Sean “Diddy” Combs, the musician and rap mogul being sued by dozens of individuals for alleged intercourse crimes, begins his intercourse trafficking trial immediately (Might 12) in Manhattan’s Federal District Courtroom. Prosecutors will argue that Diddy abused his cash and energy to site visitors, drug, and sexually assault ladies; the protection claims any encounters have been consensual. Opening statements commenced immediately. If convicted, Diddy may face life in jail.
Diddy, who has been incarcerated since September 2024 on account of a number of denials of bail, appeared within the courtroom final week as Choose Arun Subramanian oversaw jury choice. The ultimate choice was delayed till immediately over fears jurors would possibly get chilly ft over the weekend.
Jury choice started final Monday. Almost 100 potential jurors have been questioned and assessed on their impartiality. Due to the high-profile nature of the case, some familiarity with the allegations towards Diddy—together with the video that confirmed his bodily assault of the singer Casandra Elizabeth “Cassie” Ventura, his former girlfriend, in 2016—didn’t mechanically disqualify potential jurors, The New York Times stories. Many admitted to having seen memes, satire, and hypothesis concerning the case. Those that admitted to bias towards Diddy, dangerous experiences with regulation enforcement, or, in a single case, issue staying off marijuana for the trial’s period have been excused.
At the least three accusers are anticipated to testify, in addition to a few of Diddy’s former sexual companions, a enterprise affiliate, and a number of male intercourse employees, in keeping with CNN. Cassie’s testimony is anticipated to be on the middle of the prosecution case, alongside two or three different ladies who could use pseudonyms to guard their identities.
In her opening assertion, one of many authorities’s prosecutors, Emily A. Johnson, described Diddy’s alleged acts of abuse and mentioned, “He had an inside circle of bodyguards and high-ranking staff who helped him commit crimes and helped him cowl them up,” per The New York Times. In distinction, one in every of Diddy’s protection attorneys, Teny Geragos, acknowledged that Diddy has been violent with ladies, however claimed that his sexual relationships have been consensual and argued they don’t quantity to intercourse trafficking.
After months of snowballing lawsuits alleging crimes that embody sexual assault, battery, grooming, and statutory rape, Diddy was arrested in a New York resort room on September 16, 2024, and indicted by a grand jury on fees of racketeering conspiracy; intercourse trafficking by drive, fraud, or coercion; and transportation to interact in prostitution. He pleaded not guilty the next day.
