with the instructions we had and with the evidence we had," the juror explained. "We were all thinking a crime had been committed. But the thing is, with the instructions we had, and with the law, we didn't think there was enough evidence to convict."

They added: "The feeling was that there was a gun. Unfortunately, they didn't have enough evidence to convict on the charges that were handed down to us... I didn't think that they had really convincing evidence it was a prop gun. It was kinda mysterious the way it disappeared and they couldn't produce it as evidence. So, some of the testimony did not sound accurate or truthful. I hope that in the future Mr. Mayers [ASAP Rocky] really thinks about his actions before he is upset with somebody. He does have a lot to lose. He's lucky, at this point, that we didn't have enough evidence to hand down a conviction."

Was ASAP Rocky Found Not Guilty?

US-ENTERTAINMENT-MUSIC-COURT-A$AP-ROCKY
Rakim Mayers (C), aka A$AP Rocky, embraces attorney Joe Tacopina after the verdict was read in his felony assault trial at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in Los Angeles, California, on February 18, 2025. A$AP Rocky was found not guilty of felony assault on February 18 at the conclusion of his trial. The musician, who has two children with singer Rihanna, had faced more than two decades in prison if he had been found guilty of the alleged attack on a former friend in Hollywood in 2021. (Photo by Daniel Cole / POOL / AFP) / ALTERNATE CROP (Photo by DANIEL COLE/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Regardless of the reasoning, ASAP Rocky is now a free man and intends to set his focus back on his upcoming album, Don't Be Dumb. “Thank y’all for saving my life. Thank y’all for making the right decision,” Rocky told jurors as they exited the courtroom on Tuesday. He also leapt into Rihanna's arms in celebration. “THE GLORY BELONGS TO GOD AND GOD ALONE!” Rihanna wrote on her Instagram Story afterward. “THANKFUL, HUMBLED BY HIS MERCY!”

On top of that, Rocky jokingly invited his lawyer, Joe Tacopina, to join ASAP. "They are seriously the greatest people. I said I love them and I really do love them. I got emotional in my summation because I really do care about them. This is one of the happiest days of my life and I'm happy for them because they've earned this and deserve it," Tacopina told reporters after the trial.

[Via]

About The Author
Cole Blake is a current staff writer at HotNewHipHop based out of New York City. He began writing for the site as an intern back in 2018 while finishing his B.A. in Journalism at St. John’s University. In the time since, he’s covered a number of breaking stories for HNHH. These include the ongoing YSL RICO trial, the allegations surrounding Diddy, and much more. His work also extends outside of hip-hop, having written extensively about a myriad of topics including politics, sports, and pop culture. He’s attended several music festivals to provide coverage for the site as well, such as Rolling Loud and Governors Ball.