Dez Exposé: 50 Cent Trolled a Rival's Son's Assault, Then Went to Court When the Trolling Came for His Own Kid. Both Things Are on the Record

I've covered 50 Cent long enough to know the playbook. He posts. He laughs. Somebody gets mad. He posts again. It's a business model, and it works. But this week the playbook ran into a courtroom, and I want to walk through exactly what's on the record, because it's not as simple as either side is making it.

Tuesday's hearing

50 Cent appeared by Zoom on Tuesday, Nov. 3, in his case against Tia Kemp, a former partner of Rick Ross, TMZ and Complex reported. Kemp didn't appear. "Honestly, if she didn't respond the way she responded to the order, I wouldn't even continue to pursue it," Fif told the judge, in a clip shared by TMZ. "But she just went off, and it just continued to go in the wrong direction."

HotNewHipHop, citing TMZ, reported that the judge told him it was his decision and that the matter would be revisited in 30 to 45 days, and that Kemp had not been served with the injunction, which his lawyers say is because she's avoiding service. The next hearing is Dec. 7.

How it started

Here's the timeline, all from published reporting.

On Oct. 11, Kemp and Ross' 21-year-old son, William Roberts III, was allegedly confronted outside Bethune-Cookman University in Florida and, he says, pistol-whipped, according to Complex. A suspect, Don Roberts (no relation), turned himself in Oct. 16 and was released on $50,000 bail Oct. 21.

50 Cent's response was to troll. He posted the suspect's mugshot and charges, Complex reported, with this caption: "I got him he will be out tomorrow I'm sending @drewfindling. This is a big misunderstanding that can easily be resolved. This was a street fight, I mean STREET FIGHTER is in theaters! LOL." Drew Findling is a well-known defense lawyer. "Street Fighter" is Fif's movie.

So to be clear: a young man was allegedly attacked with a gun, and a grown man with a movie out made a promo joke about it.

What Kemp did next

Kemp responded in an Instagram video captioned "U have NO room to post anyone's child," Complex reported, and went after 50's family, including his 14-year-old son and the boy's mother. Complex reported she made claims about the boy's development and posted a sexually explicit image she presented as his mother. I'm not repeating any of it. A kid didn't sign up for this.

Fif got a temporary restraining order last month, according to HotNewHipHop. On Oct. 26, he sued on his son's behalf in California for libel and slander, false light invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress, asking for at least $2 million per count, a jury trial and a permanent injunction, according to Complex.

The complaint's strongest line, in my view, is this one: "Autism is not shameful. What is shameful is fabricating a diagnosis for a private child, inventing a sexually degrading cause for it, and broadcasting both to a mass audience in order to degrade him."

Kemp, on Oct. 28, called him a "rat" and worse on her Instagram Story, Complex reported. HotNewHipHop reported Fif said he got her account blocked from going Live.

My take (opinion)

This is my opinion, based on the public posts and filings above. Both of these things are true at once. Kemp's posts about a 14-year-old, as described in the reporting, are indefensible, and the law has a role in protecting kids from that. And 50 Cent lit the match by mocking another family's kid after an alleged armed assault. Fif wants a court to shield his son from exactly the kind of humiliation he aimed at Ross' son for laughs.

That doesn't make Kemp's allegations about his child true. The complaint calls them "knowingly false," and nothing I've seen says otherwise. It doesn't make his lawsuit wrong. It makes it awkward.

Fif told the judge he'd drop it if she'd complied. I believe that's the most honest thing anyone in this saga has said. He wants it to stop. The question is whether he'll stop too.

What's on record, and what isn't

Every claim in this piece traces to the reporting linked below. Kemp's statements are described, not verified. The claims in 50 Cent's complaint are allegations; no court has ruled on them. Rick Ross hasn't publicly commented on his son's case or this feud, Complex reported, and the criminal case against Don Roberts remains unresolved in the reports reviewed.

What we still don't know

Whether Kemp gets served before Dec. 7, whether she fights the case or ignores it, and whether Fif keeps posting about the Ross family while he's asking a judge to make Kemp stop posting about his.