Cardi B Prevails Again as Judge Rejects Bid for New Trial After Beverly Hills Altercation
Cardi B scored another legal win on Friday when a Los Angeles County judge rejected a motion for a new trial in a civil lawsuit stemming from a 2018 confrontation outside a Beverly Hills medical office. The decision upholds a unanimous September verdict that found the rapper, born Belcalis Almánzar, did not physically assault security guard Emani Ellis during the incident.
Judge Ian Fusselman determined that Ellis failed to present sufficient grounds to overturn the jury’s decision and dismissed arguments that outside events improperly influenced deliberations. The judge found that jurors, who reached their verdict in approximately one hour, evaluated the evidence independently and without undue pressure.
Ellis’s legal team argued that jurors may have been “intimidated” after Cardi B threw a pen outside the courthouse near the end of the trial. Video from that day shows Almánzar turning toward YouTube vlogger Donat Ricketts and discarding a pen on the ground after he repeatedly questioned her about a rumored pregnancy. Almánzar told Ricketts to “stop disrespecting” her but did not confront him physically.
Ricketts later claimed in a sworn declaration that the pen bounced and struck him, and that a juror observed the moment and asked whether he planned to sue. Judge Fusselman ultimately rejected the argument, noting that Ellis’s attorney initially sought to introduce the pen incident to the jury because they believed it supported their client’s narrative, not because it interfered with deliberations. “We are speculating about how it impacted them,” the judge said in court. He added that the jurors “paid close attention throughout the trial” and that nothing outside the courtroom appeared to meaningfully affect their decision-making.
Ellis’s lawsuit alleged that Cardi B scratched her face with an acrylic nail after a heated exchange outside the OB-GYN office in February 2018. Ellis was working as a security guard in the building at the time of the incident. Almánzar, who was in the early stages of her first pregnancy with Migos rapper Offset, testified that she believed Ellis was recording her and was trying to protect her privacy before she had informed her family of the news.
The rapper repeatedly stated from the stand that no physical contact occurred. “She didn’t hit me. I didn’t hit her. There was no touch,” Almánzar testified. Courtroom video and testimony became widely shared online, generating viral sound bites and extensive media coverage.
A central issue in Ellis’s request for a new trial was the late identification of two key witnesses: obstetrician Dr. David Finke and office receptionist Tierra Malcolm. Both testified that Ellis was holding a phone and appeared to be the aggressor during the altercation. Malcolm also testified that Ellis later contacted her seeking support for an employment-related claim tied to the incident, an allegation Malcolm declined to participate in.
Judge Fusselman said that although Cardi B’s legal team added these witnesses after the initial disclosure deadline, Ellis’s side was similarly permitted late additions. Ellis’s attorneys argued that the late disclosure was intentionally disruptive, while both Dr. Finke and Malcolm testified that they only became aware of their role in the lawsuit once contacted by Cardi B’s legal team.
Judge Fusselman also indicated he plans to sanction Ellis’s attorney, Ron Rosen Janfaza, over repeated references to alleged psychological treatment that was not supported by trial evidence. The judge said Janfaza made the assertions multiple times despite knowing the evidence had been excluded.
Following the verdict in September, Almánzar released a “Courtroom Edition” cover for her album Am I the Drama? commemorating viral trial moments, a reminder that Cardi B’s legal victories often enter the cultural conversation just as much as her music.
