The shooting at Rihanna’s home has been overshadowed by mental health concerns
The Florida woman accused of shooting up Rihanna’s West LA home earlier this year may not be mentally fit to stand trial, her attorney said in court Wednesday.
Deputy Public Defender Derek Dillman “expressed doubt” that his client, speech pathologist Ivanna Ortiz, 35, could stand trial on charges of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon after the alleged shooting at the singer’s Beverly Crest home on March 8.
But after a brief closed hearing, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Shannon Cooley found no substantial evidence that Ortiz was mentally incompetent and ordered a criminal trial.
A spokeswoman for the public defender’s office declined to comment outside of court, noting that Cooley has shut down any discussion of Ortiz’s mental health. Dillman did not provide specifics about his concerns during portions of the public hearing.
Prosecutors say the gun Ortiz fired hit Rihanna’s home, where a neighbor lives and an Airstream parked in the yard. No one was hit, but Rihanna and her husband – hip-hop and actor ASAP Rocky – were inside the Airstream when it was shot.
Ortiz pleaded not guilty.
Earlier Wednesday, Ortiz sought to have Dillman fired as his attorney during a hearing before Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Shannon Cooley, who may have blocked that effort since Dillman was still representing Ortiz Wednesday morning.
Ortiz continued to argue with Dillman later in the day when he tried to schedule a hearing in July, saying he should do it quickly.
After Dillman expressed concern about his client’s mental health, Cooley moved the courtroom so he could question the attorney for evidence that Ortiz is mentally ill. Usually, when the defense attorney asks questions about the mental stability of their client, the judges refer such cases to the mental health court in Hollywood. LA County District Deputy. He said. Alexander Bott, prosecuting the case, said he had never seen anything like what happened on Wednesday.
On the day of the incident, Rihanna said Rocky was sleeping when he “suddenly heard about ten loud sounds like someone was ringing a bell,” according to a police report released in court in late March.
When the shooting stopped, he grabbed Rocky “on the bed, told him they were going to be shot and then threw them both to the floor,” according to the police report. The couple then ran to their home to check on their children, the police report said.
Deputy Public Defender Derek Dillman speaks to the court during Ivanna Ortiz’s arraignment at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center on April 8, 2026.
(Caylo Seals/Getty Images/Pool)
Ortiz made a number of derogatory posts about Rihanna on social media in the weeks before the shooting.
When police arrested him in Sherman Oaks an hour after the shooting, Ortiz was carrying a black Springfield Armory handgun and two 30-round magazines, according to a police report. He had the gun legally, according to court records.
While Ortiz refused to answer specific questions from police after his arrest, he did make a brief statement to investigators.
“Can I say one sentence?” he asked according to the report. “I’d like to say I wasn’t trying to kill, but that’s all I wanted to say.”
