Defamation Lawsuit Against Rapper T.I. and Wife Tiny Dismissed in L.A. Court After More Than 4 Years

• T.I. and Tiny were sued in 2021 by Sabrina Peterson, and a judge dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice on Monday, March 24
• Peterson alleged that T.I. had put a gun to her head and threatened to kill her, claims he has repeatedly denied
• T.I. filed a defamation and invasion of privacy lawsuit of his own against Peterson in December

More than four years after it was filed, the defamation lawsuit against rapper T.I. and his wife Tiny has been dismissed.

On Monday, March 24, a Los Angeles judge ordered the suit, filed in 2021 by influencer and business coach Sabrina Peterson, dismissed without prejudice, as Peterson “has failed to show a diligent effort to prosecute the case,” according to documents obtained by PEOPLE.

Additionally, a contempt charge leveled at Peterson in December after she failed to pay T.I. and Tiny nearly $100,000 in court-ordered legal fees was rendered “moot” due to the case’s dismissal.

“I’m relieved it’s finally over,” Peterson told Rolling Stone as she left the courthouse. “It’s fine. I’m tired. This has gone on for four or five years. I’m really tired.”

Attorneys for both parties did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s requests for comment.

The Glam University founder sued the “Whatever You Like” rapper, 44, his wife, 49, and Shekinah Jones Anderson for defamation, invasion of privacy, emotional distress and more, alleging that T.I. put a gun to her head and threatened to kill her after she got into an “altercation” with the rapper’s assistant, according to the initial complaint, which was obtained by PEOPLE.

Peterson later “shared her traumatic experience” with the star on social media — and Tiny, a former friend of Peterson’s, responded by posting a photo of Peterson’s son, then 8 years old, to Instagram.

“So you want your abuser to train your sons? He was just uncle 2 years ago… now when did you say my husband assaulted you?” she wrote. “Did you change your mind or change it back? What’s up wit you today Pooh?… You strange. Everybody know you been special.”

Days later, Anderson also posted on social media about Peterson, saying she’d “engaged in sexual acts” with both T.I. (né Clifford Harris) and Tiny (née Tameka Cottle Harris). T.I. then issued a statement denying Peterson’s claims, and she wrote that because of the “demonstrably false” posts, she’d been “inundated with harassing and threatening Instagram messages.”

In June 2023, an appeals court rejected five of Peterson’s seven claims against the defendants, leaving just defamation and invasion of privacy. Several months later, a judge ruled that she must pay T.I. and Tiny $96,703 to cover legal bills.

By December 2024, she had yet to pay, and was charged with contempt. Peterson was due in court to face the contempt charge earlier this month, but did not show; the judge warned he would issue a warrant for her arrest if she did not appear in person, and the hearing was delayed to Monday, Rolling Stone reported.

The outlet reported that in court, Peterson testified under oath that she “didn’t mean to defy multiple court orders” when she failed to pay up, but that she was unable to afford the sum. She reportedly asked if she could pay out the money on a payment plan of $1,000 per month.

“The case should be dismissed, and Ms. Peterson should be held in contempt of court,” T.I.’s attorney Andrew Brettler said in court, per RS. “She has shown nothing but disrespect. … She brags about how much money she has online and that she’s never paying this sum to the Harrises. And she has absolutely no respect for the court’s time or its orders.”

In December, T.I. filed a defamation and invasion of privacy lawsuit of his own against Peterson, claiming she posted a series of Instagram posts in September that were “false, and defamatory, in order to advance her own personal interests,” including allegations that T.I. was under federal investigation for sex trafficking.