Tory Lanez Held in Contempt as Megan Thee Stallion’s Civil Trial Against Blogger Begins
As jury selection opened this week in Megan Thee Stallion’s defamation and cyberstalking lawsuit against blogger Milagro Gramz, the case took an immediate turn: Tory Lanez, whose 2022 criminal conviction underpins much of the civil dispute, was held in contempt of court. A federal magistrate judge ruled that Lanez’s repeated refusal to answer foundational questions during a jailhouse deposition warranted sanctions, ordering him to pay $20,000 to Megan’s legal team.
The contempt finding arrives after months of escalating tension in the long-running public clash between the Grammy-winning rapper, born Megan Pete, and Gramz, who Megan alleges collaborated with Lanez to amplify harassment and misinformation online. The suit, filed last year, argues that Gramz acted as Lanez’s “paid surrogate,” coordinating a targeted campaign to smear Megan after she testified in his criminal trial for shooting her in July 2020. Gramz denies conspiring with Lanez and has argued that her commentary is protected as journalism, a position the court previously rejected.
According to court records unsealed this week, Lanez’s most recent deposition, conducted from prison, where he is serving a 10-year sentence, collapsed almost immediately. The judge wrote that Lanez opened the session by asking what penalty he would face if he declined to participate. After being informed he risked contempt, fines, and potential additional consequences, he allegedly responded that he would simply “pay whatever the fines are,” dismissing the proceedings as inconsequential.
Moments later, according to the order, Lanez “stormed out,” refused further questioning, and verbally attacked Megan’s attorney, calling him a liar who needed to “calm down.” He declined to answer basic inquiries, including how he met Gramz, whether the two communicated directly, or whether he played any role in online messaging attributed to him on Instagram or via text.
The judge recommended that jurors be explicitly told Lanez refused to answer these questions, a rare and pointed instruction that could influence how the panel interprets the evidence at trial.
His attorney, Crystal Morgan, was also sanctioned for obstructive conduct during the deposition.
This is not the first time Lanez has resisted participating under oath. Earlier this year, the court ordered him to pay Megan’s legal fees after he repeatedly claimed not to recall basic facts during an April deposition.
Lanez declined to testify in his own defense during the 2022 criminal trial that ended with his conviction on three felony counts, including assault with a semiautomatic firearm. He appealed and lost; the convictions and sentence stand.
Gramz, whose real name is Milagro Cooper, rose to prominence by live-commenting on Lanez’s criminal case and championing online narratives that portrayed Megan as dishonest. Megan’s lawsuit paints a far more coordinated picture, alleging that Lanez fed Gramz misinformation, including false claims about evidence and supposed inconsistencies in Megan’s testimony, which Gramz then broadcast to her audience.
One significant episode in the lawsuit involves Gramz promoting a fabricated pornographic video purporting to depict Megan, an allegation central to the defamation claims. Megan argues these posts contributed to emotional distress, reputational harm, and a resurgence of harassment that began the night she was shot.
The civil trial runs alongside a separate restraining order issued earlier this year, which bars Lanez from contacting or harassing Megan until at least 2030. The judge who granted the order cited “uncontroverted facts,” including Lanez firing multiple shots that wounded her feet.
The start of the trial comes as Megan has spoken candidly in court filings about the sustained harassment she says she has endured since 2020, not only from Lanez but from those she claims amplified his narrative online. At a hearing earlier this year, she said she has “not been at peace” since the shooting and urged the court to intervene.
The trial is expected to dig into the intersection of celebrity, online commentary, and coordinated digital harassment, and now begins under the shadow of Lanez’s contempt ruling, which adds another layer of legal complication for a man already serving a decade-long sentence.
