Megan Thee Stallion gets restraining order on Tory Lanez claiming convicted rapper paid bloggers to smear her

Megan Thee Stallion was granted a restraining order Thursday against Tory Lanez, the rapper who is serving a 10-year prison sentence after he shot her nearly five years ago.

The 29-year-old Houston resident was emotional as she testified remotely to Los Angeles Judge Richard Bloom that Lanez, 32, had led a “campaign of intimidation” against her during his falsehood. Billboard reported Thursday.

Judge Richard Bloom ruled that Lanez must not contact Megan in any form, including through intermediaries, for a period of five years.

The Sweetest Pie artist, whose full name is Megan Jovon Ruth Pete, said she feared Lanez would seek violent retaliation against her after he was released from custody.

“It seems like I have to relive it every day,” Megan Thee Stallion told the court. “The person who shot me won’t let me forget it. I’m afraid that when he gets out of jail, he’ll still be mad at me…I feel like he might shoot me again and I might not make it this time.”

The Grammy winner told the court that from behind bars, Lanez has overseen a “campaign of intimidation” designed to “terrorize her” and that she is “just tired of being harassed.”

Judge Bloom said Megan provided sufficient evidence that Lanez demonstrated a “credible threat of violence” that “serves no lawful purpose” and is intended to “seriously” harass her.

The Cry Baby singer — who said she “hasn’t been at peace” since the July 2020 shooting — told the judge, “Thank you, judge” after the restraining order was granted.

Attorneys for Megan told the court that Lanez was still trying to confuse the public about the details of his criminal case, with a fake story on X/Twitter last fall claiming he had been found “innocent” by the appeals court, the outlet reported . .

Megan’s legal team said in a federally filed lawsuit in October that YouTuber and social media personality Milagro Gramz was hired by Lanez to act as his “mouthpiece and puppet” while the rapper serves his prison sentence.

Megan’s lawyers said in legal documents in December that Lanez (whose real name is Daystar Peterson) had worked with outside people to “harass, bully and antagonize” her, and that no restraining order was initially issued because of the shooting. effective after Lanez’s conviction.

‘While [Lanez] distorts and recklessly ignores the truth in his desperate bid to appeal his conviction, his false claims have revived a slew of negative, harmful and defamatory comments against Megan, according to her legal team.

Lanez’s attorneys responded in court documents that Megan “disagrees with freedom of speech” and that the restraining order was essentially an attempt to “weaponize the legal system.”

Lanez’s legal team said: ‘Rather than rebut the commentary or debate the issues… [Megan] has succumbed to the current trend of using the legal system in an attempt to overturn opinions with which it disagrees.”

Lanez was convicted of assault with a semiautomatic firearm in December 2022; keeping a loaded and unregistered firearm in a vehicle; and discharging the firearm with gross negligence.

In August 2023, Lanez received a 10-year prison sentence in Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday, in connection with three felony convictions in the July 2020 incident in the Hollywood Hills.

In sentencing, Judge David Herriford said the positive portrait painted by Lanez’s relatives and friends in their trial testimony was “difficult to reconcile” with his actions toward Megan.

“Sometimes good people do bad things,” Herriford told the court AP. “Actions have consequences, and there are no winners in this case.”

During the trial, Megan testified that Lanez shot at her feet and yelled at her to dance as she got out of an SUV after a party at Kylie Jenner’s house.

Megan, who did not initially publicly identify Lanez as the shooter, testified that she had to undergo surgery to remove bullet fragments from her feet.

“Since I was brutally shot by the defendant, I have not experienced a single day of peace,” the singer said in a statement read by a prosecutor ahead of the sentencing. “Slowly but surely I’m healing and coming back, but I’ll never be the same.”

Before his sentence was read, Lanez – who faced a prison sentence of up to 22 years – had asked the judge for a short sentence or probation, saying in retrospect he regretted the incident.

“If I could reverse and change the sequence of events that night, I would,” Lanez told the judge. ‘The victim was my friend. The victim is someone I still care for to this day. I take full responsibility for everything I did wrong that night.”

Lanez was given a 10-month sentence because he had been in custody since his conviction in December.

Lanez’s lead attorney Jose Baez said he was “extremely disappointed” with the sentence and felt it “set an example” since the rapper is a celebrity, adding, “He’s not an example – he’s a human being.”

Baez added, “I’ve seen vehicular homicide cases and other cases involving death, and the defendant still gets less than 10 years.”

Lanez’s lawyers said their next step is to appeal the verdict and ask for the rapper’s release on bail in the meantime.

Prosecutors spoke highly of Megan for her determination to come forward amid online hate and ridicule directed at her for the incident involving Lanez.

Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said, “I hope Miss Pete’s courage gives hope to those who feel helpless.”

In one Elle In the piece, published in August 2023, Megan talked about the lessons she said were crucial in the aftermath of Lanez’s conviction.

“For anyone who has survived violence, please know that your feelings are valid,” she said. ‘You matter. You are not to blame. You are important. You are loved. You are not defined by your trauma.”

She continued, “Just because you’re in a bad situation doesn’t mean you’re a bad person. Our value does not come from other people’s opinions. As long as you stand your ground and live in your truth, no one can take your power.”

Lanez stated that he did not apologize to the singer in a statement released on his Instagram page following the conviction.

“This week in court I took responsibility for all the verbal and intimate moments I shared with the parties involved,” he said. ‘That’s it.’

He continued: “I have not apologized in any way for the charges for which I was wrongly convicted. I maintain that I refuse to apologize for something I didn’t do. Tough times don’t last long, but tough people do.’