The A$AP Rocky assault trial moves to opening statements following jury selection.
- NewsBlend360
- Jan 23
- 2 min read
By NEWS BLEND 360
Updated 6:51 PM EST, January 23, 2025
LOS ANGELES (NB360) — On Thursday, a jury comprised of five men and seven women was selected for the trial of rapper A$AP Rocky, who faces charges for allegedly shooting at a former friend in 2021.
The trial of the 36-year-old hip-hop star and fashion icon in Los Angeles will commence with opening statements on Friday, following the swearing-in of the 12 jurors and four alternates.
Rocky rejected a prosecution plea deal of 180 days in jail, opting instead to face the risk of a longer prison sentence if found guilty of two felony charges of assault with a semiautomatic firearm. He has pleaded not guilty, with his lawyer asserting his innocence.
He chose to proceed to trial on two charges of assault with a semiautomatic firearm, which could result in a sentence of up to 24 years in prison if convicted.
The selection process for the jury took 2 1/2 days, involving over a hundred candidates in a downtown LA courtroom. The selected jurors include a podcast editor and actor, a man with over 20 years of experience at Trader Joe’s, and a retired judge as the last alternate.
Many candidates were dismissed for cause, while others were excluded by the prosecution or defense without providing a reason. The defense used seven of their peremptory challenges, while the prosecution used two.
One potential juror, a civilian employee of the Los Angeles Police Department with extensive law enforcement connections, including a cousin on the witness list, was removed by Rocky’s lawyer Joe Tacopina after the judge refused to dismiss him for cause.
“Here’s a shocker, we’re going to thank and excuse juror number 27.”
Jury selection often revolved around opinions on police. Superior Court Judge Mark Arnold, a former sheriff’s deputy, engaged in discussions with those expressing mistrust of police.
He questioned a speech pathologist about generalizing mistrust based on a single bad experience.
When another woman mentioned police corruption, Arnold asked her to “tell me about the documented corruption at LAPD that you must’ve either read about or heard.”
When she referenced the Rodney King incident, he responded, “You are going to hold against current police something that happened before they were born?”
Questions also addressed the fame of Rocky and his partner Rihanna, who was absent from court on Thursday and whose attendance during the trial remains uncertain.
“What if Rihanna comes here to court, is it going to be hard for you to look over there, and see the defendant’s family, and deliver a guilty verdict?” Deputy District Attorney John Lewin asked one woman.
After a long pause, she said “yes.”
Rocky is accused of firing several shots at Terell Ephron, a friend from his youth, on a Hollywood street in 2021. Ephron claims the shots grazed his knuckles. Rocky has pleaded not guilty, with his lawyers arguing he used a starter pistol as a prop, not a real gun.
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