Rapper Tory Lanez has filed a $100 million legal action against California’s Correctional Department following a severe stabbing incident whilst imprisoned at the California Correctional Institute in Tehachapi in May. The artist, known as Daystar Peterson and presently completing a 10-year prison term for the 2020 shooting of Megan Thee Stallion, was stabbed 16 times by prison inmate Santino Casio in what the lawsuit characterises as an “unprovoked dangerous assault.” The assault left Peterson admitted to hospital with a punctured lung and multiple stab wounds to his back, torso, and head. The lawsuit identifies the Department of Corrections, the facility warden, and guards as respondents, alleging negligence in housing decisions and a slow reaction to the violence.
The May 2025 Attack and Its Consequences
The May 2025 stabbing incident at Tehachapi represented a watershed moment in Peterson’s incarceration. According to the lawsuit, fellow inmate Santino Casio, who was serving a life sentence for murder in the second degree, launched an unprovoked assault that left the rapper fighting for his life. Peterson sustained a collapsed lung alongside several stab injuries across his back, torso, and head—injuries serious enough to warrant immediate hospitalisation. The attack raised significant concerns about security procedures in prisons and classification systems for inmates, particularly given the dangerous situation of housing two inmates with such markedly different profiles and threat levels.
Following his recuperation, Peterson was relocated to San Luis Obispo County’s California Men’s Colony, representing another phase in his time in custody. The lawsuit further contends that during this move, Peterson failed to retrieve his belongings from Tehachapi, including songbooks containing lyrics to unpublished songs—a loss that intensifies the psychological and physical harm of the attack. Notably, despite the gravity of the incident, Casio was not prosecuted in connection with the knife attack, a detail the lawsuit underscores as part of systemic failures within the prison service.
- Casio struck Peterson 16 times during the unprovoked attack
- Peterson hospitalised with collapsed lung and multiple wounds
- Moved to California Men’s Colony following recovery
- Personal belongings, including songbooks, remained missing from Tehachapi
Claims of Negligence and Systemic Failure
Housing Decisions and Safety Issues
At the heart of Peterson’s lawsuit lies a core challenge of the Department of Corrections’ decision process concerning prisoner accommodation placements. The court document contends that placing Peterson with Santino Casio—a life-sentence prisoner serving time for murder in the second degree—represented a severe breakdown in risk assessment and prisoner classification. The lawsuit maintains that the department “knew or should have been known” to recognise the danger inherent in this pairing. Peterson’s high-profile celebrity status, the suit contends, made him an obvious target inside the correctional facility, making the accommodation choice not simply negligent but callously indifferent to his safety and wellbeing.
The lawsuit highlights that such housing decisions demand thorough evaluation of detainee profiles, threat levels, and possible drivers for violence. By neglecting to isolate Peterson from Casio, prison administrators allegedly demonstrated a institutional indifference for basic safety protocols that must oversee California’s detention centres. This negligence, the legal team maintains, immediately caused the environment where the stabbing happened, converting what might have remained preventable violence into an completely anticipated consequence of organisational negligence and insufficient safety provisions.
Response and Security Conduct
Beyond the initial housing decision, the lawsuit takes aim at correctional officers’ response during the incident of violence. According to the filing, correctional officers delayed their intervention when Casio launched his attack, permitting violence to continue unabated. The lawsuit specifically criticises the failure to deploy non-lethal devices or other non-lethal intervention methods that might have stopped the attack before Peterson suffered his worst injuries. This alleged sluggishness in responding to an active stabbing incident suggests either poor preparation, understaffing, or a troubling neglect of inmate wellbeing—each possibility undermining institutional competence.
The guards’ conduct during the crucial minutes of the attack raises questions about emergency protocols and personnel readiness within California’s prison system. Conventional correctional practices ordinarily stipulate swift action to violent incidents, yet the lawsuit suggests this incident significantly departed from such protocols. The cumulative effect of slow response times and the lack of appropriate tactical intervention meant that Peterson’s 16 stab wounds were inflicted with minimal active resistance from security personnel, converting what could have been a significant event into a life-threatening situation demanding hospital treatment.
The Wider Context of Lanez’s Imprisonment
Tory Lanez’s ongoing incarceration stems from a widely publicized shooting event in 2020 featuring rap artist Megan Thee Stallion. The confrontation, which took place in the 2020 summer months, resulted in Peterson firing at Stallion in her foot. Following a lengthy legal process, he was convicted in December 2022 on multiple gun-related charges, such as assault using a firearm, and subsequently sentenced to a ten-year prison sentence. This conviction marked a significant moment in hip-hop, attracting extensive press coverage and sparking considerable debate within the music industry regarding accountability and the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Peterson’s ongoing litigation have continued throughout his incarceration, with his legal team filing an appeal contesting the conviction and sentence. However, in November 2025, a panel of three judges denied his appeal and confirmed the original 10-year sentence, essentially shutting down what many anticipated as an avenue for release or reduction in sentence. This rejection came approximately six months after the stabbing attack at Tehachapi, meaning Peterson was grappling with both the physical and psychological aftermath of the prison stabbing whilst simultaneously processing the frustration of his unsuccessful appeal. The combination of these events has significantly complicated his situation in the California prison system.
| Key Event | Date |
|---|---|
| Shooting incident involving Megan Thee Stallion | Summer 2020 |
| Conviction on firearms charges | December 2022 |
| Stabbing incident at California Correctional Institute Tehachapi | May 2025 |
| Appeal denied by three-judge panel | November 2025 |
Lawful Claims and Damages Claimed
Tory Lanez’s legal claim against the California Department of Corrections pursues $100 million in compensation, constituting one of the most substantial cases filed against the state’s correctional system in the past several years. The court filing names the Department of Corrections as the principal defendant, in addition to the warden and prison staff stationed at the California Correctional Institute in Tehachapi. The lawsuit argues that widespread deficiencies in facility operations and security procedures resulted in the extent of Peterson’s injuries during the stabbing incident in May 2025. The significant financial award reflects both the bodily harm sustained and the psychological impact of the unprovoked assault.
Central to the lawsuit’s claims is the allegation that correctional officials made a dangerously inadequate decision in placing Peterson with cellmate Santino Casio, who was serving a life sentence for second-degree murder. The legal filing asserts that the correctional department either knew or should have known that this cell assignment posed a significant risk to Peterson, especially given his prominent inmate standing within the facility. Furthermore, the lawsuit criticises the actions of correctional staff, arguing that officers failed to employ proper emergency procedures such as stun grenades to halt Casio’s attack. Notably, Casio was never charged with the stabbing despite causing 16 injuries on Peterson.
- Department of Corrections did not stop known dangerous inmate pairing
- Celebrity status made Peterson a recognisable target for violence
- Security personnel delayed response to stabbing emergency
- Prison failed to employ flash grenades or alternative security measures
- Peterson’s personal possessions, including unreleased songbooks, are unaccounted for