The jury has reached a partial verdict in the federal sex trafficking trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, days after prosecutors and defense attorneys delivered their closing arguments in the case.
The judge received a note from the jury just after 4 p.m. Tuesday stating that they had reached a verdict on four of the five counts Combs was facing, but was unable to reach a verdict on the charge of racketeering conspiracy. The note said the jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict on the top charge because there were jurors with “unpersuadable views” on both sides.
It was not known what verdict — guilty or not guilty — was reached on the other counts, which include sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.
Just before the note from the jury was read, several defense attorneys huddled around together around Combs, who was seen in the courtroom with his head in his hands, seemingly morose as his legal team explained what was going on. At one point, lead defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo stepped away from the huddle, returned with a piece of paper and handed it to Combs, who read it solemnly.
Diddy’s mother and six of his eldest children were in the courtroom at the time, along with the mother of his youngest child, Dana Tran.
Prosecutors, meanwhile, were at their table glued to their phones and laptop computers.
Both the prosecution and the defense told the judge they wanted the jury to continue deliberating on the first count, saying it was too soon to give up on reaching a verdict on all counts.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Maurene Comey suggested the judge give the jury a modified version of what’s known as an Allen charge — instructions encouraging them to keep deliberating after reaching an impasse. Agnifilo, however, said the jury doesn’t need help moving expeditiously and he doesn’t want them to get any form of the Allen charge.
“I’m not asking the court to say much because I don’t think this jury needs much,” Agnifilo said, arguing that this situation is different from ones where a jury has gone a while without reaching a verdict on any counts.
The jury was brought back into the courtroom just after 5 p.m., at which time the judge told them to continue their deliberations. The judge said juries have a right to deliver a partial verdict, but indicated that’s more of a last resort and that given the short amount of time the panel has been deliberated, he’d rather give them more time and wait to have a full verdict.
Court then concluded for the evening, with deliberations set to pick up again at 9 a.m. Wednesday. As he got up to leave, Diddy turned to his family and blew a kiss, telling them he’d see them Wednesday.
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Racketeering conspiracy — count 1 on the jury’s verdict sheet — is the most complicated of the charges against Combs because it requires the jury to decide not only whether he ran a “racketeering enterprise,” but also whether he was involved in committing some or all of various types of offenses, such as kidnapping and arson.
The charge falls under RICO — the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act — which is best known for being used in organized crime and drug cartel cases.
As of Tuesday night, the jury has spent about 13 hours sifting through seven weeks of sometimes graphic and emotional testimony about the rap, fashion and reality TV impresario’s propensity for violence and his sexual predilections, including drug-fueled sex marathons dubbed “freak-offs” or “hotel nights.”
Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to federal charges of racketeering conspiracy, two counts of sex trafficking — relating to two of his ex-girlfriends — and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution for allegedly arranging to fly sex workers across state lines.
In closing arguments last week, federal prosecutors and Combs’ defense team took their last shots at convincing jurors to convict or acquit the Grammy Award-winning founder of Bad Boy Records.
“The defendant used power, violence and fear to get what he wanted,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Christy Slavik said. “He thought that his fame, wealth and power put him above the law.”
Defense lawyer Agnifilo countered, “This isn’t about crime. It’s about money.” He noted that one of Combs’ accusers in the criminal case also sued him in civil court.
In all, 34 witnesses testified, headlined by Combs’ former girlfriends Cassie — the R&B singer born Casandra Ventura — and “Jane,” who testified under a pseudonym. Both women said he often was violent toward them and forced them into hundreds of sexual encounters with paid male sex workers.
Jurors also saw now-infamous security camera video of Combs beating, kicking and dragging Cassie at a Los Angeles hotel in 2016 and clips from videos of sexual encounters.
Combs chose not to testify, and his lawyers didn’t call any witnesses in their defense case. His attorneys elected instead to challenge the accusers’ credibility during lengthy cross-examination questioning.
The defense has acknowledged that Combs veered into violence, but his lawyers maintain that the sex acts were consensual. They contend that prosecutors are intruding in Combs’ personal life and that he’s done nothing to warrant the charges against him.
Resources for victims of sexual assault are available through the National Sexual Violence Resources Center and the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 800-656-4673.
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