ASAP Rocky and Rihanna have allegedly made a playful promise to their lawyer, Joe Tacopina, after the rapper was found not guilty in connection to a 2021 shooting incident.
During an interview with Extra published Wednesday, February 19, Tacopina revealed that the couple joked about naming their next child after him.
“They grabbed me and they said, ‘Listen, our next baby, A$AP Joe,’” Tacopina recalled. “I said, ‘I’m gonna hold you to that!’”
Tacopina, who represented Rocky in court, said the rapper expressed his deep gratitude after the verdict was delivered.
“He told me he loved me and we’re family,” the attorney shared.
ASAP Rocky’s Emotional Courtroom Moment
On Tuesday, February 18, a Los Angeles court found Rocky, 36, not guilty of two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic weapon. The verdict brought a wave of relief, and Rocky was seen immediately running into Rihanna’s arms.
“He didn’t know if he was going to go home and see his two babies that night or start a decade-long prison sentence literally that day,” Tacopina told Extra. “He grabbed me and he said, ‘Joe, I want you to know, I know how hard you fought here. I know everything you’ve done, and I just appreciate you so much.’”
Tacopina admitted he was briefly concerned when Rocky bolted toward Rihanna after the first count was read.
“I told my partner, ‘Get him back here, we have another count,’” he recalled. “I’m thinking, ‘My God, if the second count doesn’t go well, this is gonna be embarrassing.’ But of course, it did, and I was confident it was going to.”
Rihanna’s Reaction and Courtroom Support
Following the verdict, Rihanna, also 36, broke her silence on social media, expressing her gratitude.
“The glory belongs to God and God alone! Thankful, humbled by his mercy!” she wrote via her Instagram Story, adding a prayer hands emoji.
Though she did not testify during the trial, Rihanna attended multiple court sessions in support of Rocky. The couple, who began dating in 2020, share two young sons—RZA, 2, and Riot, 18 months.
The Case Against ASAP Rocky
The case stemmed from a 2021 incident in which Rocky was accused of firing four to five shots at childhood friend-turned-rival ASAP Relli (born Terell Ephron) on a Hollywood street. Relli testified that his knuckles were grazed by a bullet but was otherwise unharmed.
Despite an eight-day trial with five prosecution witnesses, the jury ultimately found Rocky not guilty on both charges, allowing the rapper to walk free and reunite with his family.
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