Judge Rules 50 Cent Sex Tape Lawsuit Legitimate

A Manhattan judge on Thursday refused rapper and mogul 50 Cent‘s motion to dismiss a case brought against the hip-hop star by Lastonia Leviston, who alleges the rapper posted a video of her having sex, online, without her permission, done as part of a feud with her ex-lover, Rick Ross.

As the New York Daily News reports, Leviston sued 50 Cent, real name Curtis James Jackson III, in 2010 for emotional distress after Jackson posted a video of her having sex with Maurice Murray, and in which the rapper himself featured, spliced in as the wig-wearing narrator, Pimpin’ Curly.

According to court papers, the tape was brought to Jackson by Murray in 2009. The rapper recognised Leviston as the mother of Ross’ child and decided to use it as the latest barb in a continuing rap war between the two artists, in which Ross had labeled Jackson as “Curly.”

In a sworn deposition, Jackson said he altered the tape by editing himself into it in a spontaneous and unplanned move, playing the role of Pimpin’ Curly to “mock” Ross. While Murray’s face was blurred, Leviston’s was not, and she sued after the edited video gathered 3.2 million hits online.

In his deposition, Jackson denied that he was the one responsible for making the video public, but a judge has ruled that there is sufficient evidence for a jury to determine the merits of Leviston’s claims she suffered mental and emotional distress as a result of the video going public.

(Via New York Daily News)

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