Rapper ASAP RockyThe shooting trial has just begun, and lawyers are already weighing the potential influence of his longtime partner Rihanna may have on the proceedings.
On Thursday, January 23, during jury selection and a day before attorneys gave their opening statements, Deputy District Attorney John Lewin asked a prospective juror — a woman — if could he have given a guilty verdict to the accused if Rihanna, 36, was in court.
“What if Rihanna came here to court, would it be difficult for you to look there and see the family of the accused and give a guilty verdict?” Lewin asked the woman, as reported by Associated Press.
According to the news outlet, the woman paused for a long time before answering “yes.”
Rihanna was not in court on Thursday or Friday, January 24, when Rocky’s trial officially began. The 36-year-old rapper was charged with two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm in connection with the 2021 shooting incident in Hollywood. Rocky is accused of firing four or five shots at Terell Ephron, a childhood friend, who claimed the shots “hurt his knuckles,” according to Associated Press.
Rocky pleaded not guilty and his lawyers said he did not commit any crime. If convicted, he faces up to 24 years in prison.
According to Associated Pressit took the prosecution and the defense two and a half days to select a set of jurors from a “pool of over a hundred candidates.” According to the outlet, a podcast editor and actor, as well as someone who has worked at Trader Joe’s for more than 20 years, made the final cut.
While Rihanna — who has two children, RZA and Riot Rose, with Rocky — has yet to appear in court in support of her husband, Thomas Zizzo Jr.son of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Erica Jaynewas on Friday.
Getty Images (2) The first day of rapper ASAP Rocky’s assault trial served as a reminder of how small Hollywood is. Thomas Zizzo Jr., a Los Angeles police officer and son of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Erika Jayne, stood on Friday, January 14, during the first day of the Grammy award-winning (…)
A Los Angeles police officer took the stand on the first day of the Grammy award-winning rapper’s trial, testifying as one of the first law enforcement officers to arrive at the scene of an alleged shooting incident in 2021. According to TMZthe officer reportedly “testified about what he saw at the scene when he arrived.”
Rihanna, who started dating Rocky in late 2019, has been relatively quiet about her partner’s legal troubles. However, he remained by her side. In an interview in April 2024 at interviewshe spoke frankly about their relationship.
“We have known each other for a long time. I see him in relationships. He sees me in relationships. We see each other outside of relationships,” she said at the time. “We know what we can do, and the trouble we can bring into each other’s lives. We can make or break each other’s hearts. And so, we started dating with a lot of caution. “
