Tory Lanez sues California DOC over prison stabbing

Canadian rapper Tory Lanez, born Daystar Shemuel Shua Peterson, has sued the California Correctional Institution in Tehachapi and its officials for “intentional infliction of emotional distress, neglect, and failure to protect” after an inmate stabbed him 16 times in May 2025. The suit claims that he was neglected by prison staff, who put him with Santino Casio, an inmate serving a life sentence for second-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder of a pregnant teen runaway.  

Lanez was stabbed in the back, torso, head, and face with a homemade shank and airlifted to a nearby hospital. The rapper was in critical condition upon arrival and placed on a ventilator. The incident, which the suit described as “unprovoked,” caused Lanez to suffer two collapsed lungs and permanent scarring. After he was released from the hospital, Lanez was relocated to California Men’s Colony in San Luis Obispo.

Casio was convicted in 2008 for assault by a prisoner with a deadly weapon and again in 2018 for manufacturing a deadly weapon. According to Lanez’s April 14 suit, the California Department of Corrections placed the rapper with Casio despite the latter posing a violent risk. “Despite Casio’s classification as a maximum-security violent predator and [Lanez’] high-profile celebrity status, which makes him a target, Defendants Does 1-50 and Warden Danny Samuel knowingly housed them together,” the suit read. “Correctional staff were not immediately present. It is unknown why response was delayed, allowing full attack. This evidences deliberate indifference to foreseeable violence.”

Lanez himself is serving time for violence against his ex-girlfriend Megan Thee Stallion, whom he shot in the foot in 2020. The high-profile case ended in 2022, when Lanez was convicted on three felony charges and sentenced to ten years in prison in August 2023. After the shooting, he reportedly texted Megan that he “just got too drunk.” 

Keep scrolling for more great stories.