Ahead of Tory Lanez’s sentencing, Judge David Herriford said he received around 70 letters from various persons, including rapper Iggy Azalea and a prison chaplain, who all asked for leniency for the Canadian rapper.
Tory Lanez’s sentencing gets underway on Monday, but up to press time, the embattled rapper’s fate was not known. Earlier in the day, Judge Herriford summarized the contents of some of the letters, including Azalea, which asked the judge to consider sentencing him to something “transformative and not life-destroying.”
Lanez’s five-year-old son also wrote a handwritten letter to the judge as well. According to reporter Meghann Cuniff in a YouTube video, one of the people who spoke in court was a prison chaplain who recalled that Tory’s presence at the jail has been calming.
The rapper is presently in protective custody, and Cuniff recalled that the chaplain spoke highly about Lanez and his impact on other prisoners. Lanez is said to have begun a nightly prayer and a daily moment of prayer that saw all of the prisoners participate.
“It’s just amazing to see all the TVs go off at 9 o’clock and everyone’s in prayer and he’s never seen anything like it,” Cuniff said.
The reporter also paraphrased the judge’s quoting of the letter from the jailer, which said that Lanez appeared ‘remorseful’ and discussed in detail what happened and ways he could have prevented it.
Tory Lanez’s hearing also saw the defense being allowed to ask questions and answer where the rapper’s charitable acts, which included a turkey drive, were discussed by a young marketing executive that works for him.
Tory Lanez’s father, Sonstar Peterson, who had a major outburst after the guilty verdict was handed down last December, also apologized to the judge for his actions and reassured the judge that he had respect for him despite the outburst, which he blamed on being emotional.
The victim, Megan Thee Stallion, did not appear in court for the sentencing, but there are reports that a victim impact statement was sent by the ‘Hottie’ rapper.
Tory’s lawyers are asking for the rapper to be sentenced to probation and drug rehab, citing his dealings with alcoholism and childhood trauma as the reason for his actions.
In the meantime, the prosecution has asked that the embattled rapper be sentenced to 13 years in prison. Tory lanez is facing up to 20-year in prison for three felony charges.
Alright we are on the 90-minute break. Judge Herriford got 70+ letters of support for Tory Lanez, including one from @IggyAzalea. He briefly summarized each one. Two jailers wrote letters, one spoke in court. Lanez' father, Sonstar Peterson, was the last speaker before the break.
— Meghann Cuniff (@meghanncuniff) August 7, 2023
Iggy deserves these lashings https://t.co/H5U8czQipn pic.twitter.com/0KqQf1gR5x
— @2lmetgala (@2lmetgala) August 7, 2023
