The 36-year-old rapper, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, faced up to 24 years behind bars if found guilty of two felony charges of assault with a semiautomatic firearm against A$AP Relli during an alternation in November 2021.
Relli, real name Terell Ephron, had accused his former friend of shooting two bullets at him, grazing his knuckle.
Rocky denied both charges and refused to accept a plea bargain, which would have reduced the jail sentence to six months if he’d plead guilty to one of the charges, claiming the gun had been a prop and that Relli had allegedly been motivated by money.
A$AP Rocky, real name Rakim Mayers, faced two felony charges (Allison Dinner – Pool/Getty Images)
The trial ultimately went Rocky’s way, with the jury returning a not guilty verdict after a three hour deliberation.
Rocky was overcome with emotion after learning that he’d been spared a prison sentence and leapt into the court gallery where his partner Rihanna, who’d attended the trial occasionally with their two sons, and family were sitting in order to embrace them.
In the footage, the rapper looked visibly nervous as the judge read out the verdict and appeared to nearly collapse after learning he would be a free man, grabbing his attorneys for support.
Rocky’s family erupted in cheers in the front row of the gallery before he jumped into the crowd and tightly embraced the ‘Diamonds’ singer, who appeared to be sobbing.
“This whole experience has been crazy for the past 4 years,” Rocky later addressed crowds of fans and reporters waiting outside of the Los Angeles courthouse. “I’m thankful and it’s blessed to be here right now to be a free man talking to y’all.”
Meanwhile, Rihanna shared her gratitude on social media, writing the following statement on her Instagram Stories: “The glory belongs to God and to God alone. Thankful, humbled by His mercy.”
She signed the statement off with a praying hands emoji to signify her gratitude.
Rihanna and A$AP Rocky shared a tight hug after the verdict was read out (KTLA 5)
Speaking about the trial after the verdict, Rocky’s lawyer Joe Tacopina told reporters that jurors had seen through the ‘mirage of a case’ against his client.
“There was a moment when before we heard the words from the clerk, he didn’t know if he was going to be spending the next two decades in jail or going home,” he continued (via KKTV), before going on to add that Rocky’s rockstar jump into the crowd took him by surprise.
