Ivanna Lisette Ortiz pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and 10 counts of assault with an assault weapon, facing up to life in prison on $2.65 million bail.
On March 8, Ortiz allegedly used an AR-15-style rifle to shoot at the home while Rihanna, A$AP Rocky, their three children, and staff were inside.
A Los Angeles Superior Court judge ruled on Tuesday that Ortiz is mentally fit for trial following months of psychiatric evaluation.
A Los Angeles grand jury has indicted 36-year-old Ivanna Lisette Ortiz on 14 felony counts, including the attempted murder of singer Rihanna, following a shooting at the artist's Beverly Hills estate earlier this year. Ortiz appeared in Los Angeles Superior Court on Wednesday, wearing a yellow jail uniform and handcuffs behind a glass partition, where she pleaded not guilty to all counts. The unsealed indictment came one day after a judge ruled Ortiz mentally competent to stand trial, resuming legal proceedings that had been paused for psychiatric evaluations. Prosecutors upgraded 10 assault charges to assault with an assault weapon after specialists examined the rifle recovered during her arrest. Ortiz, who has no prior criminal record and worked for over a decade as a licensed speech pathologist in Orlando, Florida, is being held on $2.65 million bail and faces up to life in state prison if convicted.
The charges stem from an incident on March 8, when Ortiz drove a white Tesla Model 3 from Florida to California and arrived outside the residence shortly after 1:00 PM. Authorities stated that she pointed an AR-15-style rifle out of the car window and fired at least 20 rounds at the gated estate and a neighboring property. Rihanna and her partner Rakim Mayers, known as A$AP Rocky, were inside an Airstream trailer parked in the driveway when gunfire struck the vehicle. Bullets pierced the trailer's windshield directly in front of where Rihanna was standing, prompting her to pull Mayers to the ground and run into the garage to protect their family. The couple secured their three young children, RZA, Riot, and Rocki, alongside Rihanna's mother Monica Braithwaite, a nanny, and two household staff members. Bullets also penetrated the nursery wall and left seven holes in the estate's vehicle and pedestrian gates.
Witnesses reported seeing a white Tesla with temporary paper license plates fleeing the scene, allowing a police helicopter to track Ortiz to Sherman Oaks, where officers arrested her later that afternoon. Investigators found that Ortiz had published several enigmatic posts on Facebook referencing Rihanna before traveling across the country, though authorities have found no personal connection between the two. After her arrest, Ortiz disputed that she intended to kill anyone on the property.
“I wasn't attempting murder.”
Deputy District Attorney Alexander Bott stated after Wednesday's hearing that prosecutors focused the attempted murder charge on Rihanna based on their assessment of the evidence.
“This is a person who wanted to kill Rihanna, and everyone else was collateral damage.”
The grand jury indictment allows the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office to bypass California's typical preliminary hearing process, where prosecutors must present evidence publicly to determine if a case warrants a trial. Ortiz had previously pleaded not guilty to initial charges in March before the court ordered mental health evaluations. Those psychiatric evaluation reports remain sealed, and no details regarding her mental state were discussed publicly during the competency hearing on Tuesday. The court scheduled Ortiz to return on October 29 for a pretrial hearing.
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A California grand jury unsealed a 14-count indictment charging Ivanna Ortiz with attempted murder and assault with an assault weapon after a March shooting at Rihanna's estate.
AI text based on reports by 20minutes, Rolling Stone, The Independent and other publishers. Published .