New York (AFP) – Opening statements started Monday in the federal sex trafficking trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, the music mogul accused of committing years of chilling abuse. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty on all counts, which include a racketeering charge alleging the hip-hop pioneer led a sex crime ring that included drug-fueled sex parties by use of force, threats, and violence.
“He used his companies to manipulate women, forcing them with male escorts to have sex while he watched. He and his inner circle made sure he got everything he wanted,” said prosecutor Emily Johnson. The panel of 12 jurors — eight men and four women — and six alternates responsible for determining Combs’s fate was finalized Monday. The process was pushed back after Judge Arun Subramanian voiced concern candidates might get “cold feet” over the weekend.
Last week, potential jurors were vetted, including on their ability to fairly hear evidence from hip-hop artists, sex workers, and people involved in the use and distribution of drugs. The selected jurors will remain anonymous, but not sequestered — meaning they must individually ensure they stay away from media coverage and social media commentary about the high-profile case.
Prosecutors struck seven prospective jurors who were Black, prompting Combs’s defense team to allege bias. “We believe (it) amounts to a pattern,” said Marc Agnifilo, although the judge said it was not purposeful discrimination and allowed the prospectives to be dismissed.
Combs, who was for decades one of music’s powerhouse figures, appears aged; his once jet-black hair now gray. Combs was joined at the courthouse by his mother Janice and 17-year-old twin daughters, and wore a white dress shirt under a beige sweatshirt with khaki pants and black-rimmed glasses. He appeared alert and interacted with his lawyers and some of those seated in the public gallery. There was a scrum of journalists and curious members of the public braving tight security, eager to catch a glimpse of the fallen music mogul.
If convicted, the one-time rap producer and global superstar, who is often credited for his role in bringing hip-hop into the mainstream, could spend the rest of his life in prison. Prosecutors allege he held sex parties — also known as “freak-offs” — that were coercive and criminal. But his defense lawyers say the events were in fact entirely consensual and simply part of Combs’s “swinger” lifestyle.
Core to the case against Combs is his relationship with his former girlfriend, singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, who is expected to be a key trial witness. A disturbing surveillance video from 2016 shows Combs physically assaulting Ventura at a hotel. It is unclear how much of the CNN video will be shown to jurors as evidence — the footage quality has been a sticking point between the opposing legal teams — but Subramanian has ruled that at least some of it will be admissible.
However, it has been widely broadcast both in media reports and across social media channels. Some potentials for the jury told the court they had seen that video. One prospective panelist — who was dismissed — described the video as “damning.” Another was sent home after saying that his wife, a former attorney, had told him about taking depositions related to a deadly crowd crush at an event organized by Combs in 1991. “She found his behavior disturbing; she does not like him,” said the man.
But others said they believed they could still assess the evidence fairly despite already having seen the video. The proceedings are expected to last eight to 10 weeks.
© 2024 AFP
