The jury has sided with Afroman. A lawsuit was filed against him by the seven deputies who accused him of defamation and invasion of privacy.
According to the deputies, Afroman used their images without consent in his music video Lemon Pound Cake and made false claims about them. Four years ago, the rapper’s home was raided by police officers on suspicion of illegal drug trade and abduction. The rapper later used the home footage in his music video in which sheriffs are seen entering and raiding his home.
Testifying in court, Afroman, whose real name is Joseph Edgar Foreman, said:
“The whole raid was a mistake. All of this is their fault. If they hadn’t wrongly raided my house, there would be no lawsuit, I would not know their names, they wouldn’t be on my home surveillance system, and there would be no songs, nothing.”
Complete lawsuit against Afroman explained
In 2022, police officers raided Afroman’s home while he was not there, on suspicion of illegal drugs and possible kidnapping. However, they didn’t find any evidence that proved the claim.
Later, the rapper saw the raid on the security footage and used it in his music video titled Lemon Pound Cake, showing the sheriff walking through his home. The song talked about the sheriff entering his home and destroying the property. A few lines of the song went like:
“The Adams County Sheriff kicked down my door/ Then I heard the glass break/ They found no kidnapping victims/ Just some lemon pound cake”
Later, the sheriffs filed a case against him, charging him with invasion of privacy and defamation for using their identities. The lawsuit reportedly stated that because of the video, they had to face:
“Humiliation, ridicule, mental distress, embarrassment and loss of reputation”
Speaking of the same, the rapper told jurors:
“I got freedom of speech. After they run around my house with guns, kicked down my door, I got the right to kick a can in my backyard, use my freedom of speech, turn my bad times into a good time. Yes I do, and I think I’m a sport for doing so because I don’t go to their house, kick down their doors, flip them off on their surveillance cameras, then try to play the victim and sue them.”
Announcing the verdict, the judge reportedly said:
“In all circumstances, the jury finds in favor of the defendant. No plaintiff verdict prevailed. So, the matter will be concluded with defense verdicts.”
After the verdict, the rapper also posted a celebratory video on his Instagram announcing the news to his fans.
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Edited by Vatsala Chauhan