On Monday, jury selection started in the Toronto rapper’s felony assault case alleging he shot Megan Thee Stallion. According to Rolling Stone, the judge decided to end Lanez’s house arrest as the trial gets underway.
“I will terminate the house arrest at this point. The main reason is that during trial, it’s difficult to have a client who’s not accessible. I’m doing this mainly for the trial preparation aspect,” said Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge David Herriford.
The “Say It” rapper has been on house arrest since October following his alleged altercation with August Alsina in Chicago in September.
The judge also decided that Lanez could remove his GPS ankle monitor, but said that his $350,000 bond would stand.
Lanez went live on Instagram as his ankle monitor was cut off. “Get it out of here!” he said.
Prosecutors allege that Lanez tried to intimidate witnesses previously in the case. Lanez’s lawyer, George G. Mgdesyan, claimed that his client never attempted to bribe or intimidate anyone, despite Megan telling authorities that he offered her hush money in the aftermath of the shooting.
“She says that my client told her to lie and offered her money because he’s on probation and didn’t want to get arrested. My client has never been on probation,” Mgdesyan argued.
The lawyer also told the court that Kylie Jenner and Kris Jenner’s boyfriend Corey Gamble were on the defense’s witness list. Both were present for the pool party at Jenner’s house that proceeded the July 12, 2020 shooting. Mgdesyan said Jenner’s testimony could provide context about “how this incident began.”
Lanez, whose real name is Daystar Peterson, was charged in October 2020 with one felony count of assault with a semiautomatic firearm and one count of carrying a concealed, loaded, and unregistered firearm in a vehicle.
During Monday’s hearing, Lanez was hit with a new felony charge of discharging a firearm in a grossly negligent manner to cause bodily injury, reports The Shade Room. The charge carries a maximum of six years in prison.
He is already facing a maximum sentence of 22 years and eight months in prison if convicted as charged.
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