On Monday, Could 12, Sean “Diddy” Combs’ extremely publicized federal trial started in New York. The founding father of Unhealthy Boy Information is going through a number of expenses, together with racketeering conspiracy and intercourse trafficking. Combs has pleaded not responsible to all the fees.
After a contentious jury choice presided over by the U.S. District Choose Arun Subramanian, opening statements had been made by the prosecution. Maurene Ryan Comey is the lead prosecutor, and Emily Johnson is the Assistant U.S. Lawyer. Rounding out the prosecution staff are Christy Slavik, Madison Reddick Smyser and Mitzi Steiner.
Johnson delivered the opening assertion and stated that whereas Combs was “bigger than life,” there was “one other facet to him, a facet that ran a legal enterprise.”
“Throughout this trial, you will hear about 20 years of the defendant’s crimes. However he didn’t do it alone,” Johnson stated as Combs leaned again in his chair, listening to each phrase. “He had an internal circle of bodyguards and high-ranking workers who helped him commit crimes and canopy them up.” These crimes, she stated, included: Kidnapping, arson, medication, intercourse crimes, bribery, and obstruction.
Johnson went on to say that Combs allegedly kidnapped an worker and threatened Cassie Ventura, his one-time girlfriend, that if she crossed him, he would go public with tapes of her having intercourse with a male escort. Johnson described the tapes as “souvenirs of essentially the most humiliating nights of her life”, suggesting that these allegations are “simply the tip of the iceberg,” and ready the jury to listen to the graphic nature of Diddy’s alleged “Freak Offs.”
The prosecution’s case contains the surveillance footage from 2016 that confirmed Combs assaulting his then-girlfriend, Ventura, in a Los Angeles resort hallway. Johnson claimed {that a} safety guard was handed a brown paper bag stuffed with $100,000 in money within the presence of Combs’ chief of employees and bodyguard. “That is removed from the one time that the defendant’s internal circle tried to shut ranks and do injury management,” Johnson stated.
On the protection facet, Combs’ authorized staff options Marc Agnifilo, Teny Geragos, Brian Metal, Xavier Donaldson, Anna Estevao, Jason Driscoll and Nicole Westmoreland. Mark Geragos is part of the staff in an unofficial function. In his opening assertion, Geragos referred to their shoppers’ alleged sexual actions as a “swingers” way of life, arguing that any sexual encounters had been consensual, as Combs was a non-monogamous bachelor.
“Sean Combs is an advanced man. However this isn’t an advanced case. This case is about love, jealousy, infidelity and cash,” Geragos stated.
The protection argued that prosecutors turned sexual relations between consenting adults right into a case about intercourse trafficking and prostitution. “There was an incredible quantity of noise round this case over the previous yr,” Geragos advised jurors, blaming social media for the circus. “It’s time to cancel that noise.”
Geragos stated that Combs’ outbursts of violence might need warranted home violence expenses, and he or she condemned his brutal beating of Ventura as “horrible, dehumanizing violence.” However she tried to influence the jurors that his incident with Ventura “just isn’t proof of intercourse trafficking. It’s proof of home violence.”
Concluding her opening assertion, Geragos claims that Combs’ accusers had been cash motivated, pointing to the quite a few civil lawsuits as proof. She famous that Ventura demanded $30 million in her lawsuit, and one other witness demanded “$22 million in a breach of contract lawsuit.”
“I would like you to ask your self, what number of thousands and thousands of causes does this witness, swearing to inform the reality and nothing however the fact, must lie?” Geragos argued.
Because the trial continued, the prosecution referred to as its first witness, Officer Israel Florez. Now, a regulation enforcement officer with the Los Angeles Police Division, he was working as assistant director of safety at a Los Angeles resort when he acquired a name a couple of girl in misery on the sixth ground after an encounter with Combs.
Florez testified that he noticed Ventura sporting solely a towel and sitting on a chair “slouched down, like with a clean stare … like a devilish stare, simply me.” After seeing the destruction on the resort ground, he stated he knowledgeable him that the damages could be charged to the room. Then he escorted Ventura and Combs to their room, and he or she expressed that she wished to go away.
“You’re not going to go away,” Florez stated, Combs advised her. To which Florez replied, “If she needs to go away, she’s going to go away.”
Florez additionally testified that Combs took out some knot of cash with the $100 on prime, telling him: “Don’t inform no person.” Florez responded, “I don’t need your cash. Simply return into your room,” saying he thought of it a bribe.
Along with displaying Combs assaulting Ventura, the prosecution confirmed two cellphone movies and three resort surveillance movies of the Los Angeles resort associated to the assault.
One other witness, Daniel Phillip, additionally took the stand on the primary day of trial and testified in regards to the alleged actions of Combs’ intercourse events. Phillip testified he was a male stripper and acquired a name from Ventura that she wished to do “one thing particular for Diddy.” She requested him to fulfill her and Combs on the Gramercy Park Lodge in New York in 2012.
Phillip testified that Combs watched and masturbated as he had intercourse with Ventura and was paid as much as $6000.00 for every encounter. He additionally acknowledged that Combs employed him a number of extra instances for the sexual encounters, and the hip-hop mogul all the time gave him directions to hold out.
As his testimony continued, Philps described certainly one of Combs’ violent outbursts, stating that Ventura was sitting at her pc when Combs requested her to return to the bed room. After she stated, “Maintain a second,” Combs allegedly attacked her.
“Mr. Combs walked over to Cassie, grabbed her by her hair, and began dragging her by her hair into the bed room,” Phillip stated. He stated he heard what gave the impression of Combs slapping her as she screamed, “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” Your entire courtroom fell silent as three of Combs’ daughters left throughout Phillip’s graphic testimony.
Xavier R. Donaldson, a brand new legal professional on Combs’ protection staff, cross-examined Phillip, making him go over each minute element of the resort room the place the alleged sexual encounters passed off, in an try to poke holes in his credibility. He mocked Phillip’s employer’s slogan as suppliers of “the last word girls’ evening expertise.”
At roughly 5:00 p.m., the courtroom was adjourned for the day. Phillip will return to proceed cross-examination. The trial will resume on Tuesday at 9:15 a.m.
Combs is at present being held with out bail at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Heart.