Ahead of Tory Lanez’s sentencing on August 7, the rapper’s lawyers filed a court memo Wednesday requesting that he be sentenced to probation and a stay in a drug treatment facility instead of prison after being found guilty of shooting Megan Thee Stallion.
Prosecutors had previously requested that the judge sentence Lanez — real name Daystar Peterson — to 13 years in prison, but the rapper’s defense argued in a 41-page memo that Lanez should instead be sent to rehab, citing his alcohol addiction and severe childhood trauma, Legal Affairs and Trials’ Meghann Cuniff reported.
However, Peterson’s lawyers declined to admit their client’s guilt in the memo, as Peterson has continued to maintain his innocence even after being convicted of the charges: The evidence is “questionable at best and by no means overwhelming,” they wrote.
“Assuming the allegations are true, Mr. Peterson’s psychological, physical, and childhood trauma was a factor in the commission of the offense,” the memo stated.
“Likewise, the current offense is connected to Mr. Peterson’s childhood trauma and mental illness, alcohol-use disorder,” which “compromised his ability to manage and regulate his emotions and behaviors and that his alcohol use disorder played a significant role in the alleged offenses.”
In a previous memo, prosecutors hinted at requesting a harsh sentence, perhaps even exceeding the 22-year maximum the charges allowed. They ultimately asked for a 13-year sentence, which the defense felt was too still excessive: If the judge were to sentence Peterson to prison instead of probation and rehab — they acknowledged that Peterson was “presumptively ineligible for probation” — the defense asked for three years behind bars.
Peterson has remained behind bars since Dec. 2022 after he was found guilty of three charges: First-degree assault with a firearm, discharge of a firearm with gross negligence, and having a concealed firearm in a vehicle – unregistered. Judge David Herriford — who the defense argued should have been disqualified from the case — denied the rapper’s request for a new trial.