Who's who in the trial of Sean ‘Diddy' Combs
'You have one more listener for your podcast,' the judge said.
'As long as you subscribe, I'm all for it,' Geragos shot back.
The alleged victims
Cassie Ventura is the 38-year-old Connecticut-born singer whose relationship with Combs is central to the case. Ventura is known as Victim-1 in the indictment. She has chosen to testify under her real name.
Victim-2, Victim-3 and Victim-4 are three key witnesses in the trial; they have been given permission by Judge Subramanian to testify under a pseudonym, to protect their privacy. Forcing them to reveal their identities in court would, according to prosecutors, impose 'real costs on the victims and the public.'
According to the indictment, Combs trafficked Victim-2 and Victim-3 and forced them into sex with male prostitutes. Combs denies that. His lawyers say these victims are 'former long-term girlfriends ... involved in consensual relationships.' The identities of Victim-2, Victim-3 and Victim-4 are known to Combs and his legal team.
The prosecution
Madison Smyser is the federal prosecutor leading the case against Combs. Smyser graduated from Harvard Law School and holds the position of Assistant US Attorney at the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York. Her role is to present the prosecution's arguments and evidence; it was Smyser who confirmed last week that Combs had been offered a plea deal but had declined it.
The defence
If Marc Agnifilo's name sounds familiar it might be because he also represents Luigi Mangione - the man accused of shooting United Healthcare chief executive Brian Thompson. Agnifilo is a graduate of Brooklyn Law School and worked at the US Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey and as a Manhattan assistant district attorney before becoming a criminal defence lawyer. He has also represented 'pharma bro' Martin Shkreli, the founder of cult NXIVM Keith Raniere and former Goldman Sachs banker Roger Ng.
The prosecution noted this week that Mark Geragos had not filed a 'notice of appearance' to represent Combs in court during the trial, but the defence team seemed to consult with him.
Judge Subramanian asked in a robing room meeting if Geragos - whose clients have included Michael Jackson and the Menendez brothers - was advising Combs. Geragos said he represents Combs' mother, has represented Combs and speaks with him 'with great frequency.' His daughter, Teny Geragos, is a key member of Combs' legal team.
The expert witness
Dawn Hughes is a forensic psychologist who has appeared at a number of high-profile trials, including the 2019 prosecution of NXIVM cult leader Keith Raniere and the 2021 prosecution of singer R. Kelly and the defamation trial involving actors Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. Hughes will be called to testify by the prosecution. Hughes specialises in interpersonal violence, traumatic stress and anxiety disorders. Hughes is also scheduled to testify at the Harvey Weinstein trial, which is currently underway.
The jury
The trial officially began on May 5, but much of the first week was spent selecting jurors. US District Court juries are selected randomly from voter registration lists and driver's licence records. Potential jurors are then sent a summons to report to the courthouse.
The potential jurors are questioned by the judge and lawyers for both sides - a process known as voir dire (to speak the truth) to assess for impartiality.
Loading
In this case, Judge Subramanian asked for 12 jurors and six 'alternates'. An alternate juror sits with the regular jurors, but does not deliberate on the evidence or vote on its outcome, unless a regular juror needs replacing.
Numerous possible jurors were disqualified on Tuesday after answering questions in ways that left lawyers and the judge to believe they could not be fair and unbiased. One man was dismissed after expressing doubt that he could follow an order by the judge not to smoke marijuana for the duration of the trial.
Several who were eliminated from the jury pool had seen or heard media reports related to the case, including some who said they saw a video in which Combs was hitting and kicking one of his accusers in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Perth Now
19 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Russell Crowe opens up about assault arrest in 2005
Russell Crowe has opened up about his assault arrest in 2005. The New Zealand-born actor, 61, was seized by police in New York in 2005 for assault after throwing a telephone at a hotel employee, and he has now reflected on the incident in an interview with the Daily Telegraph on Sunday (17.08.25.) He said: 'Look man, at 61, I can forgive my bad days. 'I'm not at all one of those people that say you shouldn't have regrets, I absolutely respect regret,' he said. 'Regret is one of the greatest processes.' He added: 'You know, you're not gonna be finding any improvement by not being honest with yourself about who you are and what you did, what you might've said.' Russell was led from the Mercer Hotel in handcuffs during the incidence after lashing out at staff when he was unable to place a call to his then-wife, Danielle Spencer. He spent six hours in custody before being charged. Russell references the incident in the music video for his latest single Save Me, recorded with his band, The Gentlemen Barbers. The Gladiator actor was in New York in June 2005 to promote his film Cinderella Man, about the heavyweight boxer Jim Braddock at the time. He had attempted to call Danielle, then 36, at their Sydney apartment so he could say goodnight to their young son. After failing to connect through the hotel's phone system, Russell went down to reception and threw the device at Nestor Estrada, a 28-year-old concierge. Police said the actor broke down in tears when he was handcuffed. At the time he admitted: 'I can't communicate how dark my life is right now. I was at the bottom of a well.' He also said he was 'very sorry' and acknowledged problems controlling his anger. Russell initially faced felony charges but later pleaded guilty to third-degree assault, a reduced offence. He was fined and avoided prison. In August 2005 he settled a civil case brought by Nestor, reportedly paying about $100,000. Speaking about the incident in connection with his new music, Russell said: 'The song is just a reminder that not every night you get to play in front of 12,000 people – sometimes you're singing Irish folk songs to the prison officer who is looking after you in jail.' Russell and Danielle, now 56, had met in 1989 on the set of The Crossing. They married in 2003 at his farm in Nana Glen, New South Wales, separated in 2012 and finalised their divorce in 2018. They share two sons – Charlie, 21, and 19-year-old Tennyson.
Sydney Morning Herald
4 days ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘Same issues since 2005': People wrongly detained due to Home Affairs' systemic failures
A culture of 'act first, check later' in the Department of Home Affairs led to repeat mistakes causing almost every wrongful detention in a single year, including an Australian citizen and a person who was held for a year and a half before being released. The Commonwealth Ombudsman revealed in a report on Wednesday that the department wrongfully detained 11 people between July 1, 2023 and June 30, 2024, with officers failing to decide for themselves whether it was reasonable to detain someone in most of the cases. The report said 90 per cent of the cases would have been avoided if existing policies had been followed, and that the same mistakes – including poor record keeping and failure to check conflicting information – had been made before but were not fixed. One person was detained for a week despite receiving an invalid visa refusal letter – the same mistake that had resulted in a man being incorrectly detained in 2018 for four years. 'Since we began monitoring the issue in 2005, we have observed the same types of errors are causing people to be wrongfully detained,' the report said. 'In addition, the department has not improved the way it addresses its mistakes with the individuals it has wrongfully detained. The department does not offer people it has wrongfully detained any form of redress, formal apology, or financial compensation.' Immigration detention staff can lawfully detain a person if they 'know or reasonably suspect' them to be an unlawful non-citizen. Wrongful detentions occur when the suspicion is incorrect and the person is released, according to the ombudsman. It did not analyse whether Home Affairs officers reasonably held suspicions about detained people in the first place, saying that would be too legally complex. The report said the data indicated that a culture of carelessness first identified in 2007 may still be present. In 81 per cent of the cases, staff acted as if the decision to detain a person had already been made by someone else and did not take responsibility for forming reasonable suspicion in their own minds. The ombudsman regularly reviews wrongful detention in part as a response to the case of Vivian Alvarez, a Filipino-born Australian citizen who was deported in 2001 after being admitted to hospital after falling into a drain. Her former husband searched for her for years, and she featured on missing persons television program Without a Trace. The department was made aware of its mistake by multiple sources in 2003, but took no action. Alvarez's case didn't become public until 2005.
The Age
4 days ago
- The Age
‘Same issues since 2005': People wrongly detained due to Home Affairs' systemic failures
A culture of 'act first, check later' in the Department of Home Affairs led to repeat mistakes causing almost every wrongful detention in a single year, including an Australian citizen and a person who was held for a year and a half before being released. The Commonwealth Ombudsman revealed in a report on Wednesday that the department wrongfully detained 11 people between July 1, 2023 and June 30, 2024, with officers failing to decide for themselves whether it was reasonable to detain someone in most of the cases. The report said 90 per cent of the cases would have been avoided if existing policies had been followed, and that the same mistakes – including poor record keeping and failure to check conflicting information – had been made before but were not fixed. One person was detained for a week despite receiving an invalid visa refusal letter – the same mistake that had resulted in a man being incorrectly detained in 2018 for four years. 'Since we began monitoring the issue in 2005, we have observed the same types of errors are causing people to be wrongfully detained,' the report said. 'In addition, the department has not improved the way it addresses its mistakes with the individuals it has wrongfully detained. The department does not offer people it has wrongfully detained any form of redress, formal apology, or financial compensation.' Immigration detention staff can lawfully detain a person if they 'know or reasonably suspect' them to be an unlawful non-citizen. Wrongful detentions occur when the suspicion is incorrect and the person is released, according to the ombudsman. It did not analyse whether Home Affairs officers reasonably held suspicions about detained people in the first place, saying that would be too legally complex. The report said the data indicated that a culture of carelessness first identified in 2007 may still be present. In 81 per cent of the cases, staff acted as if the decision to detain a person had already been made by someone else and did not take responsibility for forming reasonable suspicion in their own minds. The ombudsman regularly reviews wrongful detention in part as a response to the case of Vivian Alvarez, a Filipino-born Australian citizen who was deported in 2001 after being admitted to hospital after falling into a drain. Her former husband searched for her for years, and she featured on missing persons television program Without a Trace. The department was made aware of its mistake by multiple sources in 2003, but took no action. Alvarez's case didn't become public until 2005.
