Tory Lanez Begs Judge During Failed Appeal Hearing: 'Please Don't Ruin My Life!
By Fiyin Olowokandi on May 10, 2023 at 5:30 AM EDT
Tory Lanez's attempts to stay out of jail have entered a desperate phase as the entertainer threw away his pride to plead for mercy.
The Canadian has been making headlines for attempting to sway the legal system in his favor after a jury slapped him with a guilty verdict in 2022. The conviction came during the Megan Thee Stallion shooting trial, a war for justice that began in 2020.
In his fight for a second chance to prove his alleged innocence, the 30-year-old and his defense counsel tried to get a judge to accept their request for a new trial. Please keep reading to find out more about their courtroom debacle.
Tory Lanez Plays The Victim Card By Soliciting For Sympathy In Appeal Case
On Monday, May 8, the Brampton native appeared in a Los Angeles courtroom to push the motion for a retrial. Details of the "LUV" rapper's appeal hearing were shared by the journalist Meghann Cuniff, who tweeted about the legal showdown.
The media personality explained that Judge David Herriford presided over the matter, hearing arguments from the father-of-one's defense team. Lanez was represented by the attorneys Matthew Barhoma and Jose Baez alongside a female lawyer whom the reporter had not identified.
Regarding the defendant's justification for a new trial, Cuniff noted that the Juno Award winner's legal representatives' points were "all over the place." However, one of Baez's statements caught the journalist's attention.
According to the criminal defense attorney, the court did not need to consider the events between Lanez, Megan, and Kylie Jenner before the shooting occurred. The One Umbrella founder was allegedly "going between" the two women at the beauty mogul's house.
Sharing the lawyer's words, the legal affairs reporter tweeted, "DA was trying to make Lanez out to be a misogynistic rapper, and testimony about him going between Megan and Kylie played into it, Baez said."
Surprisingly the 52-year-old attorney fought to dismiss his client's two-timing allegations while failing to mention that his client's "entire defense was that Kelsey shot Megan in a jealous rage over their shared romantic interest in Lanez."
Court just let out for the day. Judge Herriford is going to issue his ruling tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. Tory Lanez spoke to him before he was led out in handcuffs.
"Please don't rule on my life. I could be your son. I could be your brother," Lanez told the judge, who is Black.
— Meghann Cuniff (@meghanncuniff) May 8, 2023
The "Say It" rapper's defense team seemingly had holes in their arguments as Cuniff shared a hilarious moment in court. One of the record producer's representatives confidently claimed jurors should not have heard the name "Tory Lanez" because it was a "creative expression."
However, Judge Herriford shut down the idea, calling out the lawyer for repeatedly referring to the Canadian as "Tory Lanez" throughout the trial. After back-and-forth debates, the appeal case ended with the 30-year-old's final attempt to receive sympathy.
"Court just let out for the day. Judge Herriford is going to issue his ruling tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. Tory Lanez spoke to him before he was led out in handcuffs," the journalist revealed." 'Please don't ruin my life. I could be your son. I could be your brother,' Lanez told the judge, who is Black."
As for the judge's response to the sympathy card, the media personality revealed that Lanez's cries for help did not cause a "commotion." However, a sheriff's deputy urged the father-of-one to keep quiet, while Herriford did not respond as the entertainer was taken out of the courtroom.
The BET Award Nominee's Lawyer Claimed The Rapper's Case Misleading Eyewitness Testimonies
Days earlier, Baez updated his Instagram Story with posts about false eyewitness statements. The criminal defense attorney suggested his client might be among the unfortunate souls convicted by misleading testimonies.
"Mistaken eyewitness identifications contributed to approximately 69% of the more than 375 wrongful convictions in the United States overturned by post-conviction DNA evidence," the legal practitioner claimed in his post.
Following this message, Baez shared screenshots of a courtroom conversation. The alleged dialogue featured a lawyer grilling a witness about what had occurred on the night Megan was shot.
The conversations seemed to discredit Lanez's involvement in the shooting, as the bystander could not recall what happened. When asked to explain the rapper's actions, the alleged witness's response read:
"I just saw he was furious. He was shouting. And he — then — he then — the flashes then came from him. I never saw a gun. I want to be clear."