Tory Lanez’s recent assertion of having new evidence to prove his innocence in the Megan Thee Stallion shooting case has been rejected by California’s Attorney General’s Office. Lanez aimed to use a statement from his driver, Jauquan Smith, who claimed he saw Megan’s friend Kelsey Harris holding a gun. He hoped this would help overturn his 10-year prison sentence for the July 2020 incident. However, Smith’s affidavit, part of a habeas petition filed in December by Lanez’s appellate lawyers, stated that he did not see who actually pulled the trigger. The affidavit did not provide new information that could affect Lanez’s conviction.
Deputy Attorney General Michael C. Keller, in an informal response on July 29, argued that Smith’s statement does not qualify as new evidence and cannot be used to overturn Lanez’s conviction. Keller emphasized the “wealth of other evidence” supporting Lanez’s guilt, including DNA results and Megan’s testimony. Additionally, he highlighted texts and phone calls in which Lanez appeared to implicate himself. Keller wrote in the 38-page filing obtained by court reporter Meghann Cuniff, “Defense counsel acknowledged that he had spoken with Smith regarding his observations and determined that Smith would not be a helpful witness.”
Keller also noted that Smith’s claim of not seeing who fired the gun “does not directly contradict [Megan]’s testimony that petitioner [Lanez] was the person who shot her.” Keller emphasized the “wealth of other evidence” supporting Lanez’s guilt, including DNA results and Megan’s testimony. He also pointed to texts and phone calls in which Lanez seemed to implicate himself.
Lanez, 32, has been seeking a new trial based on claims of “erroneous admission of evidence” and “prosecutorial misconduct.” He was sentenced to 10 years in prison last September after being found guilty on all three felony counts. He also faces deportation to Canada upon his release. Before the trial, Kelsey Harris initially told detectives she saw Lanez firing shots at Megan but later backtracked on the witness stand, claiming she remembered little of that night and repeatedly invoking her Fifth Amendment rights. Megan has consistently stated that Harris did not shoot her and that Lanez, who she referred to as “in jail,” was the shooter.