New leaked footage has put the high-profile case led by rapper Tory Lanez and Megan Thee Stallion in the spotlight. The footage, which was released and shared on Instagram by Live Bitez, shows the Canadian artist being questioned by police after the 2020 shooting that sent shockwaves through the music community.
The situation occurred during a summer 2020 night out that included Lanez, Megan Thee Stallion, and others. Their interactions escalated into pandemonium, and Megan wound up being shot in the feet. The Grammy-winning rapper would later go on to publicly identify Lanez as the gunman, and in late 2022, a jury found him guilty of multiple felonies, including assault with a semi-automatic firearm and carrying a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle.
Lanez, born Daystar Peterson, has maintained his innocence throughout, following his conviction and 10-year prison term. The newly leaked footage from that night offered a view to the broader public of his initial response when he was questioned by the police. In the police interrogation room, Lanez is calm, but it’s easy to see the concern on his face. Told by investigators to describe the incident, he persisted and said he was just trying to get his girl to safety.
But in a different video, recorded by a police body cam at the crime scene, Lanez can be heard speaking with officers. Once more, he insists that he was merely trying to be helpful. “I was just trying to help my girlfriend,” he tells one of the officers. He then turns to shout encouragement toward Megan as she is helped off-screen. An officer tells him that an ambulance is on its way.
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The videos dropped at a critical moment for Lanez, who has also started a petition pleading with California Gov. Gavin Newsom for a pardon. The petition, which has now eclipsed 300,000 signatures, argues Lanez’s imprisonment as a wrongful outcome. It claims prosecutorial misconduct, forensic evidence mishandling, and a politically motivated sentencing process. “Daystar Peterson, professionally known as Tory Lanez, is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence despite what his legal team describes as overwhelming evidence of prosecutorial misconduct, missing forensic data, and politically motivated sentencing. We, the undersigned, urge California Governor Gavin Newsom to issue a pardon,” the petition reads.
Complicating matters further is a messy allegation by Lanez’s team about Kelsey Harris, Megan’s former friend and assistant. According to Lanez’s camp, a bodyguard claimed that he had overheard Harris admit to being the shooter. Megan’s team clapped back immediately, stating in no uncertain terms that the court had already ruled on this and that any attempt to deflect the blame was wrong and misrepresented.
Responses to the leaked footage have varied. Fans of Megan Thee Stallion have said the videos can’t alter the outcome of a fair trial and that Lanez’s statements are full of holes and don’t absolve him of responsibility. Meanwhile, Lanez’s supporters say the video humanizes him and corroborates his story that he wasn’t the aggressor but in a dangerous scenario.
However, whether the videos will affect Lanez’s legal status was not immediately apparent. What is clear, though, is that the footage has reignited attention to a case that remains a matter of debate among the public. While Lanez lives out his sentence and has unsuccessfully attempted to convince the governor to pardon him, the conversation about what happened that July night in 2020 is incomplete. This new development also underscores the complications that can arise with celebrity legal battles and the struggle over leaked media to sway public opinion. The conversation around Tory Lanez and Megan Thee Stallion doesn’t seem to be slowing down as the internet continues to rumble.
