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The last stage of jury choice for the sex-trafficking trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs was postponed till early subsequent week forward of the opening arguments over considerations that some jurors may get “cold feet” earlier than the high-profile case begins.
Prosecutors allege that Diddy, 55, used his fame and energy on the prime of the hip-hop world to sexually abuse girls from 2004 to 2024. He pleaded not responsible after his September arrest and has remained held with out bail at a federal lockup in Brooklyn.
Judge Arun Subramanian granted the defence legal professionals’ request to delay the final step in jury choice till Monday, May 12, when either side will slim down the pool of 45 potential jurors to 12 and 6 alternates.
Subramanian expressed concern that if jurors had been chosen earlier than the weekend, they might develop anxious and drop off the panel earlier than the trial begins Monday.
The resolution got here after a possible juror despatched an e-mail to ask the courtroom to be left off the panel for “issues of personal well-being,” the defence revealed.
The defence stated putting potential jurors might take as little as 10 to fifteen minutes, so why not do it on Monday when they are going to be current. The jurors weren’t required to be within the Manhattan courtroom on Friday, however Diddy was there.
Prosecutors objected, saying the entire course of might get obstructed if a number of jurors panic after being chosen and determine they don’t need to participate in a high-profile trial that’s anticipated to final two months.
Potential jurors had been requested questions earlier this week to assist the decide and legal professionals decide in the event that they may very well be honest and neutral. They had been additionally questioned to make sure they might determine the case on the details — even after seeing specific movies of sexual exercise that some may discover disturbing.
On May 12, prosecutors will probably be permitted to strike six potential jurors from the jury whereas defence legal professionals are allowed 10 strikes earlier than the jury is finalized. The course of is predicted to take as much as an hour.
Diddy’s lead lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, informed Subramanian Friday that Diddy dedicated “domestic violence” in his relationship with one of many accusers that’s anticipated to testify on the trial, in line with NBC News.
Marc Agnifilo, lawyer for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, speaks to members of media outdoors courtroom in New York, US, on Tuesday, Sep. 17, 2024.
Yuki Iwamura/Bloomberg by way of Getty Images
Agnifilo stated the defence crew plans to “take the position that there was mutual violence” in Diddy’s relationship with an accuser recognized within the indictment as “Victim-1.”
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Diddy’s lawyer stated his crew plans to argue that “there was hitting on both sides, behaviour on both sides” that constituted violence, in line with the outlet.
“It is relevant in terms of the coercive aspects, we are admitting domestic violence,” Agnifilo informed the decide.
Prosecutors additionally revealed Friday that they haven’t managed to get in contact with the accuser recognized as Victim-3 of their indictment, or her lawyer.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Maurene Comey stated her crew could have a “final answer” quickly on whether or not they’ll name Victim-3 to the stand.
Diddy faces an indictment that features descriptions of “Freak Offs,” that are outlined within the courtroom doc as “elaborate and produced sex performances that Combs arranged, directed, masturbated during, and often electronically recorded.”
Numerous witnesses have come ahead to accuse Diddy of terrorizing folks into silence by choking, hitting, kicking and dragging them, in line with prosecutors. One indictment alleges that Diddy dangled somebody from a balcony.
Although dozens of women and men have alleged in lawsuits that Diddy abused them, this trial will spotlight the claims of 4 girls.
One of them is Diddy’s former girlfriend, R&B singer Cassie Ventura, whom the rapper was caught on digital camera beating and dragging down a Los Angeles resort hallway in 2016.
After CNN aired the video final yr, Diddy apologized, saying, “I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. I was disgusted then when I did it. I’m disgusted now.”
Ventura filed a lawsuit in late 2023 saying Diddy had subjected her to years of abuse, together with beatings and rape after they met in 2005.
Her lawsuit, which supplied the primary public account of the “Freak Offs” described within the indictment, was settled in a day. Four months later, federal investigators raided Diddy’s houses in Los Angeles and Miami and confronted him at a personal airport in Florida, seizing 96 digital gadgets. They additionally discovered three AR-15-style rifles with defaced serial numbers.
Diddy was indicted final September. He has been held in a federal jail in Brooklyn after judges dominated that he could be a risk to intimidate witnesses and victims if launched.
The 17-page indictment in opposition to Diddy accuses him of utilizing staff to facilitate his crimes via acts that included kidnapping, arson and bribery.
Diddy is charged with racketeering conspiracy, two fees of intercourse trafficking and two fees of transportation to interact in prostitution. If he’s convicted on all counts, he has the potential to stay behind bars for all times.
Diddy has continued to disclaim all the fees the federal government has introduced in opposition to him after his September 2024 arrest.
— With information from The Associated Press
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