The prosecution in Tory Lanez's trial attempted to add more charges to the beleaguered artist's case.
Towards the end of court on Monday, December 19, Deputy District Attorney Kathy Ta motioned to include two counts of felony witness intimidation to Lanez's three current charges. Ta cited California Penal Code 136.1, which states that it's illegal to attempt to dissuade a witness, and argued that Tory should be charged for trying to give Megan Thee Stallion and Kelsey Harris $1 million for their silence about the shooting. When Judge David Herriford asked Ta why the prosecution waited so long to file the charges, she said they weren't sure how Harris would testify.
Harris was already considered a wild card after she completely severed ties with Megan Thee Stallion months after the shooting. She also contradicted her own interview from September when she told the jury that she couldn't remember seeing Tory pointing a gun and shooting at Megan's feet.
The defense argued that the prosecution already had an idea of how Harris would testify, and Judge Herriford agreed. The judge also noted that adding more charges would put the defense in a "difficult position" in regarding to response and planning. He claimed it would be "unfair" for the jury who have already heard so much after six days of testimony.
“I think it’s unfair at this juncture, so I would deny that motion,” the judge said.
It's been an eventful trial so far. While both Harris and Meg have offered bombshell testimonies, there's still no word on whether we'll see Lanez take the witness stand. He previously plead not guilty to all three charges including felony assault with a semiautomatic firearm, possession of a concealed, unregistered firearm and discharging a firearm with gross negligence. If convicted, he could face up to 22 years and eight months in prison and deportation.
With just a couple days of testimony left, the trial is expected to wrap up later this week.