The Law Show Should killers be forced to attend sentencing hearings?
The Victims and Courts Bill is progressing through Parliament, and will force convicted criminals to attend their sentencing hearings.
If criminals convicted of the most serious offences in England or Wales refuse to attend, or are disruptive in court, they will face an extra two years in prison. There are other sanctions too, including missing out on family visits.
'Reasonable force' can also be used to get criminals to attend.
The families of three women killed in London - Sabina Nessa, Jan Mustafa and Zara Aleena - have been campaigning for a new law. In each case, the men who murdered their loved ones refused to come to their sentencing hearings.
Their families are not alone; the mother of 9 year old Olivia Pratt-Korbel, who was fatally shot in August 2022, has also been calling for a change in the law. The man who murdered her daughter also refused to come to court to be sentenced.
But will the changes improve the court system for the families of victims?
Also on the programme:
The first purely-AI legal service has been given the go ahead in England and Wales - what does it mean for the UK legal sector?
And who gets the dog? Why all couples might want to consider a "pet-nup" in case they split up.
Presenter: Joelle Grogan
Producers: Ravi Naik and Charlotte Rowles
Editor Tara McDermott
Contributors
Charlie Sherrard KC, criminal justice barrister and judge
Claire Waxman, Victim's Commissioner for London
Dr Giulia Gentile, Department of Law, University of Essex and expert on AI and digital regulation
Samantha Woodham, barrister and co-founder of The Divorce Surgery.
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If you're just checking in, here's a round-up of all the key updates: A former girlfriend of Combs, who is testifying under the pseudonym "Jane", told jurors how a whirlwind romance opened a "Pandora's box" of sex sessions with male escorts that she didn't know how to stop; She alleged the hip-hop mogul coerced her into participating in drug-fuelled "debauchery" nights throughout their relationship, which began in 2021 and ended when he was arrested in 2024; She began her evidence not long after Judge Arun Subramanian issued a warning to Combs's lawyers after seeing the rapper "nodding vigorously" towards the jury during earlier testimony; The judge warned he could take steps to remove the defendant from the courtroom if the "totally unacceptable" behaviour happens again during the trial; Jane told the court she agreed to having sex with a male escort because she wanted to make Combs happy - and even "felt excited" afterwards after doing something "taboo"; But she said she thought it was a one-off - instead, it "set the tone" going forward; Asked if this is what she wanted, she said it wasn't, but that she "went along with it because I loved him at this point"; As their relationship continued, she said she did tell him "many times", but he would dismiss her, make her feel uncomfortable, or seemingly threaten to stop paying her rent; Jane said these encounters were referred to as "debauchery" or hotel nights, and they always followed the same pattern - "hotel suites, red lights, music, lotions and alcohol"; She said she would "have drugs" in her system and wear "provocative" lingerie and "high stripper shoes" and Combs would ask her to pour baby oil on the men and herself; These sessions typically lasted between 24 and 30 hours with "no sleep"; Jane's evidence is set to continue tomorrow and on several days next week. 21:11:58 Court finishes for the day It's just after 4pm in New York and so the judge leaves Jane's testimony there for the day. She will be back on the stand tomorrow and is expected to continue giving evidence for several days next week as well. We'll be back with a recap of today's hearing soon - in the meantime scroll through our posts to catch up on what was said in court. 21:09:47 Escort sex sessions lasted up to 30 hours with no sleep, Jane tells court Jane tells the court that she and Sean "Diddy" Combs had "hotel night" - sexual encounters with male escorts, also described as "freak offs" during Cassie's testimony - in Turks and Caicos, Miami, Los Angeles and New York. Combs's employees would arrange travel, she says, and he would pay. Hotel nights always followed the same pattern, the court hears - "hotel suites, red lights, music, lotions and alcohol, there would be bed sheets covering everything, blankets and towels, because of the excessive use of baby oil everywhere". Jane says she would "have drugs in my system" and wear "provocative" lingerie and "high stripper shoes". 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Combs liked her with straight hair and white coloured nails, she says, and later in the relationship he wanted her to get piercings. "Looking nice" took a lot of time and money and became like a "habit", she continues, as she strived to make him happy. The court hears that while Jane started to earn less money after she prioritised her relationship with Combs, the rapper would support her with money - payments of $5,000, $10,000 or $20,000, she says. She tells the court she wanted to make her own money and had considered content creating on adult website OnlyFans - posting photos but not showing sexual activity. Combs told her to give it time, the court hears. Asked why she felt she needed his approval, she replies: "I felt like he was my boyfriend." 20:38:38 Jane describes 'debauchery' or 'hotel nights' - and says she felt 'obligated' as Diddy paid rent After that first night in May 2021, Jane is asked what percentage of the time with Sean "Diddy" Combs she was having sex with another man. She replies: "90%." Asked if this is what she wanted, she says: "No." Jane tells the court she wanted "an old-fashioned relationship with me and him" - which is how it felt when they first met. After the first sexual encounter with an escort, Combs quickly suggested they do it again, Jane says, telling the court she was agreeable because she wanted him to be happy. "I went along with it because I loved him at this point," she says. However, Jane says she started to tell him - more than once, in writing and in person - that she did not want to have sex with other men. Over the next three years she says she told him this "many times", but it would be "uncomfortable" whenever the subject came up. Combs would dismiss it and move the conversation on, she says, or tell her she didn't have to. He would also tell her she could break up with him if she wanted to, she says. Combs paid her rent, but would threaten to stop doing so, she adds. Jane says she felt "obligated" to perform on some nights "because I knew he was paying my rent". Asked the words she and Combs used to describe the sexual encounters with male escorts, she says they would call them "debauchery" or "hotel nights". 20:27:01 First sexual encounter with male escort 'opened Pandora's box', Jane tells court After being told by Sean "Diddy" Combs that he could make the fantasy of role play with another man come true, Jane says she went to the bathroom. When she returned, she says he was in his robe and "looking serious" on his phone. He told her he could "make it happen tonight", the court hears. Jane says she was taken aback but agreed. A few hours later, she says assistants set up a room for them and she was introduced to an escort, Don. She tells the court she was nervous but Combs told her to relax and asked her to stand up. At his suggestion, she started dancing, she says, as the escort got closer and started to touch her. Combs was naked, she says, and masturbated as he watched them. Jane says she wanted to "speed things up" so asked for a condom. Combs told her he "didn't want that", she says, saying the guys were "safe" and regularly tested. Eventually, however, he did give Don a condom and they had sex, she says. Afterwards, Don left and the two of them had sex together, she says. "We were really happy." The day afterwards, Jane says she "felt excited" that she had done something "taboo", something she had never done before. However, she says she thought it was a one-off. Asked how the relationship changed after this, she tells the court "it opened a Pandora's box", and "set the tone" going forward. 20:11:06 'Diddy wanted role play with other men and liked me to have baby oil all over' Jane tells the court her relationship with Sean "Diddy" Combs was kept private. Between February 2021 and May 2021, she says he would fly her to see him in Miami every few weeks, and also gave her money. During this period, they took drugs including ecstasy, molly (MDMA), cocaine and ketamine, she says. Jane says Combs wanted her to wear "provocative lingerie outfits" when they had sex and liked her to have baby oil "all over my body". Sexual sessions could last for up to 24 hours and he liked to have red lights on in their hotel rooms, she adds. Asked how she felt about the long sex sessions at this point, Jane tells the court she "really loved" Combs and enjoyed the affection. "Sean was really passionate," she says, and very complimentary. In those first three months, she says she "loved him very much". Asked what happened in May 2021, she bows her head and becomes emotional. "We would watch a lot of pornography, we started having a lot more fantasy conversations." Combs started to talk about role play with other men, she says, and one night told her he could make the fantasy a reality. Jane says she told him "okay" - but did not think it would really happen and says she did not want to have sex with anyone other than Combs. 19:55:02 Diddy 'used L word' - but made it clear he was seeing other women, Jane tells court In February 2021, Sean "Diddy" Combs and Jane went on a trip to the Turks and Caicos Islands and the Bahamas, the court hears. Jane says he organised the break after she told him her birthday was coming up, and that he had several members of staff there too, including an assistant, a chef and a butler. She says they had a good connection and were "passionate" about each other - that she told him about her work and being a single mother. Asked about gifts during this trip, Jane tells the court Combs gave her a bracelet - and later offered to send her $10,000 because she wasn't working while they were there. She is also asked about drugs, and says they took ecstasy. Jane tells the court she developed deep feelings for Combs and that they "started using 'the L word'." He told her he "really liked" her, she says, but made it clear he was seeing "multiple" women. She says she was okay with this because she liked him. Asked if she had the option of a monogamous relationship, she replies: "I don't think so." The relationship lasted, on and off, until Combs was arrested in September 2024, the court hears. 19:41:04 Alleged victim Jane says she fell 'head over heels' after first date with Diddy Jane tells the court she was in a relationship with Sean "Diddy" Combs between 2021 and 2024. She called him Sean or Diddy, the court hears, sometimes Schnookums, or sometimes Ernie - she was Bert and he was Ernie, like the characters from Sesame Street. Jane says she met the hip-hop mogul during a trip to Miami in late 2020. At the time, he was involved with one of her friends, she tells the court, and he invited a group of them to his home. The witness says they spent time on a yacht and that she was "drawn" to Combs. They flirted and exchanged numbers, which is when he suggested the Bert and Ernie nicknames, she says. Asked if she saw drugs, she says she remembers seeing a pink, powdery substance on that first night. Combs told her he wanted to take her out the following day, jurors hear. She says the situation was "complicated" but they remained in touch and Combs pursued her. After the friend who had previously been seeing him got engaged to someone else, Jane says she decided to "potentially entertain" the idea. They agreed to meet up in Miami in January 2021, the court hears. Jane says they went to a hotel, had dinner on the balcony, and she ended up staying for five days. Afterwards, she says, she was "head over heels".
