Tipsheet

Freed American Rapper Convicted Of Assault In Sweden, But Sentenced No Jail Time

One of the odder sagas of President Donald J. Trump's presidency has been that of the American rapper Rakim Meyers, aka A$AP Rocky. Earlier this summer, he was accused of assault by Swedish authorities and imprisoned. His celebrity friends, Kanye West and Kim Kardashian, petitioned directly to the White House to free him from the foreign jail. President Trump then directed the State Department to get involved, but the Swedish government insisted that A$AP Rocky had committed a crime. Finally, he was allowed to exit the country while the case went to trial. However, on Wednesday the Swedish judge handling it declared that A$AP Rocky was not acting in self-defense and has been found guilty of assault. 

CNN reports that the Stockholm District Court ruled that "Based on statements from two witnesses, the court finds that the defendants were not subject to a current or imminent criminal attack." 

"Therefore, they were not in a situation where they were entitled to use violence in self-defense. Nor could they have perceived themselves to be in such a situation," the judge added. 

Accordingly, "The imposition of a conditional sentence means that A$AP Rocky will be subject to a probationary period of two years. The court awarded damages to the victim 'or violation of his integrity and pain and suffering. The defendants were also ordered to repay legal expenses to the state.'"

However, it is unclear how Sweden will enforce this ruling, since A$AP Rocky is an American citizen and it is unlikely President Trump will extradite him back to the European country should he choose to not pay the fine.