After weeks of sitting through his ex-girlfriends and former employees revealing dark details into Sean “Diddy” Combs’ life, the defendant said he was “doing great” — and then praised the judge.
On Tuesday, seven weeks into the explosive sex trafficking trial that has revealed shocking insights into his unconventional sex life and history of abuse, Judge Arun Subramanian asked Diddy how he was feeling. The music mogul stood up, clad in a burnt orange sweater, and leaned over to get close to the microphone. He replied confidently: “I'm doing great, your honor. I've been wanting to tell you thank you, you're doing an excellent job.”
The judge then thanked him before asking if he discussed with his lawyers whether he should testify. “Yes, thoroughly,” the rapper replied.
Subramanian then asked whether it was his decision not to testify. “That is my decision, your honor,” the defendant responded. Pressed as to whether he understood that the decision was his alone to make, Diddy told the judge: “That is solely my decision.” He then added, flashing a smile: “I mean, it’s my decision with my lawyers.” The judge chuckled.
The judge’s line of questioning came after the government rested its case. The music mogul faces five federal counts of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and transportation to engage in prostitution. He’s pleaded not guilty.
The 55-year-old defendant also announced his formal decision not to testify after Alexandra Shapiro, one of his defense attorneys, moved for a judgment of acquittal on all counts. Shapiro argued the government failed to prove its burden and that no reasonable juror could find her client guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
She claimed there were “deficiencies” to each count and then walked through each charge. For the racketeering charge, Shapiro argued that the government failed to show that Diddy conspired with others, like his staff. For example, when his former employees took the stand, they testified about running errands and making travel plans for their boss but “none seemed to know about what went on in hotel rooms — other than they used a lot of baby oil, alcohol, and perhaps used drugs,” she said But none seemed to have any knowledge of any sex trafficking.
As for the transportation to engage in prostitution charges, Shapiro said there wasn’t sufficient evidence to show that the escorts were paid for their prostitution rather than their time. She also argued Cassie Ventura and Jane referred to the men they slept with during “freak offs” as “escorts” or “entertainers” — not as "prostitutes" — throughout their testimony.
Regarding the sex trafficking charge related to Ventura, Shapiro pointed to Ventura’s texts with Diddy in which she was supportive of or excited about the sex marathons. These messages “wouldn’t have given him reason to believe she didn’t want to participate in freak offs in particular,” but suggest the contrary, she argued. She also noted that her client was “regrettably violent towards her at times” but that “domestic violence isn’t sex trafficking.”
The judge said he would reserve a decision on the motion. Closing arguments are set to begin Thursday morning.
Prosecutor Maurene Comey said she didn’t want to object to the defense’s summations, but said she believed it would be “crossing a line to bring up politics and current events” or the "propriety of the prosecution.” Her comment came after a report Monday claimed that Diddy’s attorneys planned to mention the recent conflict in Iran in its closing argument. Defense attorney Marc Agnifilo reassured Subrumanian: “Northing to worry about, judge.”
