Earlier this week, a Rolling Stone report published a surveillance video of the altercation that led to DaBaby’s deadly shooting at a Walmart in 2018. In the video, DaBaby is seen scuffling with Henry Douglas down the store’s aisles, before Jaylin Craig intervenes and is ultimately shot and killed by DaBaby. DaBaby has maintained that he was acting in self-defense and while the internet is ablaze on what exactly the surveillance footage means for the case, DaBaby hasn’t wavered on his stance.
Now, DaBaby’s lawyers Drew Findling and Marissa Goldberg, have told TMZ that not only did they see the video in 2018, but that it shows that the rapper (real name Jonathan Kirk) indeed acted in self-defense. “Witnesses were interviewed and corroborated Mr. Kirk’s statement,” they said in a statement to TMZ. “The entirety of the surveillance video was viewed and determined to corroborate Mr. Kirk’s statement … Mr. Kirk was protecting himself and his family at the time of the shooting.”
In watching the video, it can be construed that when Craig comes to the assistance of Douglas, his hand is on his hip, thus indicating that he was pulling a gun. DaBaby has claimed that he fired his weapon as he sought to protect his kids, who were with him. Given that the case was concluded without charges in 2019 — although DaBaby was tried and convicted on charges of carrying a concealed weapon, for which he was given a year on probation — it would seem that the authorities agree with his claims of self-defense.