Sean “Diddy” Combs was acquitted of racketeering and sex trafficking charges on Wednesday and was found guilty on two lesser charges of transportation of former girlfriends for prostitution.
The verdict is seen as a victory for Combs, who was cleared of the most serious charges against him. His defense team opted not to call witnesses before resting.
Combs has vociferously denied the allegations against him.
Combs, who was charged with two counts of sex trafficking, two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution and one count of racketeering for leading what prosecutors alleged was a criminal organization over the course of two decades, has long maintained his innocence. He previously pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Combs has been incarcerated at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center since he was arrested on September 16.
Combs’ trial is among the most noteworthy of the #MeToo era, following explosive cases against disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, R&B singer R. Kelly, and A-list actors Kevin Spacey and Johnny Depp.
Assistant US Attorney Maurene Comey said the government opposes the motion.
She said the trial showed evidence of extensive abuse and prolific drug use that the defense did not contest. Sean “Diddy” Combs “continued to commit a litany of crimes” after he knew he was under investigation, she said. Comey argued that Combs does not respect the law and would likely commit new crimes if released.
Comey also confirmed the government intends to seek a sentence of incarceration, and that Combs still faces up to 20 years in prison for the two counts he has been convicted of.
Defense attorney Marc Agnifilo says that Sean “Diddy” Combs “should be released on appropriate conditions” in light of the fact that Combs has been acquitted on racketeering and sex trafficking.
He says Combs would go back to his house in Miami and abide by conditions set by the court. Combs does not have access to his plane, and his entire family is here, Agnifilo said, and “any three of them, any five of them can sign onto a bond.”
Agnifilo wants him released today.
The judge asked, “Is your proposal that he leave this courtroom and walk outside?” Agnifilo said it is.
The case of Combs is particularly challenging, wading into the murky gray areas of consent and coercion, complex workplace dynamics, and the myriad ways that people cope with trauma. How long could Diddy be in prison?
Combs faced a maximum sentence of life in prison for the racketeering charge. Sex trafficking has a 15-year mandatory minimum and maximum of life in prison. Transportation to engage in prostitution carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
Combs’ verdict comes a year and a half after allegations of sexual assault and trafficking started mounting against the embattled music mogul following a bombshell lawsuit from his former girlfriend of a decade, Casandra “Cassie” Ventura Fine, over alleged trafficking, sexual assault and abuse.
The two “amicably” settled the lawsuit one day later for $20 million, but his team has claimed her legal action kicked off the criminal investigation into the Bad Boy Records founder’s alleged behavior.
Federal prosecutors claimed Combs led a “criminal enterprise” that operated on sex trafficking, kidnapping, drug offenses and forced labor, among other crimes.
Combs leveraged his wealth and celebrity status to “fulfill his sexual desires” in a “recurrent and widely known” pattern of abuse, investigators alleged.
The Grammy-winning rapper and producer, who once reigned with his A-list frequented White Parties, has also staunchly denied allegations brought forward in approximately 80 sexual assault lawsuits, which detail alleged incidents dating back to the 1990s.
Combs’ trial marked one of the highest-profile legal battles since the Me Too movement gained steam in 2017.
Among the more than 30 witnesses in the trial were well-known stars such as ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura Fine, Scott Mescudi (aka Kid Cudi) and former Danity Kane singer Dawn Richard. Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, also made a brief appearance to listen to some testimony on June 13.
In a long stretch of testimony from May 13 to 16, a nine-months-pregnant Ventura Fine laid bare the raw details of her complicated decade-long relationship with Combs. She emotionally opened up about her participation in his alleged sexual performances that were labeled “freak offs,” the physical and emotional abuse she said she faced, and the drug addiction she’d developed after using various substances in part to cope with the “freak offs.”
She also detailed alleged repeated physical abuse, which was captured in photographs shared with jurors.
By Agencies
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