Prosecutors in the SDNY were not able to successfully argue to the jury that their 2 prime witnesses, #SeanCombs' ex-girlfriend Casandra "Cassie" Ventura & another former girlfriend who testified under the pseudonym "Jane," had not participated consensually in the sex & drug marathons that Combs variously referred to as "freak offs," "hotel nights" or "wild king nights."

#rape #BelieveSurvivors #criminal #law #prostitution #SexTrafficking #ViolenceAgainstWomen

#SeanCombs did not take the stand in his own defense, nor did his lawyers present any witnesses. Instead, they pointed to hundreds of texts & social media posts in which Ventura & Jane expressed enthusiasm for those sessions, despite the women later saying on the stand that they felt pressed & manipulated into planning & participating in them. These relationships, the defense team argued, were toxic & perhaps #abusive, but failed to meet the government's standards of federal #criminality.

#law

The prosecution was also unable to prove to the 12-person jury that #SeanCombs had run a #criminal #conspiracy or an #OrganizedCrime syndicate within the #racketeering charge. They had accused Combs of several related crimes within this charge, including forced labor [#slavery], #bribery & #obstruction of justice.

#rape #BelieveSurvivors #criminal #law #prostitution #SexTrafficking #ViolenceAgainstWomen

A #racketeering #conviction would have carried the most serious potential #incarceration time for #SeanCombs, with a maximum sentence of up to life in prison. Convictions for the counts of #SexTrafficking by force, fraud or coercion – one for Ventura, & one for Jane – would have each carried a statutory minimum sentence of 15 years & up to life in prison.

#rape #BelieveSurvivors #criminal #law #prostitution #ViolenceAgainstWomen

The 2 counts of transportation to engage in #prostitution — one regarding Ventura & male sex workers, & one regarding Jane & male sex workers — each carry a maximum sentence of 10 years.

Outside of this federal #criminal trial, #SeanCombs continues to face dozens of #civil lawsuits brought by former employees & associates.

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#SeanCombs’ lawyers asked that he be released ahead of sentencing now that he is no longer facing #SexTrafficking & #racketeering conspiracy charges.

The lawyers say Combs is not a flight risk because he does not have access to his passport or plane. “This is his first conviction & it’s a #prostitution offense & so he should be released on appropriate conditions.” The lawyer is asking that Combs return to his home in Miami Beach, FL.

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The prosecution said that #SeanCombs faces up to 20 years in #prison; each of the #MannAct counts carry up to 10 years each. But it will be up to a judge to decide how long he serves.

The defense suggested a $1 million bond. SDNY is vehemently opposing Combs’ release.

The lead prosecutor, Maurene Comey, said that the defense is underplaying the seriousness of the conviction & urged the judge keep him detained.

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The prosecutor said “there is a real risk that he will flagrantly disregard orders from this court,” citing the drugs found in #SeanCombs’ hotel room before he was arrested last September.

The court is adjourning for a few hours while the judge considers the arguments from Combs’ lawyers & prosecutors about whether he should be released.

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#UltraViolet, a #WomensRights organization, made a statement in response to the #SeanCombs verdict:

“This is a decisive moment for our #justice system, one which threatens to undo the sacrifice of courageous #survivors who stepped forward to share their stories in this trial, as well as to all those abused by #Diddy who weren’t able to,” said Arisha Hatch, the organization’s interim executive director.

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#rape #BelieveSurvivors #criminal #law #SexTrafficking #ViolenceAgainstWomen

“Today’s verdict is not just a stain on a #criminal justice system that for decades has failed to hold accountable #abusers like #Diddy, it’s also an indictment of a culture in which not believing #women & victims of #SexualAssault remains endemic. We will continue to stand with the brave women & men who took great risk to reveal the person Diddy really is,” #UltraViolet’s statement added.

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#rape #BelieveSurvivors #criminal #law #SeanCombs #SexTrafficking #ViolenceAgainstWomen

The hearing on whether #SeanCombs will be released on bond is expected to start at 5 PM The defense is pushing for his release, saying he was acquitted of the most serious charges against him, but the government is adamant that he remain detained.

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Judge Arun Subramanian has denied #SeanCombs bail. The judge says the government was correct that detention is “mandatory” for a #MannAct conviction. The judge said that the limited exception to mandatory #detention was not met. Sean Combs pointed to his duties as a father & a son, but that does not rise to the level of an appropriate exception, the judge said.

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The judge noted that at trial, “the defense conceded” #SeanCombs’ #violence in his personal relationships. “We own it,” Marc Agnifilo, Mr. Combs’s lead lawyer, said in his closing statemnet.

“If he was charged with domestic violence we wouldn’t all be here having a trial because he would have pled guilty — because he did that,” Marc Agnifilo, Sean Combs’s lead lawyer, had said.

#rape #BelieveSurvivors #criminal #law #SeanCombs #prostitution #SexTrafficking #ViolenceAgainstWomen

One of the defense’s key strategies at trial has now come back to bite them during the bail hearing: admitting #SeanCombs’ #DomesticViolence.
The judge noted that one of the incidents of violence against a fmr girlfriend was in June 2024, after Combs knew he was under investigation.
The judge says that Combs and his lawyers have not met their burden to show that the mogul poses “no danger to any person.”

#rape #BelieveSurvivors #criminal #law #prostitution #SexTrafficking #ViolenceAgainstWomen

The judge proposed a sentencing for October, but he indicated that he would be open to other suggestions.

He noted that #SeanCombs has already served nearly 10 months in jail, & that time will go toward his ultimate sentence.

The defense asked for a much more expedited schedule on sentencing.

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The defense seems to be pushing for a sentencing as soon as possible. Judge Subramanian pumped the brakes a bit, noting that there is a wide divide between the government & defense regarding their views on #sentencing.

Having just learned that he will have to remain in jail until his sentencing, #SeanCombs’ demeanor has finally darkened a bit. More appropriate given the seriousness of his crimes.

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Marc Agnifilo, #SeanCombs’ lead lawyer, said his team had been reviewing prior convictions on the #MannAct & that the cases typically involve someone who is making money through prostitution or underage victims. This case involves neither. Because of that, Agnifilo said, the defense believes Combs is entitled to a lesser sentence. “There’s nothing remotely similar to this,” he said of his client’s case.

#rape #BelieveSurvivors #criminal #law #prostitution #SexTrafficking #ViolenceAgainstWomen

In arguing for a lower sentence for #SeanCombs, his lawyer Marc Agnifilo made a comparison to #EliotSpitzer, the disgraced former governor of New York — like Combs, Agnifilo said, Spitzer made use of #prostitution services, but did not face federal charges under the #MannAct for it.

#rape #BelieveSurvivors #criminal #law #SexTrafficking #ViolenceAgainstWomen

In response to the comments from #SeanCombs’ lawyer Marc Agnifilo, the judge reiterates that the defense admitted at trial that Combs had a history of #violence.

“You full-throatedly in your closing argument told the jury that there was violence here,” Judge Subramanian told the defense.

#rape #BelieveSurvivors #criminal #law #prostitution #SexTrafficking #ViolenceAgainstWomen

The defense told the jury that last year, #SeanCombs went to meetings at a “batterers' program” called the Urban Resource Institute before he was arrested.

A familiar sight from the trial: Sean Combs just passed a sticky note to his lawyer Marc Agnifilo. This time, it came while Agnifilo is talking about how Combs tried to get into the “batterers’ program” before his arrest.

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“He is a man who’s in the process of working on himself,”🎻 said Marc Agnifilo of his client. He also called Sean Combs a “model prisoner,” saying, “I just think we should trust him. He’s not going to flee.”

[Oh sure trust the abusive rapist.]

#rape #BelieveSurvivors #criminal #law #SeanCombs #prostitution #SexTrafficking #ViolenceAgainstWomen