Kanye West.Photo: Ronald Martinez/Getty
Kanye Westwill not be charged for allegedly punching a man during aJanuary confrontation in downtown Los Angeles.
On Tuesday, the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office confirmed to PEOPLE that it will not file charges against West, 45, “based on no reasonable likelihood of conviction.”
“Regarding the incident involving Kanye West that took place Jan. 13, 2022, after a thorough and careful review of all the evidence, our office is declining to file based on no reasonable likelihood of conviction,” a spokesperson wrote in the statement.
TMZ wasfirst to reportthe news.
In January, West wasnamed as a suspectin a battery report from the altercation, an LAPD source previously confirmed to PEOPLE. The source said West jumped out of his car outside Soho Warehouse and punched a man who approached him for an autograph, knocking him to the ground.
West evenadmitted to punching the manin an interview withHollywood Unlockedthe same week, though he denied that the man was a fan of his.
“It was 3 a.m. in front of the Warehouse. I’m saying, ‘You don’t know what I’m dealing with right now.’ I just finished these two songs, I came from the studio,” West said at the time, adding: “And this dude, he just had this real attitude, like, ‘What you gonna do? And see that?’ Imma just tell you, that blue COVID mask ain’t stop that knockout, you know what I’m saying?”
The 22-time Grammy Award winner said that the man wasn’t a fan, but was “taking autographs to make money on them.”
“This is the same as the paparazzi, this is not a fan,” he said. This is someone who is using your image, who probably never listened to your songs."
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In January, West artist explained that the woman in the video was his cousin, who had just returned from attempting to speak toKim Kardashianabout personal parenting matters.
“So I end up getting into an altercation with the guy that wanted to make money off of my autographs, then my cousin pulls up and she’s talking to me,” he continued. “I say, ‘Give me a breather. Get away from me.’ She is not taking accountability for the fact that she did not do what she was supposed to do, and that added to me being in a mood where I was like, ‘I am not going to have this.’ "
The January altercation is not the only hot water West has found himself in this year. A source close toPete Davidsonrecently told PEOPLE that the 28-year-old comedian “has been in trauma therapy in large part” due tothreatening posts that West has posted numerous times on social mediawhile Davidson was dating the rapper’s ex-wife Kardashian, beginning in April.
“The attention and negativity coming from Kanye and his antics is a trigger for [Pete], and he’s had to seek out help,” the insider told PEOPLE.
Last Thursday,Kid Cudisaid West’s social media posts — West wrote that Cudi was “fearful of bottle throwers” in a since-deleted Instagram post within which he also made fun of Davidson — “pissed me off.”
“That s— pissed me off,” Cudi said in an interview withEsquire. “That he had the power to f— with me that week. That he used his power to f— with me. Thatpissedme off… You f—ing with my mental health now, bro.”
source: people.com
