A$AP Rocky's trial starts with clash over ballistics report
Defence plans to paint A$AP Rocky's accuser as a money seeker
A$AP Rocky is the celebrity in the room, but A$AP Relli will star at his trial.
Rocky, the hip-hop star, fashion maven and actor whose legal name is Rakim Athelaston Mayers, is accused of firing a gun at his former friend Relli, born Terell Ephron, on whose testimony prosecutors are pinning their case.
Opening statements began Friday at the trial after a jury of seven women and five men was selected over the course of three days. Rocky is charged with two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm.
Rocky sat in the courtroom Friday with his lawyers, wearing a grey suit and dark glasses, which he took off when the proceedings began. His mother and sister were among the supporters sitting in his section. Rihanna, his long-time partner and the mother of his two toddler sons, was not in court.
Rocky's lawyer says it's unlikely the singer and entrepreneur would appear in the courtroom during the trial. Her name may not come up at all, though it did frequently during jury selection when many prospective jurors said they were fans.
'No way we can proceed'
The proceedings began after a heated argument between the two sides over a last-minute ballistics report from the prosecution that led to the defence arguing for a trial delay.
"There's no way we can proceed with this case," Rocky's lawyer Joe Tacopina told the judge.
The judge refused to delay, though he offered to take Monday off while the defence seeks their own expert.
Rocky took a major risk by turning down a prosecution plea deal offer of just six months in jail and instead choosing to go to trial. If convicted, he could be sentenced to a term of up to 24 years in prison.
The defence plans to paint Ephron as a money seeker and point out he has sued Rocky in civil court, seeking financial damages for the incident.
"He's the witness that this case will rise and fall on, for sure," Tacopina said after a recent pretrial hearing. "Whether he's a star is something that remains to be seen."
"There's jealousy obviously, and he's made that clear. He became a hater," Tacopina said. "This is in large part about money, money, money."
Accuser used to be part of A$AP
Rocky and Relli were part of a group of young creators in high school in New York who called themselves A$AP — for Always Strive and Prosper — and initially remained close as Rocky found wealth and fame through music. The relationship soured, coming to a head with the alleged shooting on Nov. 6, 2021, when Ephron says Rocky fired on him and grazed his knuckles.
The defence plans to call witnesses to testify that a firearm seen on a security video is a starter pistol that Rocky carried as a prop for security.
They likely will say that is why, despite a search of the spot by many police officers, no shell casings were found at the site near Hollywood and Vine. Police did not recover a gun in the case.
Ephron went to the police two days later and brought 9 mm shell casings he had picked up himself, which are both points the defence will seize on. No fingerprints were recovered from the casings.
Rocky has been named one of the celebrity chairs of the Met Gala in May and has a major role in a Spike Lee-directed film with Denzel Washington to be released soon after. But his life could be upended with a conviction.
In the deal from prosecutors he rejected, Rocky was to plead guilty to one of the two counts in exchange for a sentence recommendation of 180 days in jail, a seven-year suspended prison sentence and three years of probation.
Beyond Ephron, the prosecution's witnesses primarily will be the police who worked on the case.
They also will rely heavily on surveillance video that captured parts of the incident and the circumstances. Prosecutors at the 2023 preliminary hearing showed a still image taken from video with a man in a hooded sweatshirt whose face is not visible holding what appears to be a gun, along with another image showing the face of the man in the sweatshirt, with no gun visible. A detective testified that investigators established it was Rocky.
Rocky himself could take the stand and his attorney has said he wants to, but the lawyers say they have not yet decided and he is legally allowed to avoid testifying.