Megan Thee Stallion’s attorney has fired back at Tory Lanez’s team following the emergence of fresh witness audio recordings.
Over two years since Lanez was convicted of shooting Megan, his defense lawyers have released police audio that they claim backs up his version of events.
According to TMZ, the recording captures Sean Kelly, a Los Angeles witness who informed police that he believed a woman was the shooter during the 2020 incident. Lanez’s legal team contends that Kelly’s statement supports Lanez’s assertion that Megan’s ex-friend Kelsey Harris was actually the one who shot Megan in the foot. But Megan’s attorney, Alex Shapiro, rejected the audio evidence.
“Last week, they argued that Kelsey Harris shot Megan and now, they’re claiming that Megan only stepped on glass,” Shapiro told Complex via email. “They continue to rehash old evidence from trial and re-package it as new information to desperately sway public opinion. There was no new evidence displayed today — simply a sad attempt from Tory’s team to copy our presentation format to peddle misinformation.”
The Kelly recording also appeared on 360hourslater.com, a platform hosting videos and transcripts connected to the shooting case. The website highlights Megan’s original statements to police and her initial claim about hurting her foot on glass. Megan subsequently revealed she downplayed what happened to safeguard herself and those with her.
“At this time, we were at the height of police brutality and the situation with George Floyd,” Megan explained, acknowledging her fear that responding officers might “shoot first” and ask questions later. “I don’t wanna see anybody die, I don’t wanna die… In the Black community, in my community, it’s not really accepted to cooperate with police.”
Lanez was eventually convicted of assault with a semiautomatic firearm, possessing a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle, and firing a weapon with gross negligence. He was handed a 10-year prison term in August 2023.
Since his conviction, multiple prominent figures have advocated for his release, including GOP congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna. The Florida Representative argued that Lanez’s conviction “was based on flawed evidence, political pressure, and prosecutorial bias” and that “justice must be blind— not driven by headlines.” She has also pushed California Gov. Gavin Newsom to examine the case and grant Lanez a pardon.
Shapiro criticized Rep. Luna’s involvement, suggesting it highlighted her misplaced focus.
“It’s embarrassing that Florida Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna is integrating herself into the California criminal justice system for click-bait,” he told Complex. “Instead, she should be focused on serving her own constituents in Florida rather than chasing celebrities.”
Lanez was moved to a different facility this month after being attacked by another prisoner. The 32-year-old rapper had been housed at the California Correctional Institution in Tehachapi, California, and is now at the California Men’s Colony in San Luis Obispo, California.
Lanez’s alleged attacker, Santino Casio, discussed the incident with TMZ, describing it as a defensive move. Casio explained to the outlet that he’d heard whispers about Lanez placing “money [a bounty] on his head,” which prompted him to act when he spotted Lanez with what appeared to be a weapon in his pocket. The prisoner reportedly stabbed Lanez in the head, torso, and back, inflicting 14 stab wounds on the rapper.
Casio told the outlet his intention wasn’t to kill Lanez, but he felt compelled to defend himself in that moment. Casio mentioned he was also wounded during the altercation.
Lanez was taken to the hospital with injuries that weren’t life-threatening.
