Live updates: Sean ‘Diddy' Combs trial; Bryana Bongolan and forensic video expert Frank Piazza to testify

CNN

4 days ago

Update:
Date: 3 min ago
Title: Witness Bryana Bongolan takes the stand
Content:
Assistant US Attorney Madison Smyser is questioning Bryana Bongolan for the government.
Update:
Date: 6 min ago
Title: Surveillance video from 2016 hotel altercation reliably depicted what happened, video expert says
Content:
Forensic video expert Frank Piazza confirmed again that he believes the security videos that captured the 2016 hotel altercation between Sean 'Diddy' Combs and Cassie Ventura reliably depicted what happened that day.
Update:
Date: 7 min ago
Title: Forensic video expert off the stand
Content:
Forensic video expert Frank Piazza is now off the stand.
Update:
Date: 12 min ago
Title: Video expert explains why surveillance cameras don't all have matching time stamps
Content:
A video compilation of the 2016 altercation at the InterContinental Hotel used footage from a few surveillance cameras that showed different angles of the incident.
Defense attorney Teny Geragos pointed out that the surveillance cameras don't all have the same time stamps.
Forensic video expert Frank Piazza testified that the cameras were not linked to the same internal clock, but he said he was able to sync the footage based on overlapping events.
Update:
Date: 33 min ago
Title: Forensic expert explains motion-activated cameras only update timestamps with distinct movement
Content:
Defense attorney Teny Geragos is reviewing the surveillance video clips, focusing on time codes that jump instead of advancing second by second in real time.
She described the time code changes with phrases like 'jump' and 'missing time,' suggesting it almost appears as if the video's time was 'cut.'
Forensic video expert Frank Piazza explained that motion triggers a time stamp change in this camera system. Although a person might be visible in the frame, the motion-activated cameras do not update the timestamp until they detect distinct movement, Piazza said.
Update:
Date: 47 min ago
Title: Video expert says he got surveillance footage from prosecutors, but he doesn't know where they got it
Content:
Forensic video expert Frank Piazza said he received the surveillance footage of the 2016 InterContinental Hotel altercation from prosecutors.
When asked, Piazza said that he didn't know where prosecutors got the footage.
Update:
Date: 1 hr 4 min ago
Title: Jury is back from short break
Content:
Forensic video expert Frank Piazza is back on the stand. The jury is entering now.
Defense attorney Teny Geragos is beginning cross-examination.
Update:
Date: 1 hr 20 min ago
Title: Forensic video testifies that he enhanced sexually explicit videos recovered from laptop
Content:
Forensic video expert Frank Piazza testified that he enhanced 10 'sex videos' that were recovered from a laptop. Prosecutors said that Cassie Ventura turned the laptop over to the government.
The videos — originally recorded in 2012 and 2014 — were recovered from the 'Frank Black' user profile on the laptop, prosecutor Madison Smyser said as she entered the videos into evidence under seal.
Piazza also enhanced the audio on another sexually explicit video
Smyser's direct-examination of Piazza is complete. Defense attorney Teny Geragos will cross-examine Piazza after a short break.
Update:
Date: 1 hr 27 min ago
Title: Forensic video expert testifies video compilation reliably depicts hotel surveillance
Content:
The video compilation is finished. Forensic video expert Frank Piazza said the compilation used all the available footage he had.
He confirmed that none of the videos showed signs of tampering and that they were reliable depictions of what the hotel's surveillance system captured.
Update:
Date: 1 hr 40 min ago
Title: Prosecution will need to help guide jury through timeline of events due to scope of case, legal expert says
Content:
The scope of evidence presented by the prosecution in the racketeering conspiracy case against Sean 'Diddy' Combs spans many years, which could become confusing for the jury to follow , Sarah Krissoff, former US prosecutor for the Southern District of New York, said.
Krissoff told CNN's Kate Bolduan the prosecution charged Combs with racketeering conspiracy 'so they could get all of that evidence in' and go 'way far back in time' and so they could prove 'conduct during a very wide span of time. The problem is that kind of confuses the jury, right?,' Krissoff explained.
She noted the evidence being presented jumps through various points of time, so the government needs to draw up a timeline to help guide the jury.
'They're talking about an incident at this point, they're talking about an incident 10 years later, something six years before that,' Krissoff said. 'So, at the end of the day the government's really going to have to sort of draw a timeline for the jury here, and explain sort of the course of events because this is the first time the jury is hearing all these things. It is going to be very hard for them to really follow the timeline here without some more help from the government.'
Update:
Date: 1 hr 32 min ago
Title: Jury watches a compilation of video clips
Content:
At the government's request, forensic video expert Frank Piazza compiled video clips to 'track the movement of individuals inside the events.'
He inserted a black screen between clips to indicate when the camera angle or video clip changes.
The jury is watching the compilation.
Assistant US Attorney Madison Smyser is walking through the video compilation clip by clip, having Piazza describe the actions of Sean 'Diddy' Combs, Cassie Ventura, and eventually security officer Israel Florez, who responded to the scene.
Update:
Date: 1 hr 48 min ago
Title: Forensic video expert testifies InterContinental surveillance footage was not manually altered
Content:
Forensic video expert Frank Piazza testified that the surveillance footage of the March 5, 2016, incident recovered from the InterContinental Hotel system was not manually altered.
He said he slowed the footage to real time because a technical file conversion process had inadvertently sped up the video.
Piazza testified that the timestamps in the surveillance footage do not always accurately reflect the actual time of day.
The jury is viewing the video for at least the eighth time since the trial began.
Update:
Date: 2 hr 12 min ago
Title: Jury sees text messages of Combs directing his security guard to "stay on top of" Ventura
Content:
Before forensic video expert Frank Piazza took the stand, the jury saw messages between Combs and one of his security guards, called D-Roc, from September 2015.
In those messages, Combs was directing D-Roc to talk to two people: A 'shorty' he referred to as 'G' and Cassie Ventura.
Combs told D-Roc what to say, according to the messages read aloud in court.
In one message, Combs told D-Roc to ask 'G' if they're broken up. Combs told D-Roc to act like Combs was serious and to inquire about what was happening, the messages showed.
D-Roc responded and reported that she said Combs didn't want to talk to her anymore but that she still wanted to see him.
In other messages, Combs asked what Ventura was doing and told D-Roc to 'stay on top of' her.
Update:
Date: 2 hr 15 min ago
Title: Forensic video expert testifies he reviewed cell phone and surveillance video
Content:
Frank Piazza, a forensic audio and video editor, said he's being paid $295 per hour for his work on this case.
The expert witness said he typically works with defense attorneys more often than prosecutors.
Piazza said he does not have knowledge of the case itself but reviewed cell phone video, surveillance footage and 'sex videos.'
Update:
Date: 2 hr 29 min ago
Title: Forensic video expert takes the stand
Content:
Frank Piazza is on the stand. Assistant US Attorney Madison Smyser is questioning Piazza for the government. Piazza is a forensic audio and video editor.
Update:
Date: 2 hr 41 min ago
Title: Witness Bryana Bongolan will testify under an immunity order
Content:
Bryana Bongolan, who is expected to be called to the stand later today, has been brought into the courtroom to invoke her Fifth Amendment right to not self-incriminate.
She'll testify under an immunity order like George Kaplan and Eddy Garcia. Judge Subramanian Arun will sign an immunity order compelling her to testify.
Bongolan is expected to testify today after Frank Piazza, a forensic video expert.
Update:
Date: 3 hr 7 min ago
Title: The judge is on the bench
Content:
Judge Arun Subramanian is on the bench, but the jury hasn't been brought in yet.
Prosecutors and the defense are discussing the upcoming testimony of Bryana Bongolan.
Update:
Date: 3 hr 12 min ago
Title: Judge rules that exhibits used during Jane's testimony won't be shown on video to protect her identity
Content:
The exhibits admitted into evidence during Jane's testimony will not be shown on the video feeds for the public.
Jane — one of Sean 'Diddy' Combs' accusers who is using a pseudonym during his trial — is expected to take the stand later today.
Judge Arun Subramanian granted the request yesterday from prosecutor Maurene Comey, who said it would help avoid the risk of Jane's identity being revealed.
Comey said there's going to be a significant amount of exhibits, including text message threads shown to the jury during her testimony.
Update:
Date: 1 hr 47 min ago
Title: Key testimony from Combs' accusers in court so far
Content:
As additional testimony from one of Sean 'Diddy' Combs' accusers is expected in court today, here's a reminder of the testimony we've heard so far from other accusers, including Combs' former girlfriend Cassie Ventura and a former employee under the pseudonym 'Mia.'
Combs is facing charges including racketeering, conspiracy and sex trafficking and if convicted he could face up to life in prison. He has pleaded not guilty.
• Cassie Ventura's testimony: Ventura answered questions for nearly 20 hours over four days toward the start of the trial. She testified about threats, drug use, and violence — including an alleged rape – she was subjected to throughout her relationship with Combs. She told the court about alleged drug-fueled sex performances, known as 'Freak Offs,' that Combs would organize and she would participate in. Legal experts say while there are still more witnesses slated to take the stand, Ventura's testimony is foundational.
• Ex-employee 'Mia' testimony: The former employee testified for three days and recounted multiple alleged incidents of physical, emotional and sexual abuse by Combs. The court heard she sent loving messages to Combs in recent years, which she explained by saying she was still under Combs' grip 'psychologically' and was 'brainwashed.' Under cross-examination, she said she did not initially tell investigators or federal prosecutors that Combs sexually assaulted her.
Update:
Date: 1 hr 2 min ago
Title: Prosecutors continue presenting their case today. Here's how a trial works
Content:
We're in the fourth week of the federal criminal trial for Sean 'Diddy' Combs in New York, where the music mogul faces charges that include racketeering conspiracy, transportation to engage in prostitution and sex trafficking, crimes that the government claims spanned over two decades.
Combs has pleaded not guilty and denied all allegations of wrongdoing. The trial is estimated to last eight weeks –– although prosecutors have indicated that they may rest their case earlier which could move up the timeline –– before the jury is asked to render a verdict.
As a primer for how this unfolds, here are the steps in a federal criminal trial: