Rapper Tory Lanez was briefly jailed Tuesday after a judge said he had violated a protective order in a felony assault case in which he is charged with shooting rapper Megan Thee Stallion in the feet.
Lanez, 29, whose legal name is Daystar Peterson, was handcuffed in a Los Angeles courtroom and taken to jail. He posted bail and was released several hours later.
GRAMMYS 2022: LADY GAGA GIVES EMOTIONAL TRIBUTE TO TONY BENNETT
At the hearing, Superior Court Judge David Herriford found that Peterson had violated orders that he not contact or harass Megan and that he not discuss evidence with outside parties.
While Peterson didn’t directly contact Megan, Herriford said some of his tweets appeared to be clear messages to her, and he ordered Peterson not to mention her in any social media.
Peterson’s lawyer, Shawn Holley, said in court that he did not supply information to a Twitter user who posted in February that Peterson’s DNA was not found on the weapon in the case.
This combination photo shows Tory Lanez performing at HOT 97 Summer Jam 2019 in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on June 2, 2019, left, and Megan Thee Stallion attending the Diamond Ball benefit gala in New York on Sept. 12, 2019.
(Scott Roth, left, Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
In her argument, Holley said the tweet, now deleted, was not entirely accurate. She said that an investigation showed there were four DNA contributors on the handgun, making it inconclusive whether Peterson’s DNA was found. She said his DNA was definitely not found to be on the gun’s magazine.
The prosecution had asked that Peterson’s bail be revoked entirely or increased to $5 million.
“We are pleased that the Court rejected those outrageous requests,” Holly said in an email after the hearing.
The judge instead increased bail from the $250,000 Peterson posted after his 2020 arrest to $350,000.
BRUCE WILLIS’ FAMILY HAS ‘RALLIED AROUND HIM’ AMID THE ‘DIE HARD’ ICON’S APHASIA DIAGNOSIS: SOURCE
A September trial date was selected, and Peterson was told to return for a June hearing. He has pleaded not guilty.
Peterson, Megan and others were in an SUV in the Hollywood Hills after a party on July 12, 2020. Authorities allege he fired at her feet during an argument after she had gotten out.
After months of speculation and publicity surrounding the incident, Peterson was charged with felony assault in October 2020, and in December of last year a judge determined there was enough evidence for him to go to trial.
Megan Thee Stallion arrives at the Grammy Awards.
(Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)
After his initial arrest, Peterson tweeted that “the truth will come to light.”
The Canadian rapper Tory Lanez has had a successful run of mixtapes and major-label records since his career began in 2009, with his last two albums reaching the top 10 on Billboard’s charts.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Megan Thee Stallion was already a major up-and-coming star at the time of the incident, and has thrived since. She won a Grammy for best new artist in 2021, and had No. 1 singles in the Billboard Hot 100 with her own song “Savage” featuring Beyoncé and as a guest on Cardi B’s “WAP.”
