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Metro Boomin at the “Hurry Up Tomorrow” world premiere
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Key Takeaways:
- Metro Boomin took the stand to deny allegations of sexual assault brought on by Vanessa LeMaistre.
- The defense argued LeMaistre pursued the case for financial gain after their consensual encounters.
- A UCLA psychologist testified that LeMaistre has multiple mental health diagnoses unrelated to the alleged incident.
On Wednesday (Sept. 24), Metro Boomin testified at his civil trial for sexual assault. Continuing to be adamant that he is not a rapist, the producer took the stand to refute the allegations brought on by Vanessa LeMaistre.
The alleged victim claims that, in 2016, she blacked out at a Los Angeles studio after drinking alcohol and taking a Xanax, and woke up to Metro Boomin — born Leland Tyler Wayne — sexually assaulting her. However, the NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPE S creator told a different story on the stand. Per court reporter Meghann Cuniff, Metro Boomin said under oath that he never raped LeMaistre, citing that his late mother raised him better. Cuniff also posted on X about the trial.
“Not to get too deep, but me and my mom worked so hard to build an upstanding brand and reputation for me and myself and everything I do,” he began. “And then they’ll accuse me of something like this, which I would never even dream or fathom. I can’t even believe I’m living this right now, or up here doing this, or wasting my time and everybody else’s time with this.”
Metro Boomin contends that he did have sexual relations with LeMaistre twice. On Tuesday (Sept. 23) Metro’s attorney Lawrence Hinkle told the court she pursued the case because his client “stopped giving her attention after the last time they had sex” and that she was looking for a payday. “We are here because she thought my client could solve her financial problems,” Hinkle said. “So, she made a claim that he sexually assaulted her, expecting that he would just write a check to make it all go away quickly and quietly.”
It’s also worth noting that the defense’s first witness was April Thames, UCLA’s chief of psychology, who was hired by Metro Boomin’s lawyers to assess LeMaistre. The professor testified that she has “borderline personality disorder with psychotic features, post-traumatic stress disorder and major depressive disorder,” per Cuniff.
“My opinion is that her psychological functioning has been like this for a very long time,” Thames testified. “I think there have been moments throughout her life where sometimes it’s better and sometimes it gets worse, and that seems to be consistent with whether or not she’s getting treatment. But I do not think that there is a connection between this and the allegations that have been made in this matter.”
Metro Boomin’s lawyers are also asserting that LeMaistre’s testimony from Tuesday includes discrepancies. For instance, she claimed she dated rapper Lil Wayne for 10 months. But during cross-examination, Metro Boomin’s attorney implied this was not true.
LeMaistre is suing for damages between $3.4 million and $3.7 million. Closing arguments are scheduled for Thursday (Sept. 25).
