Cardi B case: Jury clears rapper of $24M lawsuit; security guard alleged assault in 2018

Cardi B (AP photo)

A jury on Tuesday cleared rapper Cardi B of all allegations in a lawsuit filed by a security guard who claimed she was assaulted by the rapper at a doctor’s office in 2018.The case was brought by Emani Ellis, who said Cardi scratched her face with a fingernail and spat on her during an argument at a Beverly Hills obstetrician’s office when the rapper was secretly pregnant with her first child. Only nine jurors were needed for a verdict in the civil case, but all 12 agreed Cardi was not liable. Outside court, Cardi celebrated the win, calling the case “frivolous” and warning she would countersue anyone who tries similar lawsuits. She said she had to miss her children’s first day of school because of the trial. “I am not that celeb that you sue, and you think is going to settle. I’m not gonna settle. Especially when I’m super completely innocent,” she said. During testimony, Cardi admitted she argued with Ellis but denied touching her. “I will say it on my deathbed. I did not touch that woman,” she told reporters. Ellis argued that the incident left her scarred and cost her both her job and future career prospects. She sought damages for medical bills, emotional suffering and lost wages. Her lawyer said they plan to appeal. The trial, spread over several days, drew wide attention online, with livestreamed testimony going viral. At one point, Cardi even joked about her wig changes during the proceedings.

The case:Cardi told the court that she was in Los Angeles in February 2018 for promotional work around the NBA All-Star Game. At the time, she was four months pregnant with her first child with rapper Offset. While her close friends knew, she had not shared the news with her parents or the public. The doctor’s office had been kept shut to other patients that day to protect her privacy. She said security guard Emani Ellis followed her to her fifth-floor appointment. Cardi recalled hearing Ellis say her name into a phone and thought she was being filmed. “I asked her, ‘Why are you recording?’ and she said, ‘Oh my bad,’ almost apologising,” Cardi testified. But she added that the argument soon got heated. “As we were arguing, she kept backing into me, walking into me,” Cardi said.