Diddy's defense team signals shift in trial strategy as prosecutors wrap up: expert

Fox News

7 hours ago

Prosecutors in Sean "Diddy" Combs' federal trial indicated Tuesday they'd rest their case before the end of the week, nearly six weeks after the trial began.
The rapper's legal team recently told Judge Arun Subramanian it will need between two and five days to present its case, a stark contrast to its initial request of up to two weeks with witnesses on the stand.
A change in timelines for the defense may signify Diddy's lawyers found "some weaknesses" in the government's case, according to New York-based attorney Nicole Brenecki.
"The defense can change the amount of time allocated for their presentation of the case," Brenecki told Fox News Digital. "This current change is likely based on the defense's observation of some weaknesses in the prosecution's case. We have to keep in mind that the burden of proof rests on the prosecution.
"Given that the jurors can see the case as mostly based on testimony by disgruntled ex-girlfriends and ex-employees, they may not be inclined to convict Diddy of essentially forming a criminal enterprise to commit crimes across state lines, which is a summary of the definitions of the crimes he is accused of.
"Criminal court, as opposed to the court of public opinion, requires a strict application of the facts to the definition of the crime, and the prosecution may lose if the jury disagrees with them as to this application."
In a federal indictment unsealed Sept. 17, Combs was charged with racketeering conspiracy (RICO); sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; and transportation to engage in prostitution.
"The defense does not have to put on a case at all," New York-based Attorney David Schwartz told Fox News Digital. "It is up to the prosecution to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt, and the defendant gets every presumption of innocence. So, in many cases, the defense does not put on a case at all.
"By putting on no case or a short case, the defense is emphasizing that the prosecution did not meet its burden.
"The last thing you want to do as a defense attorney is to shift the burden by putting on a long case. The burden never shifts, but the longer the case the defense puts on, the more juries forget about the burden, which is bad."
Los Angeles litigator John J. Perlstein noted that the time line of two to five days requested by the defense is nothing uncommon.
"Two to five days is the usual amount of trial time the defense needs in criminal cases, and I suspect it will be closer to two in this case," Perlstein told Fox News Digital. "The defense will typically overestimate the time needed to account for witness availability and/or the examination of new evidence.
"Given the complexity of the case and its media attention, it is likely the defense padded the time in order to account for any and all unknowns."
In court Tuesday, the judge reprimanded lawyers for both sides for violating the court's sealing order by allegedly speaking to the media about the trial. He reminded the parties that the defense requested the gag order. Judge Subramanian added that a violation of that order could result in contempt charges.
The jury was then seemingly shown videos of "freak offs" between Diddy, his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura and a male escort. The screen for exhibits was shut off and the witness, Special Agent DeLeassa Penland, and the jurors were given headphones to watch some videos from Oct. 14, 2012.
At one point, the sound from the videos was audible in the courtroom. The court fixed the problem by making sure headsets that were not in use were turned off and away from any mics. Diddy's defense lawyer, Teny Geragos, played several minutes of videos for the jury. Geragos then played clips of videos from December 2014. While the videos were being played, Diddy sat at the defense table, occasionally tapping his fingers on his legs. The clips were played for about 30 minutes.
WATCH: SEAN 'DIDDY' COMBS ASSAULTS CASSIE VENTURA IN HOTEL HALLWAY
During Penland's cross-examination, the jury was shown text messages between Cassie and Diddy about the "freak offs."
There was a text message from Diddy to Cassie dated September 2014 asking what she wanted to do. Cassie then sent a screenshot of a message from a male escort named Keith, who they knew from the website Cowboys for Angels, asking if she was in town.
Cassie wrote to Diddy, "I want to make love and drink wine…whatever makes my love happy."
Combs responded, "Why did you show me the Keith thing?" She replied, "Because I never show you…" Diddy asked if she wanted to have a "freak off."
In a later message, Diddy asked, "Wanna freak off for the last time?" Cassie responded, "I wanna freak-off for the rest of our lives."
The "Last Night" rapper has maintained his innocence throughout the trial, in which witnesses have testified to alleged rape, sexual assault, severe physical abuse, forced labor and drug trafficking. If found guilty, he faces a minimum of 15 years behind bars and a maximum sentence of life in prison.
The trial is expected to wrap up by July 4.