Woman on Trial, Killed Aspiring Rapper With One Punch as Bet

A 22-year-old Illinois woman is on trial for killing an aspiring rapper after she accepted a $5 bet to punch him in the face, to which he agreed.

During a party in Joliet, Ill., where John "Fatboy" Powell, 25, and his group, Krazy Killaz were performing, Tiffany Startz threw one punch at the rhymer upon agreeing to the bet. Powell, who stood at 5-foot-8 and weighed 140 pounds, welcomed the blow, according to court documents. After Startz hit him, Powell then collected his money and continued talking with friends before passing out in front of party goers.

He was taken to Provena Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, Ill., where he died. An autopsy performed on Powell showed that he had a burst artery in his neck and that he died from a brain hemorrhage caused by blunt force trauma.

Startz, a 142 pound female standing at 5-foot-5, faces charges of battery and reckless conduct. "There's nothing reckless here," her lawyer Ira Goldstein said. "What she did was intentional. [Powell] said he would accept the punch from her." Goldstein, who asked for the case against Startz be dismissed but was denied by a judge, stood by the claim that Startz and Powell shared "no animosity, no maliciousness," and that his client was innocent, partaking in a party stunt gone "terribly wrong."

Theresa Guy, Powell's mother, was pleased with the judge's decision to have Startz continue with a trial. "She can't walk away today," Guy said. "We've all been sick from this."

The case is expected in court again on June 16.