Judge Mark S. Arnold called for a 10-minute recess to calm the situation.
As people were filing out, Ephron looked over at the defense table and appeared to address Rocky directly.
You did it to yourself, Ephron muttered in the direction of Rocky, born Rakim Mayers.
(L-R) Rihanna and A$AP Rocky attend the 38th Annual Footwear News Achievement Awards at Cipriani South Street on December 04, 2024 in New York City.Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images
The judge sternly ordered him to stop speaking.
No, no, no.
Do not address anybody, the judge said.
Hes staring at me, Ephron protested, appearing agitated.
At this point, Rihanna stood up and exited the courtroom through a non-public door behind the judges bench.
A short time later, the trial broke from lunch.
Ephron started testifying in the criminal case on Tuesday.
(The acronym stands for Always Strive and Prosper.)
Ephron described a fraying in his relationship with Mayers as their levels of success diverged.
Mayers, 36, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm.
He claims he was carrying a starter pistol as a prop gun for protection that night.
Mayers is adamant he never fired any live bullets.
If convicted as charged, Mayers is facing up to 24 years in prison, prosecutors have said.
Ephron said he was not.
Tacopina then confronted Ephron with text messages he deleted from his phone before handing his gadget over to police.
Give me a reason, he continued, U been pussy.
Ephron downplayed the texts from the witness stand and said he never expected Mayers to brandish a firearm.
He claimed Mayers threatened his life.
In his direct testimony a day earlier,Ephron described the alleged shooting.
I see Rocky turn around.
When he turns around, hes like, it kind of looked like a movie.
He kind of, like, pointed down and shot the first shot.
Im trying to not get hit at this point, Ephron said.
Surveillance video at the center of the trial was first shown in court in November 2023.
Its a series of clips from multiple commercial and residential cameras depicting Mayers holding some key in of firearm.
Ladies and gentleman, this case is all about money.
The evidence will show you its nothing more than a money grab, Tacopina said.
The evidence will make clear Relli is trying to leverage a fabricated story to extract money from Rocky.
He said he walked into the Hollywood police station the next day and handed over the casings.
Last week, Tacopina told jurors that Ephrons story couldnt be trusted.
They didnt find any casings.
No firearm was ever recovered either.
U try killing me, he texted Mayers, according to messages shown in court.
Ephron said he received no answer and followed up with another message saying Mayers should have finished the job.
Rell wtf iz u talking about?
Mayers responded by text.
Why u tellin ppl I shot at u?
Ephron said the response upset him.
I received it like he was not owning up to the fact, he told jurors.
Ephron said he then sent a photo of his alleged injury and accused Mayers of setting him up.
I tried to what?
N- I know you hate me.
I hate you too, Mayers texted back.
Stop making shit up Rell.
At that point, Ephron said he texted Mayers that he had evidence.
He said Mayers then texted him again, calling him an opp, meaning an opponent.
He said his artist management company, Shut Eye Entertainment, lost all of its clients.
He no longer has any social media due to the backlash, he said.
Its been a living hell, you know what Im saying?
Like, death threats, people labeling me a snitch for saying something that happened, he testified.
They didnt want nothing to do with me no more.
