Rapper Megan Thee Stallion has secured a significant legal victory in a civil defamation and harassment case against a blogger she accused of acting as a "paid surrogate" for fellow artist Tory Lanez. A federal jury in Miami found the blogger liable for sharing a sexually explicit deepfake video of the star.
Jury Delivers Verdict and Financial Penalty
According to the ruling, the jury determined that blogger Milagro Gramz, whose legal name is Milagro Cooper, defamed and harassed the "Body" rapper, whose birth name is Megan Pete. The jury imposed a $75,000 judgment against Cooper. This sum covers damages for defamation, the intentional infliction of emotional distress, and for the specific act of posting the non-consensual, AI-generated pornographic content.
The case is connected to the highly publicized 2020 incident where Tory Lanez shot Megan Thee Stallion in the feet. Lanez was convicted in 2022 for the drunken attack and later sentenced to 10 years in prison. Megan Pete's lawsuit alleged that Cooper served as a "puppet" for Lanez, using the deepfake video to harass her further.
Emotional Testimony and Reactions to the Ruling
During the trial last month, Megan Thee Stallion gave tearful testimony about the profound impact the deepfake revenge porn had on her life. "It's really embarrassing to have to look at what the people don't know," she stated in court. "See, in a position like that, like, I know it's not me, but to be in front of everybody else and they have to watch it — it's really embarrassing."
After the verdict was delivered, a smiling Megan Pete told reporters outside the Miami courthouse that she was "happy" with the jury's decision. The blogger, Milagro Cooper, expressed a more subdued response. "I'm not ecstatic" about the judgment, Cooper said, adding, "Of course you want things to go your way, but like I said, I respect the jury and what they decided."
A Landmark Case in Digital Harassment
This civil suit underscores the growing legal battles surrounding digitally altered media and online harassment. The jury's decision to award damages specifically for the AI-crafted content highlights the serious personal and legal consequences of creating and distributing deepfake pornography without consent. For Megan Thee Stallion, the ruling represents a public vindication following years of trauma stemming from both the physical attack and the subsequent digital harassment campaign.
