Male escort known as to the stand as second witness
The prosecution has called a new witness: Daniel Philip, who worked as a male escort and says he received money from Cassie to have sex in around 2012 or 2013.
Guard ‘100%’ thought Combs holding up money was a bribe
Combs’ attorney, Brian Steele, took up questioning Florez on the cross-examination and pushed the former guard on his belief that Combs was trying to bribe him.
“As far as the bribe, Mr. Combs held up a hundred-dollar bill. You took that as a bribe, you used the word bribe?” Steele asked.
“100%,” Florez answered, later affirming the same belief when asked about the “sack of money” Combs held up.
Steele also pushed Florez about the report made for the hotel at the time of the 2016 incident. He asked Florez why he didn’t include Combs’ allegedly telling Cassie she couldn’t leave.
Florez responded that he didn’t think it was a “significant fact” to include.
Former hotel guard took cellphone video after Cassie incident to show his wife
Florez testified that he took some cellphone videos after responding to the hotel incident between Cassie and Combs.
He told the court that he made a video because he didn’t think his wife would believe him if he went home and told her what happened. One video showed him motioning to Cassie to go into the room and another includes him picking up a phone and discussing the incident with his supervisor.
The former hotel guard testified that he hadn’t reviewed video of the assault before writing the incident report. Florez said he didn’t call the police because Cassie wanted to leave and no one was pressing charges.
Videos of Cassie’s 2016 hotel assault played at trial
Videos from the March 5, 2016, incident where Combs was seen beating Cassie in the hallway of the InterContinental hotel were officially submitted into evidence.
Prosecutors approached Florez with a thumb drive, which the former hotel guard said contained five videos from that morning. He was asked to describe the videos as he watched them on the witness stand.
Florez, describing one video, said Cassie comes down the hall and puts down a bag before “Combs comes up behind her in a towel and slams her in the head and drags her to the floor, starts to drag her back to the room.”
In another video of the same hallway, Florez said Combs barrels down the hall toward Cassie and tries to grab the phone from her.
Combs tried to take phones of hotel security but was pinned to the wall, former guard testifies
After describing the sack of money Combs offered him as “a bribe,” Florez then testified that Combs attempted to take the phones of hotel security guards.
“He came to the door, closed the door behind him, he grabbed the phone my colleague was holding because he thought he was being recorded. He eventually gave the phone back,” Florez said.
“We said we are not recording you and de-escalated the situation,” he continued. Florez then said that when Combs tried to grab his phone, he pinned Combs to the wall.
Combs supporters slept outside overnight
At the very least 20 followers of Combs camped out in a single day forward of the court docket’s doorways opening at 8 a.m., together with some who slept in tents.
The circus-like environment — dozens of cameras and spectators outdoors — suggests this trial has a ton of curiosity from the general public.
The turnout serves as a stark distinction to the comparatively muted turnout for former Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein’s retrial.
Former guard says Combs supplied him ‘sack of cash’ to not discuss Cassie lodge incident
Florez testified that he was on shift the day at the InterContinental hotel in March 2016, where surveillance video showed Combs dragging and kicking Cassie within the hallway.
The incident occurred round 11 a.m. and Florez was known as to a lady in misery on the sixth flooring. He testified that he acknowledged Combs, who was in a towel, however didn’t acknowledge Cassie on the time.
“She was scared,” Florez testified. “She was within the nook, hood on, lined up. I could not see her face, she was just about within the nook. On the ground was a destroyed flower vase.”
Florez stated that Combs advised him they have been arguing on the time. He seen Cassie making an attempt to stroll away and get her cellphone, however Combs advised her she wasn’t going to go away.
The previous lodge guard stated he put his physique within the doorway and stood for a couple of minutes till Cassie left the room.
“I began to go away and (Combs) known as for me,” Florez stated. “He had a sack of cash and he threw it at me and stated, ‘Do not inform anybody.'”
Trial resumes; lodge safety guard first witness to take the stand
The federal government known as the primary witness of its case: LAPD officer Israel Florez, who as soon as labored in lodge safety.
He was on obligation the day Combs was caught on digicam attacking then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura within the hallway of a Los Angeles lodge in March 2016.
Protection loses bid to maintain some proof out of testimony
Before lunch began, Combs’ attorneys spoke to the judge about objections they had regarding evidence that the prosecution wanted to submit into evidence along with its witness.
Comey told the judge the witness is a security guard who worked at the InterContinental hotel who would testify to incident reports and personal observations following an incident between Combs and “Victim-1.”
Combs’ attorney, Brian Steele, argued that the witness had “no personal knowledge” of the incident and includes speculation. Steele told the judge that the documents have prejudicial elements and doesn’t believe they are trustworthy.
Subramanian ruled against Combs’ attorneys and said that so long as the government establishes a foundation, the exhibits would be allowed into evidence.
The circus is in full swing outside court
There is a circus-like atmosphere outside of U.S. District Court in Lower Manhattan with dozens of cameras roaming around looking for family members who stepped outside for lunch.
The defendant’s son, Justin Combs, was chatting with supporters of his father who have been attending court long before today.
They were then swarmed by TV news cameras and he was forced to escape into a sprinter van with other family members.
Who are Victims 2 and 4?
There’s been much speculation about the anonymous victims mentioned in the Combs indictment, and today we have a few more answers.
Prosecutors have provided pseudonyms for two of the victims: Victim 2 is referred to as Jane and Victim 4 is referred to as Mia.
During opening statements, Jane was described as a single mother who met Combs in 2020. Prosecutors said she “fell in love” with Combs quickly and had a nonexclusive relationship with him, which included alleged abuse and coercion.
Mia was described as a former personal assistant who worked for Combs for years, according to the prosecution during openings. She allegedly is “just beginning to grapple with” the times that Combs forced himself on her and “wanted to keep the secret to her grave.”
Combs and his family kept their eyes on the jury
The jury had the Combs family’s undivided attention during the opening statements.
Combs’ mother and children all had their bodies turned right to face the jury box, keeping their eyes on the jury and Combs’ defense attorney this morning.
Combs too focused on the faces of the jury, but didn’t provide reaction himself. His only notable moment was when Geragos introduced him, standing up when she said, “This is Sean Combs.”
Jurors takes first lunch break of trial
The jury was excused for its first lunch break of the trial.
They’ll return at 1:15 p.m. ET and possible testimony once the defense, prosecutors and judge hash out evidentiary issues.
Defense ends opening statement by telling jury not to judge as ‘the moral police’
Geragos ended the defense’s opening statements by asserting that the victims, including Cassie, were motivated to “lie” because they were seeking a “money grab.”
“They will tell you they were victimized. Ask yourself, what is their motive?” Geragos said. “The answer is simple: money.”
Combs’ attorney insisted that Combs was conspiring with “no one” and that the drugs were obtained for personal use. Combs also did not knowingly pay sex workers to travel for commercial sex acts, his lawyer insisted.
“It is money for time, he was paying money for that experience,” Geragos said, noting the specific charge.
Geragos told the jury they are not there to judge as “the moral police,” but only to see if the evidence meets the burden for the charges.
Defense: Alleged victims were willing participants; there was no trafficking
Combs’ defense told jurors it will show how his accusers were not forced into sex and could’ve parted with him at almost any time.
“She was a willing participant in their sex life,” Geragos said of alleged victim and likely prosecution witness Cassie Ventura.
The accuser referred to as “Jane” had her eyes open throughout her relationship with Combs, based on the protection.
“After a time frame, their relationship turns into largely sexual,” Geragos stated. “She was a succesful, sturdy grownup girl.”
Cassie left Combs when she realized she would ‘by no means be his spouse’ after Kim Porter funeral, protection says
Cassie ended her relationship with Combs because she realized she would “never” mean as much to him as his former girlfriend, Kim Porter, Combs’ attorney Teny Geragos alleged her in opening statement.
Geragos told the jury that when Porter died of pneumonia in 2018, Cassie went to the funeral to support Combs.
“When Combs said Kim Porter was his soulmate, Cassie realized all the things she would not be, she wanted to be Combs’ wife,” Geragos said.
Porter and Combs had an on-and-off relationship for over a decade and share multiple children. Geragos alleged that there were years of “jealousy” at the center of Combs’ relationships with Cassie and Porter.
Cassie then left on her own terms when it was clear “she would never be that, never be his wife, never be his love of his life,” Geragos added.
‘You may know of his love of baby oil. Is that a federal crime? No!’
The defense won’t fight allegations that Combs has committed acts of domestic violence or used baby oil during sex — saying none of those actions amount to potential federal crimes being adjudicated here.
Combs is “not proud of that but he will own” that “he has a bad temper and sometimes he is so angry and jealous that he gets out of control,” Geragos said during the defense’s opening statement.
“We will not shy away from the things he did, but we will not own the things he did not do,” she told jurors. “He is physical, he is a drug user, you may know of his love of baby oil. Is that a federal crime? No!”
Combs faces criminal counts that include alleged racketeering conspiracy; sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; and transportation to engage in prostitution.
Defense begins openings: Combs is a ‘complicated man’
Teny Geragos previewed the defense’s case, and began by acknowledging that “Combs is a complicated man, but this is not a complicated case.”
Geragos said Combs’ life is about “real-life relationships,” but accused prosecutors of trying to turn them into a racketeering sex-trafficking case, “and it will not work.”
“You will hear why people stayed around him and why it matters, he gave people opportunity and chances,” Geragos said, adding that “they didn’t always like what he did or how how he behaved, but they truly loved him, and by being with him, they were part of something special.”
“The only people who knew about a racketeering enterprise are the prosecutors,” Geragos said. “This case is about Sean Combs’ private personal sex life. The government has no place in his private bedrooms. They say it is not about his private sex life, but the evidence will show that it is.”
Government wraps up opening statement: ‘Sean Combs is guilty’
The prosecution told jurors that, after all the evidence is heard several weeks from now, they’ll have no choice but to find Combs guilty on all charges.
“I ask you do three things,” Johnson said. “Please pay close attention to the evidence, follow the judge’s instructions on the law, please use and trust your common sense.”
She concluded her opening statement for the United States: “If you do all of that, you will reach the only verdict — that the defendant, Sean Combs, is guilty.”
Combs’ personal assistant ‘Mia’ to play role in trial
Prosecutors in their opening statement said jurors will also hear from “Mia,” a pseudonym for Combs’ personal assistant who worked with him for years.
“She is just beginning to grapple with the times he forced himself on her sexually. She wanted to keep the secret to her grave,” Johnson said.
“They worked punishing hours for the defendant without sleep. … They were expected to keep quiet of what they saw and heard in the defendant’s homes,” Johnson added.
Single mom ‘Jane’ among Combs’ victims, prosecutors say
A single mother, whom prosecutors call “Jane,” was allegedly under Combs’ total control, forcing her to have unprotected sex with escorts and do drugs, prosecutors said.
Jane and Combs met in 2020, when she quickly got caught up in the defendant’s web of abuse, Johnson said.
“She wanted the escorts to wear condoms, but he would not let them. Then he would make her take drugs; she broke down and took ecstasy,” Johnson said. “One time she vomited, he told her to hurry up and get back in the room where an escort was waiting.”
Combs and bodyguards tried to cover up Cassie video, prosecutors say
Combs and his bodyguards attempted to cover up surveillance video of him assaulting Cassie in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016, by trying to “get what they thought was the only copy” of the footage, Johnson told jurors.
She alleges the defendant gave “a brown paper bag full of $100,000 in cash” to a security guard to “broker a deal.”
“Nothing could put his public image at risk,” Johnson said of Combs, adding, “They covered up brutal beatings while keeping Cassie locked up for days.”
The video, key evidence within the trial, was made public by CNN a yr in the past.
Authorities: Combs directed wild, dayslong ‘freak offs’
The prosecution warned jurors to brace themselves for troubling proof of “freak offs,” dayslong, drug-fueled orgies allegedly orchestrated by Combs.
“A number of the particulars of what occurred to them can be onerous to listen to,” Johnson stated of victims. “He used lies, medication, threats and violence to power and coerce first Cassie and later Jane to have intercourse with him in entrance of male escorts.”
There have been allegedly no borders that would restrict Combs’ want for these acts.
“He directed freak offs week after week, across the nation and generally in another country,” Johnson added.
Cassie suffered beatings and compelled intercourse acts, prosecutors allege
Cassie, Combs’ former girlfriend, tried to run away from years of abuse but was threatened by the release of videos of sex acts Combs forced her to participate in, the prosecution alleged.
“Her life and safety depended on keeping him happy,” Johnson said in her opening statement.
The singer met Combs when she was a 19-year-old with a hit song. Combs allegedly began his abuse of her early on and forced Cassie to regularly participate in his “freak offs,” or sex parties that often included sex workers.
“Cassie tried her first freak off because she loved him and wanted to make him happy. … If Cassie didn’t do what he wanted, the consequences were severe,” Johnson said.
Johnson listed off a range of allegations of abuse that Cassie endured between 2006 and 2018, including the beating that was seen on hotel surveillance video and made public by CNN.
Combs was ‘king’ of self-serving criminal empire, prosecutor says
Prosecutors want to paint Combs as the kingpin of a criminal enterprise, accusing him of using a vast network of employees to carry out any number of alleged illegal acts.
“He sometimes called himself the king and expected to be treated like one,” Johnson said, “to cater to all his desires.”
She added: “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.”
Combs had inner circle help cover up ‘crime after crime,’ prosecution says in opening statement
Prosecutor Emily Johnson began her opening statement by describing Combs as a “larger than life” figure who ran a criminal enterprise enabled by an “inner circle” of employees.
One example Johnson gave was a night he was “on the hunt” for his former girlfriend Cassie Ventura after learning she had a new man in her life. Johnson alleged that Combs forced an employee into an SUV to take him to the new man’s home.
“When he finally found her he beat her brutally, kicking her in the back and flinging her around like a rag doll,” Johnson said.
He had to “make sure he had control over Cassie once again.”
“So he threatened her and said if she defies her again he will release video of her having sex with male escorts,” Johnson told the jury. “Souvenirs of the most humiliating nights of her life.”
This is just the tip of the iceberg in 20 years of Combs using his inner circle to cover up “crime after crime,” Johnson said.
Judge’s order to jurors: Have no opinion, don’t use social media
Judge Subramanian reminded the newly impaneled jury to form absolutely no opinions during trial — and definitely not post anything about it on social media.
“I am ordering you not to talk about this with anyone,” he said. “Do not form any opinion until all the evidence is in.”
Judge hopes jury can be done by July 4
U.S. District Court Judge Arun Subramanian thanked jurors for their service and targeted the Fourth of July for the possible end of Combs’ trial.
The jurist said he hopes the trial could be done by Independence Day, though it “could go longer, but I don’t expect that it will.”
The jury’s daily schedule will include a “light breakfast” at 8:30 a.m. and a 30-minute lunch break later in the day, the judge said.
“I will make every effort to move trial along,” he added. “We will keep your names and identity in confidence, that personal information will not be made public and this is in no way unusual.”
Here is what we know about the jurors
The jury consists of 12 people in the main pool and an additional six people who may be asked to step in as alternates. It includes residents from Manhattan, the Bronx and Westchester, and includes an investment analyst, a physician assistant, a massage therapist, a deli clerk, a scientist, a social worker and an architect. Several have said they have seen the video of Combs’ assaulting Cassie Ventura in a L.A. hotel hallway.
This is what we know about the main 12 jurors:
- Juror No. 2: A 69-year-old male who works as an actor and massage therapist. He lives in Manhattan.
- Juror No. 5: A 31-year-old male who works as an investment analyst. He lives in Manhattan.
- Juror No. 25: A 51-year-old male who has a Ph.D. in molecular biology and neuroscience. He lives in Manhattan.
- Juror No. 28: A 30-year-old female working as a deli clerk. She lives with her mom and brother in the Bronx.
- Juror No. 55: A 42-year-old female who is an aide in a nursing home. She lives in Manhattan.
- Juror No. 58: A 41-year-old male who works in communications at a correctional facility. She lives in the Bronx.
- Juror No. 75: A 68-year-old male who is retired from a bank. He lives in Westchester.
- Juror No. 116: A 68-year-old male who is retired from working at telecommunications company. He lives in Westchester.
- Juror No. 160: A 43-year-old female who works as a physician assistant. She lives in Westchester.
- Juror No. 184: A 39-year-old male who works as a social worker. He lives in the Bronx.
- Juror No. 201: A 67-year-old male who works as a logistics analyst. He lives in Westchester.
- Juror No. 217: A 74-year-old female who works as a treatment coordinator. She lives in Manhattan.
Jury is set with 8 men and 4 women
Prosecutors and defense lawyers agreed to a jury of eight men and four women, paving the way for opening statements shortly.
Six alternates, four men and two women, have also been seated as the court is in a brief recess as both sides prepare to deliver their opening statements.
Emily Johnson is set to open for the government and Teny Geragos for the defense.
Combs’ team complains about prosecutors removing Black jurors
Defense attorney Marc Agnifilo questioned whether the government was intentionally going out of its way to keep Black jurors out of the field.
Agnifilo stated seven Black folks had been eliminated, “which results in a sample and they should give explanation for strikes.”
“We’ve carried out ourselves with none bias,” prosecutor Maurene Ryan Comey responded. “The jury is numerous with a variety of nonwhite (panelists).”
The choose denied the movement from Agnifilo, saying the defendant failed to point out discrimination.
Court docket is in session: Attorneys finalize their jury choices
and
The choose entered the courtroom with greetings for all, together with, “Good morning to you, Mr. Combs.”
There was no different enterprise to take care of so either side are going by way of who they want to strike from the juror pool.
Given the size of this trial, the events agreed to offer a while to see if anybody would get chilly ft. Now that the case has been known as, either side’ attorneys will weed by way of the remaining pool to safe a jury and some alternates.
Delay as choose meets with either side’ attorneys in chambers
Lead prosecutor Maurene Comey and defense attorney Marc Agnifilo entered the judge’s chambers.
The courtroom is waiting on Judge Arun Subramanian before each side can finalize jury selection and give opening statements.
Combs greets his family with hugs and a kiss
After eight months in federal prison, Combs arrived for his first day of the trial in a beige sweater over a white-collared shirt and khaki pants.
He greeted every member of his family with a hug before sitting down alongside his attorneys. After settling in his seat, Combs still turned around to blow a kiss toward his mother and children.
Janice Combs, the rap mogul’s mother, is a presence in the courtroom. She made sure to sit in the middle of her grandchildren, with Combs’ twin daughters on her right side and Combs’ sons on the left.
Combs put on reading glasses and poured himself a glass of water as the parties prepare to begin.
Combs children and mother arrive for first day of trial
Combs’ sons and teenage daughters arrived at the federal courthouse this morning, exiting a black van as they walked through a sea of onlookers blocked off by police.
His sons Christian, Justin and Quincy first stepped out into the crowd before Combs’ three daughters Chance, Jessie and D’Lila. It appeared that the girls held hands as they squeezed through the small walkway made my officers.
Combs’ mother, Janice Combs, was also in attendance and sat with the children in the second row.
The big legal personalities in this celebrity trial
In addition to Combs, the next eight weeks will bring several well-known names.
The lead prosecutor is Maurene Ryan Comey, a veteran of the Southern District who helped safe a conviction in opposition to British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell for conspiring with Jeffrey Epstein. Comey is the daughter of former FBI Director James Comey.
Whereas Southern California movie star lawyer Mark Geragos isn’t representing Combs, his daughter, Teny Geragos, is among the attorneys representing the rapper. The elder Gergaos, half of the “2 Angry Men” podcast, was just lately chastised by the choose when he known as prosecutors a “six-pack of white women.”
And lawyer Lisa Bloom, the daughter of feminist legal professional Gloria Allred, could also be seen within the press because the civil litigator representing some of Diddy’s accusers.
What to learn about U.S. District Court docket Choose Arun Subramanian
The choose who’ll be on the middle of this trial is U.S. District Court docket Choose Arun Subramanian.
He’s the primary jurist of South Asian or Indian descent to sit down on a bench of the Southern District of New York.
Subramanian was nominated to the Southern District by President Joe Biden in 2022 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, 59-37, on March 7, 2023. The Columbia Legislation College grad once clerked for U.S. Supreme Court docket Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
