ASAP Rocky's lawyer, Joe Tacopina, says he is confident the rapper will be exonerated as the jury in his ongoing assault case begins deliberating, this week. With the court off on Monday for President's Day, Tacopina spoke with TMZ about the criminal trial.
"I feel great," he said. "I mean look, this case went in perfectly for us. I believed in Rocky's innocence from day one. Rocky's maintained it by virtue of the fact that he's turned down a plea that would've been-- they offered him like six months. He's obviously facing a lot more than that. I think that shows you his resolve and his belief in his innocence and belief in the jury system. So, this case, it should be a five-minute acquittal." From there, he admitted "you just never know what a jury's thinking," but regardless, he still feels good about their chances.
Why Is ASAP Rocky On Trial?
Rocky is currently facing two counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm. If the jury decides to convict on both, he could face up to 24 years in prison. The charges stem from an altercation with ASAP Relli in 2021, in which Rocky stands accused of allegedly firing gunshots at his former friend. During the trial, Tacopina argued Rocky only carries a prop gun to scare off would-be attackers.
One viral moment from the trial came when Tacopina got into a heated argument with the prosecution during his closing argument. A clip of the interaction went viral online, in which Tacopina removes his jacket. "I took off my coat because it was very hot in court. I didn't know this was gonna happen," he explained to TMZ. "I was just listening to this repeated, I'll call it whining if you will by the prosecutor which seems to happen every day. So, I took my coat off because it was getting hot, not because I was getting ready to have fisticuffs. That wouldn't have been a fair fight."
[Via]
