Why did ASAP Rocky reject 180-day sentence plea deal? Rapper could potentially face two decades in prison if convicted

Closing arguments continued on Day 13 in LA court amidst the legal battle between ASAP (A$AP) Relli and ASAP Rocky. The trial that commenced during the last week of January 2025 saw Relli, aka Terell Ephron, accusing his former friend, ASAP Rocky, of firing a gun at him during a confrontation in Hollywood in 2021.

Rocky, aka Rakim Mayers, had previously rejected a plea deal to plead guilty. The deal would have reportedly required the Harlem rapper to serve a 180-day sentence, three years of probation, and seven years of suspended sentence. The offer also included 52 weeks of anger management and 500 hours of community service, per Rolling Stone.

According to TMZ, ASAP Rocky rejected the offer from the LA prosecutors, as it would have hampered his career. At the same time, the 36-year-old rapper also maintained his innocence against the charges by rejecting the plea deal. His attorney, Joe Tacopina, told TMZ in January 2025,

“He is not taking ANY PLEA, because he has always maintained his innocence.”

A source close to the Grammy-nominated rapper also told TMZ how accepting the plea would have been a career-halting decision. Here’s what they said to the outlet,

“This would effectively end his career because he would lose all of his endorsement contracts, including Gucci, Puma, the Met Gala and, most important, he would not be able to tour and his career would be over. They would have him under their thumb for over 8 years.”

ASAP Rocky has been charged with two felony counts of assault with a semi-automatic firearm. After rejecting the plea, Rocky could face up to 24 years of prison time if found guilty by the jury.

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ASAP Rocky maintains innocence after claiming that he used a “prop gun”

The alleged shooting incident happened in November 2021, while LAPD apprehended ASAP Rocky in April 2022 from Los Angeles International Airport. As per the police, the incident occurred around 10:15 pm on the night of the incident, when Rocky allegedly fired at Relli with a handgun. After the alleged incident, Rakim and two other males fled on foot while Relli sought his medical treatment later.

Rocky’s defense team has claimed that the handgun referred to in the charges was a prop gun, which the rapper was supposedly carrying to fend off potential attackers. A similar claim was made by ASAP Twelvyy, who apparently witnessed the incident firsthand. Twelvyy testified in the LA Court and said that the firearm, which Rocky was carrying on the night of the incident, was a prop.

Twelvyy was being cross-examined by Rocky’s attorney, Tacopina, who showed him the surveillance footage of the confrontation. During his testimony, Twelvyy even hinted that Relli was the aggressor instead of Rocky,

“Relli’s kind of a big dude. He’s kind of, like, grabbing him and shaking him, so at this point Rocky tries to, like, I guess grab him too, but grab so he can maintain his balance because Relli is kind of trying to lift him up by his hoodie.”

It’s worth noting that previously, ASAP Relli had admitted to deleting some texts from his phone. Those texts were sent on November 6, 2021, before the said incident, and showcased him in a confrontational manner. Earlier during the trial, Relli had narrated the incident in the court,

"He [Rocky] pointed [the gun] at me. And then that's when [ASAP] Illz was like in between. [Rocky] was like, 'I'll kill you right now, pu**sy.' ...I'm right behind Illz and I'm saying, 'If you brought a gun, use it then. Like, what the f**k you brought a gun for?'"

The trial is still underway, with things getting heated up in CA (State of California) vs Rakim Mayers trial. Rocky's attorney and the state prosecutor almost had an altercation during the recent arguments.