Sean “Diddy” Combs seemingly had the dream group of protection attorneys line as much as assist him struggle the federal intercourse crime fees he’s about to go to trial on. Nevertheless, one of many bigwigs he’s employed has swiftly withdrawn from his counsel and left a cryptic message requesting to take action.
Again on Monday, Sept. 30, Combs filed a 3rd request interesting his detention order to stay in jail as he awaits federal prosecution on fees of racketeering, intercourse trafficking and transportation to have interaction in prostitution. Amongst these new court docket paperwork, authorized giants Anthony Ricco and Alexandra Shapiro agreed to hitch Combs’ authorized group.
Nevertheless, in a letter filed Thursday, Ricco requested to withdraw from Combs’ authorized group.
“On September 22, 2024, I used to be retained by the defendant, Sean Combs, to function his counsel, and I’ve served as his counsel since that point. Though I’ve offered Sean Combs with the excessive stage of authorized illustration anticipated by the court docket, certainly not can I proceed to successfully function counsel for Sean Combs, in keeping with the ABA Requirements for Prison Justice,” Ricco wrote in his movement to withdraw.
Ricco wrote he was conscious his request must be supported “solely upon a displaying by affidavit or in any other case of passable causes for withdrawal.” Nevertheless, he argued there are “enough causes” that may trigger him to hunt aid from the case however stated causes have been undisclosed attributable to lawyer/shopper privilege.
That’s one down however Combs nonetheless has different attorneys to lean on to assist him show his innocence. Together with Ricco, right here’s what we learn about them:
Who’s Anthony Ricco?
Ricco is thought for main the protection in as much as 45 federal demise penalty instances together with Individuals v. Corey Arthur, the place Arthur was charged within the homicide of the son of former Time Warner CEO Gerald Levin, in line with Ricco’s profile in Fordham College’s College of Legislation.
Ricco was capable of get the demise penalty off the desk and litigate Arthur’s time period to life in jail. He additionally represented the undercover NYPD officer acquitted within the killing of 23-year-old Sean Bell in 2006.
On a bigger scale, Ricco served on the counsel within the World Commerce Bombing conspiracy case and Embassy Bombing case in 1998, his profile reads. He graduated from the Northeastern College College of Legislation and has been privately working towards since 1982.
Who’s Alexandra Shapiro?
Shapiro is an appellate lawyer who signed off on Combs’ attraction of the denial of his bond launch, court docket paperwork present. Labeled “one of many nation’s main appellate attorneys,” her work is acknowledged within the reversals of each legal and civil instances, in line with the Shapiro Arato Bach web site.
After graduating from Columbia College College of Legislation in 1991, she started working as a clerk to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg earlier than transferring onto white collar protection. Most notably, she landed two Supreme Courtroom victories narrowing the scope of federal fraud legal guidelines in an effort to reverse the wire fraud convictions of Louis Ciminelli and former Andrew Cuomo aide Joseph Percoco.
Shapiro additionally argued the Salman v. United States case, which was the primary “insider buying and selling case” heard by the Supreme Courtroom in 20 years.
She can be representing Combs’ cellmate, Sam Bankman-Fried, who was convicted of fraud in November 2023. She additionally authored the novel “Presumed Responsible.”
Combs’ lead lawyer, former Manhattan Assistant District Lawyer Marc Agnifilo, beforehand acknowledged his shopper is “concentrating on his protection and making ready for trial,” per an announcement. The rapper pleaded not responsible and is due for court docket once more October 9.