Offset will avoid jail time on a misdemeanor assault charge stemming from an altercation with a security guard at a marijuana dispensary — at least for now. A Los Angeles judge has approved the rapper and Migos member’s request for a diversion program, according to an order obtained by Rolling Stone.
Under the terms of the agreement, the criminal charge will be dismissed if Offset completes 50 hours of community service, attends an anger management program, and avoids any further legal violations over the next 12 months.
The rapper, whose legal name is Kiari Cephus, had asked for a six-month diversion period, but the judge doubled it to a full year at a July 15 hearing, which the musician did not attend. The longer term was still a win considering prosecutors had opposed the diversion agreement altogether, arguing that the case should proceed to trial.
In their written opposition to the motion, prosecutors described the episode as a “crime of violence against the victim.” According to the filing, obtained by Rolling Stone, Cephus refused to provide identification at the MedMen dispensary near LAX airport on March 13, 2025, repeatedly asking, “Do you know who I am?”
Citing an LAPD narrative included in the filings, prosecutors said the security guard again asked to see identification, at which point Cephus “pushed him on his vest and then punched him with his right fist once to his left cheek.” They said Cephus fled the scene after the guard sprayed pepper spray in his face.
“It has been more than 14 months since the embarrassing and regretful incident that led to the current charge. Since that time, Mr. Cephus has kept his nose clean and has worked steadily to provide for himself and his children,” Cephus’ lawyer, Christy O’Connor, wrote in her motion seeking diversion.
The defense motion said Cephus was raised by a single mother in Atlanta and “struggled to find his way” with no male role model to guide him. It also portrayed the security guard as someone seeking a payday.
“One minute after the confrontation, the security guard resumes his position at the front door, greeting customers and scanning their IDs. He does not touch or rub his head or cheek. He does not apply ice. He can be seen smiling and laughing with his co-workers while continuing to perform his job duties,” the defense motion says. It claims the guard only called for an ambulance after his co-worker told him that Cephus was a “famous rapper.”
The guard, Jim Leobardo Sanchez, filed a lawsuit against Cephus last October. “Without legal justification or provocation, defendant Cephus became hostile, verbally confrontational, and physically attacked plaintiff by striking him in the face,” the seven-page complaint reads. “Several unidentified individuals who were accompanying defendant Cephus then proceeded to grab, push, and further assault and batter plaintiff.”
Sanchez claims he suffered injuries that left him in “immediate and severe pain.” He says he developed headaches and neck pain and was treated by paramedics at the scene before he was transported to a local hospital. Sanchez says he continues to experience “persistent headaches, neck pain, and related symptoms.”
Lawyers representing Sanchez did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday. A hearing in the civil case is set for Aug. 5.
