Sean Combs Prosecutors Led with ‘Shock and Awe,' Legal Experts Say
Prosecutors wasted no time introducing some of their most graphic and disturbing evidence. Experts say it was a clear tactical decision.
More from Rolling Stone
Opening Statements Begin in Sean Combs Sex-Trafficking Trial
Sean Combs Trial: Celeb Names, Nerves, and a Delayed Jury
Menendez Brothers: Resentencing Hearing Back On After Courtroom Showdown
'It's a shock and awe strategy,' Mark Chutkow, a former federal prosecutor in Detroit who specialized in human trafficking cases, tells Rolling Stone. He said when dealing with a high-profile celebrity defendant, prosecutors often try to dismantle any 'positive feelings' as soon as possible.
'Here, [Combs] is handsome, charismatic, and well-known for many years in the New York area. They want to flip that narrative immediately, so any potential holdout jurors will be looking more skeptically at him,' Chutkow, now a trial attorney at Dykema Gossett, says. 'They really want to create an impression about him right out of the gate.'
Chutkow and other experts tell Rolling Stone they expect prosecutors will focus on the hotel surveillance video as much as possible throughout the expected eight-week trial.
'The thing about video is you can't really cross-examine video,' Chutkow says. 'In the Derek Chauvin trial, they showed the video of him putting his knee against George Floyd's neck in the beginning, middle and end of the case. It's something the defense couldn't really counter.' (Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer, was convicted of murdering Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, on May 25, 2020.)
Prosecutors mentioned the video of the hotel assault during their opening statement Monday but called a former hotel security guard as their initial witness to play the entire video for jurors. The witness, Israel Florez, testified that he was called to the sixth floor of the InterContinental Hotel in Los Angeles on March 5, 2016 for a 'woman in distress.' The guard not only described seeing Ventura with a visible injury, he also testified that Combs offered him a wad of cash to keep quiet. He said it 'definitely' appeared to be a bribe.
'I think this was strategically thought-through,' former federal prosecutor Braid Bailey says of the decision to put Florez on the stand first. 'He's a non-involved witness in terms being just hotel security personnel. He's not necessarily going to have any stake in any of this. It's extremely helpful to the prosecution.'
Bailey says the mention of the alleged cash offer was important because according to Combs' indictment, bribery is one of the predicate acts that prosecutors claim was part of Combs' alleged pattern of racketeering. Bailey agrees the video's introduction so early on was key. 'When you can lead with a tangible example of force, it's an extremely powerful way to start. It immediately casts Mr. Combs in an extremely negative light, which is going to be difficult for the jury to stop seeing him in. It's not necessarily insurmountable, but that's not an image you want in jurors' minds,' he says.
Michelle Simpson Tuegel, a lawyer who represented multiple victims of disgraced USA Gymnastics national team doctor Larry Nassar, says she was struck Monday by the opening statement from Combs' defense lawyer, Teny Geragos. In her address to the jury, Geragos said people might hear the evidence and determine Combs is a jerk, but they shouldn't conclude that an incident of 'domestic' violence caught on video is evidence of sex trafficking.
'I think their characterization of [Combs] as trying to accept responsibility, saying he's a complicated man, and he may be guilty of domestic violence, but he's not a sex trafficker – that's a really dangerous position to take,' Simpson Tuegel says. 'Saying domestic violence is completely separate from sexual violence, it's just not the reality in most cases. There is an intersection with domestic violence and sex trafficking and sexual assault.'
Simpson Tuegel also notes prosecutors' decision to call a male sex worker as the second witness in their case on Monday afternoon. She says it helped 'set up the context of the full picture of this commercial sex that allegedly was going on.' The witness, Daniel Phillip, testified that he was paid to have commercial sex with Ventura and that he once witnessed an enraged Combs throw a bottle at Ventura before he pulled Ventura into another room and purportedly struck her.
'It sets the entire stage of the relationship being one of abuse, violence, and intimidation, which is important because the defense has tried to set it up [that] she chose to stay in this relationship,' Simpson Tuegel says. 'I think that's something jurors have a broader understanding of now – that there are people who remain in relationships who are victims, and that's not fully a choice. It doesn't feel like a choice to them in that moment, that they can leave. And the violence, the intimidation, and the threats are amplified with someone with the level of resources and power that Sean Combs had.'
The experts who spoke with Rolling Stone agree there's plenty of time left for both sides to present additional evidence and score points with jurors. Much remains unknown. But if all goes according to plan, Ventura is expected to take the stand this week as the prosecution's star witness.
Combs, 55, was arrested and charged in September. He has pleaded not guilty. His initial indictment largely mirrored the bombshell sex-trafficking lawsuit filed by Ventura in November 2023. Prosecutors have since added additional charges of sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution in connection with another alleged victim. Victim-2 was identified by prosecutors Monday using the pseudonym Jane.
The jury of eight men and four women ultimately must decide whether Combs was a 'swinger' who indulged his eccentric appetites with other consenting adults, as the defense claims, or a serial sex predator who physically abused and forced women into drug-fueled sex marathons known as Freak Offs and Wild King Nights, as prosecutors allege.
Best of Rolling Stone
The 50 Greatest Eminem Songs
All 274 of Taylor Swift's Songs, Ranked
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Texas Rep. Nicole Collier sues over ‘illegal confinement' by Republicans inside state capitol
'The government is without any legal authority to detain members when a quorum is not needed to conduct business,' reads the lawsuit, which demands that Collier be 'immediately released' by the Sergeant-at-Arms. Texas State Rep. Nicole Collier is fighting back in court after not being allowed to leave the state Capitol because she refused to sign a 'permission slip' that would have required her to be under 24-hour supervision by a law enforcement officer. Collier on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against the state House of Representatives after House Speaker Dustin Burrows required Democrats to sign a waiver that would compel them to be under the supervision of the state Department of Public Safety until they return to the Capitol for the official legislative session on Wednesday. Collier, an attorney who represents Fort Worth, refused to sign the agreement and instead chose to sleep overnight inside the House chamber in protest. 'I won't just go along quietly with their intimidation or their discrimination,' she previously said. According to Collier's writ of habeas corpus filing, she was told that if she did not sign the permission slip and attempted to leave the House chamber, she would be arrested. 'The government is without any legal authority to detain members when a quorum is not needed to conduct business,' reads the lawsuit, which demands that Collier be 'immediately released' by the Sergeant-at-Arms. 'She files this action on behalf of herself, mindful that all Citizens have the right to object to illegal restraint by the government,' the lawsuit says. Collier on Tuesday morning shared that she slept inside the Capitol building following the threat to have her arrested. A photograph she shared on social media showed the Texas lawmaker wearing a bonnet and sleeping mask as she was compelled to remain in the House chamber alone. Earlier this month, Collier and dozens of other House Democrats fled the state of Texas to Illinois, New York and Massachusetts in a political strategy to break quorum and prevent Republicans from passing a newly redrawn congressional map that they say is racially discriminatory against the state's Black and Hispanic voters. After Republicans issued civil arrest warrants and financial penalties for each day they remained out of state, Democrats returned to the state on Monday. However, they were met with the permission slips in an effort by Republicans to ensure they did not again flee and delay legislative business. In her lawsuit, Collier argues that her confinement is a violation of the Texas State Constitution. While it does permit the Sergeant-at-Arms to compel her attendance, she argues, 'The legal question before this Court concerns only whether the Texas Constitution gives the House of Representatives the authority to physically compel the attendance of absent members.' However, Collier's suit presents a legal question of whether she can be detained or arrested because she was previously absent but is now present. The lawsuit explains, 'If the legislature is in session on Wednesday and Representative Collier is not physically present in session, the Sergeant-at-Arms is permitted to compel her attendance pursuant to article III, section 10, of the Texas Constitution…However, unless she is physically absent, the Legislature is without authority to detain her or compel her attendance.' Collier's writ habeas corpus adds, 'no such power is conferred on the Legislature to arrest or otherwise compel a member who is currently present (and not absent) to stay.' 'There is no calendar for the House today. There is no calendar for tomorrow, or any upcoming date. There is no pending vote. There is no action on which a quorum is needed,' the lawsuit argues. '[Collier] is not absent, and – thus – her appearance need not, and cannot, be compelled.' More must-reads: Trump deputy Stephen Miller says DC crackdown is for the 'safety' of Black residents. These residents say it's causing more harm Kamala Harris calls Texas Rep. Nicole Collier during Capitol confinement: 'We are all there with you' Before his slavery remark, in 2017 Trump praised the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Here's what he said Solve the daily Crossword
Boston Globe
2 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Former WBZ anchor Kate Merrill says she is suing station because she ‘was not treated fairly'
Merrill Merrill, who joined WBZ in 2004 as a reporter and rose to co-anchor of the Boston station's morning show, said she suffered discrimination on the basis of her race and gender. Paramount opened an investigation into her conduct after two Black coworkers separately raised complaints about her, the lawsuit said. Advertisement In the 57-page complaint, Merrill alleges that the defendants did nothing to investigate a sexually suggestive on-air comment and unrelated verbal confrontation by one of those coworkers, meteorologist Jason Mikell. Mikell allegedly yelled at Merrill across the studio floor and said she was critical of him after Merrill corrected his pronunciation of the town name 'Concord' in a private text message, the lawsuit stated. Advertisement In her social media post, Merrill said she was proud of her two decades of work at the station 'championing voices from all communities, mentoring young journalists of every background, and covering stories that reflect the full spectrum of life in our city.' 'I poured my heart into this work because I believe deeply in the power of journalism to inform, connect, and uplift a community I love,' Merrill wrote. 'It is with profound sadness that I now find myself in the position of bringing a legal complaint against a station and company that I once considered part of my family,' the post said. 'This decision was not made lightly,' Merrill said. 'It was made because I believe fairness must apply to everyone, regardless of race, gender, or background and I was not treated fairly.' 'Let me be clear: I support efforts to ensure newsrooms are reflective of the communities they serve,' the post continued. 'That is not what this case is about.' Merrill said the suit is to make sure no one else is 'unjustifiably pushed aside ... to meet a target or an agenda.' In closing, Merrill wrote, 'Boston is my home. Telling this city's stories has been my greatest professional privilege. I hope that through this process, the values of accountability and fairness I've always tried to uphold will be honored, too.' Merill also filed discrimination charges with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which she withdrew to pursue the lawsuit. Tonya Alanez can be reached at
Boston Globe
5 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Pressley calls Trump's federal takeover in D.C. ‘racist and rogue,' compares it to Boston's Stuart murder case
Pressley compared Trump's federal operation in Washington to the Stuart case, the 1989 killing of Carol Stuart, a pregnant white woman whose husband, Charles Stuart, falsely told police that a Black man had attacked them while they were driving in Mission Hill. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up During the search for the suspect, police carried out aggressive raids in Mission Hill, breaking down doors without warning and putting residents to stop-and-frisk searches. Advertisement 'And what is happening here in D.C. and, then the targeting of Black men and Black youth, in particular, which to me is very reminiscent of Boston after the Charles Stuart case, is very reminiscent of New York under [former Mayor Rudolph] Giuliani with stop-and-frisk,' Pressley said. In November of that year, after Charles' brother Matthew told police he was responsible for Carol's death, Charles leapt from Boston's Tobin Bridge and died. Pressley described the heightened tensions in the D.C. community, saying, 'You know, my God children who live in the city, they're young Black boys. And they're afraid to go to their summer jobs. They're fearful of what it's going to be like, their walk [to] school.' Advertisement 'And again, don't think that anything Donald Trump has done, whether it's his targeting of sanctuary cities or the militarization of D.C., this has nothing to do with public safety, [it] has nothing to do with law and order,' she added. Pressley then referred to the arrest of Tufts PhD student 'When you are disappearing people from the streets of Somerville, when you are targeting people in this way, it's terrorism,' Pressley said. 'And that terror, that fear that you're stoking, makes us all less safe.' Alyssa Vega can be reached at
