Sean "Diddy" Combs is back in court today after renewing his push to be released on $50 million bail as he awaits trial on sex trafficking and racketeering charges.
Earlier this week, the judge ordered federal prosecutors to delete images of the billionaire mogul's handwritten notes taken during a search of his jail – which his lawyers said were protected by attorney-client privilege and improperly seized. Excerpts from those notes that prosecutors referenced previously cannot be used at the bond hearing, the judge added.
The quotes in question referenced getting "dirt" on at least two potential witnesses.
After seeing his bail denied on two prior occasions following an arrest in September, Combs renewed his quest for freedom last week with a new bail proposal offering the same $50 million sum, secured by his Miami Beach mansion, which his lawyers say is worth about $48 million. Prosecutors are arguing that Combs' release could put victims and witnesses at risk. Despite the staggering sum offered up by the defense, the judge has so far kept the hip-hop icon behind bars.
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In court documents, his lawyers argued that the brutal assault of former girlfriend Casandra "Cassie" Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel, preserved on video, was part of "a minutes-long glimpse into a complex but decade-long consensual relationship between Mr. Combs and Victim-1."
Prosecutors previously raised "serious concerns" about the safety of victims and witnesses if Combs were to go free, and the judge overseeing his criminal case rejected his wide-ranging request for a gag order that would have restricted additional accusers from coming forward.
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"Combs’s authorities don’t support a gag order applicable not only to trial participants, but also to any alleged victim and their lawyer," Judge Arun Subramanian wrote. "Local Rule 23.1 doesn’t authorize this kind of relief. The limitations of that rule don’t even apply to witnesses, let alone prospective ones that haven’t yet been identified."
Combs has been held without bail at a federal jail in Brooklyn since his arrest on federal sex trafficking, forced prostitution and racketeering charges.
A trial is scheduled for May 5 of next year. By then, the U.S. attorney overseeing his case could be replaced by President-elect Donald Trump's nominee, former Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Jay Clayton.
The feds opened their investigation in November 2023, around the time Ventura sued Combs, alleging physical and sexual abuse. He settled her civil lawsuit a day after she filed it.
Combs vehemently denied the allegations from Ventura and from all the other accusers. Then, the video leaked – showing the nearly naked billionaire brutally assaulting her in the hallway of Los Angeles' Intercontinental Hotel.
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The video appeared to corroborate at least one claim in Ventura's lawsuit – that Combs punched her in the face in the hotel in 2016.
"Mr. Combs became extremely intoxicated and punched Ms. Ventura in the face, giving her a black eye," her lawyers alleged.
He was drunk, according to the lawsuit, and when he passed out, she tried to sneak out. However, he allegedly woke up and resumed screaming at her, followed her into the hallway and threw her on the ground.
Over the past year, new accusers have continued to come forward, and Texas attorney Tony Buzbee said in October he now represents more than 100 people looking to sue the rapper.
Combs has been accused of doling out date rape drugs and victimizing adults and children at parties, some of which allegedly involved unnamed "celebrity" accomplices.
The judge is still mulling over some of Combs' other documents taken during the jail search, which include 19 pages of notes from his locker in the federal detention center, "intact pages from two different legal pads," pages from an address book, and torn-out pages from three other legal pads.
The defense has also requested copies of jailhouse surveillance video taken during the search.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.
