Everything to know about A$AP Rocky’s gun assault trial as the rapper rejects plea deal

A$AP Rocky has rejected the prosecution's final offer for a plea deal that would have seen him spend 180 days in jail. The move came shortly before the jury selection began on Tuesday for his trial related to an assault.

A$AP Rocky, who has been accused of pulling a gun on a fellow hip-hop artist during an altercation and then firing at him in another instance, also declined the offer of three years probation. He has now lost the chance at a suspended seven-year term as he did not plead guilty to either of the two assault charges he faces.

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Here's everything we know about A$AP Rocky's legal woes as his childhood friend accuses him of trying to shoot at him

A$AP Rocky, whose legal name is Rakim Mayers, waived his right to appear in person at the trial. However, his lead attorney, Joe Tacopina, took to Instagram on Friday to affirm that Mayers will "certainly" show up at the courtroom in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

The charges date back to August 15, 2022, as the rapper allegedly fired a semi-automatic handgun twice in the direction of the victim. The two were reportedly engaged in an altercation at the time, and the incident allegedly took place on November 6, 2021.

He pleaded not guilty and was later released on bond when the judge issued an order that prohibited him from making contact with the alleged victim, whom CBS News has reported is the rapper's childhood friend Terell Ephron. Last year, Ephron, known to the world as A$AP Relli, testified that the bullets grazed his knuckles, forcing him to go to the hospital for treatment in New York.

Mayers' attorney, Joe Tacopina, reportedly said on Tuesday's hearing that the defense plans to bring in witnesses who will testify that the gun was a "starter pistol" that A$AP Rocky allegedly carried around as a prop for security.

Ephron also testified that the two men were outside a parking garage when at one point, the rapper pulled out a gun from his waistband, aimed it at Ephron's mouth, and said, "I'll kill you right now."

"I want to get this done and over so he can start enjoying his family and move on," said his lawyer, Joe Tacopina, per CBS News. "We're going to be quiet and we're going to try this (case) in a courtroom, and when we do, facts will come out that show that he's truly innocent and he's a victim in this case."

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A$AP Rocky was cuffed in April 2022 at Los Angeles International Airport after he flew in from Barbados. At the time, he was returning from a vacation with Rihanna, who was pregnant with this child at the time.