American rapper Rakim Meyers popularly known in music circles as A$AP Rocky has been ordered to return to court to determine if he will stand trial for allegedly shooting a former friend.
The order was issued on Tuesday at a Downtown Los Angeles criminal court where Judge Kerry White scheduled a preliminary hearing to be held on June 5.
The charges against the musician arise from an altercation in Hollywood in November 2021 between him (A$AP Rocky) and fellow rapper Terrell Ephron, a fellow member of the A$AP Mob rap group that started in Harlem in 2006.
A$AP Rocky was arrested in April last year at LAX airport as he stepped off a private plane from Barbados where he had been on vacation with the singer.
Cops held him for a few hours on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, then released him on $550,000 bail and sent the case to the LA District Attorney’s to prosecute.
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It wasn’t till the following August that LA DA George Gascon decided that the charges were serious enough to press for felony status, rather than misdemeanor which would have meant only a maximum of one year jail time for each count.
‘’Discharging a gun in a public place is a serious offense that could have ended with tragic consequences not only for the person targeted but also for innocent bystanders visiting Hollywood,’ said Gascon after announcing the charges.
‘’My office conducted a thorough review not the evidence in this case and determined that the addition of a special firearm allegation was warranted.” Gascon added.
