D.A. Could Reportedly Charge Tory Lanez With Assault Over Megan Thee Stallion Shooting

In the months since rapper Tory Lanez was arrested in the Hollywood Hills, rumors circulated about whether or not he was the source of Megan Thee Stallion’s gunshot injury. Megan has, meanwhile, been candid about her healing process. In an Instagram post on July 15, she made it clear that she believes the wound was “done with the intention to physically harm me.” TMZ now reports that Los Angeles D.A. could charge Torey Lanez with assault, months after his arrest.

As initially reported, police arrested Lanez for possession of a firearm while the incident was under investigation. According to TMZ, Lanez faces a potential additional charge of “felony assault with a firearm” in connection to the shooting in July. The possible assault charge would be an escalation in the case.

TMZ, however, also reports that Megan’s Wednesday Instagram post—where she wrote that she was walking away when she was shot—might be a boon in Lanez’s defense. If she was walking away, TMZ states, attorneys could argue that she could not have seen if it had been Lanez who fired the gun.

This latest development is further proof of how the music industry, law enforcement, and media have failed Meg. Her traumatic experience has, despite her wishes, been made into a public spectacle, with police officials sending tip-offs about the case to outlets like TMZ, fueling speculation across social media on whether she had been shot at all. Celebrities continue to joke and riff on her injury, but it must drive her detractors nuts to know that, amid all this, Megan collaborated on one of the most massive songs in recent memory.