A$AP Rocky's trial juror hopes rapper "thinks about his actions" post-acquittal as he has "a lot to lose" 

On Tuesday, February 18, A$AP Rocky was found not guilty in the trial for his felony charges from 2021. The Peso rapper was first charged with two counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm in a lawsuit filed by his old friend, A$AP Relli, in relation to an incident from November 2021, when Rocky allegedly shot him in Hollywood, grazing his knuckles.

One of the jurors from the trial spoke about the case with reported Nique at Nite after post-trial, saying:

"I hope that in the future Mr. Mayers [A$AP Rocky] really thinks about his actions before he is upset with somebody. He does have a lot to lose. He's lucky, at this point, that we didn't have enough evidence to hand down a conviction."

A$AP Rocky was first arrested for his felony charges in 2022 but was later released on bail. If convicted of the charges pressed against him, the Multiply rapper would face immediate incarceration with up to 24 years of prison time.

Rocky initially pleaded not guilty to the charges, then rejected a plea deal offered to him before the trial began, which would have involved a short jail time if granted.

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A Juror claimed that they believed a crime had been committed by A$AP Rocky

Per HotNewHipHop, the juror explained in a post-trial interview that the jury - consisting of seven women and five men - was convinced that a crime had been committed, saying:

"We were all thinking a crime had been committed. But the thing is, with the instructions we had, and with the law, we didn't think there was enough evidence to convict."

He added that given in light of the instruction and evidence handed to them, they decided that they could, continuing to say:

"The feeling was that there was a gun. Unfortunately, they didn't have enough evidence to convict on the charges that were handed down to us... I didn't think that they had really convincing evidence it was a prop gun. It was kinda mysterious the way it disappeared and they couldn't produce it as evidence. So, some of the testimony did not sound accurate or truthful."

Per AP News, A$AP Rocky appeared nervous ahead of his verdict in the court and leaped into the arms of his long-time partner, Rihanna, as soon as he heard it. As they were leaving the court, the Ghetto Symphony rapper thanked the panel for saving his life.

Rocky's attorney, Joe Tacopina told the reporters later:

"They are seriously the greatest people. I said I love them and I really do love them. I got emotional in my summation because I really do care about them. This is one of the happiest days of my life and I'm happy for them because they've earned this and deserve it."

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During the trial, A$AP Rocky's friend testified that he fired the gun as a warning

A$AP Rocky's acquittal in the trial comes after A$AP Twelvyy - a mutual friend of Rocky and Relli - testified against Relli. Twelvyy told the court that Relli was the aggressor and that Rocky had fired the gun on him as a warning.

Twelvyy also testified that the Jukebox Joints rapper had been carrying a starter pistol for months for security reasons, which only fired blanks.

A$AP Twelvvy's testimony was in line with the fact that no weapon or ammunition was found at the scene of the incident by the investigators, CNN reported. However, Relli did turn over shell casings later on, claiming to have recovered them after the altercation.

The defense in the trial argued that Relli was filled with "jealousy, lies, and greed," and was motivated by financial reasons to charge Rocky for the shooting.

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Following Tuesday's verdict, LA County District Attorney, Nathan J. Hochman, released a statement claiming they respect the jury's decision, despite the outcome not being the one that they hoped for.