Sean 'Diddy' Combs asks judge to throw out guilty verdicts or grant him a new trial
'This conviction stands alone, but it shouldn't stand at all," the Wednesday filing said.
Combs' lawyers argue that his two felony convictions were a unique misapplication of the federal Mann Act, which bars interstate commerce related to prostitution,
'To our knowledge, Mr. Combs is the only person ever convicted of violating the statute for conduct anything like this,' a Wednesday filing from Combs legal team said.
Combs, 55, was convicted in a New York federal court of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution for flying people around the country, including his girlfriends and male sex workers, for sexual encounters, while he was acquitted of more serious charges. He could get up to a decade in prison at his sentencing set for Oct. 3.
His lawyers argued that none of the elements normally used for Mann Act convictions, including profiting from sex work or coercion, were present here.
'It is undisputed that he had no commercial motive and that all involved were adults," The filing said. 'The men chose to travel and engage in the activity voluntarily. The verdict confirms the women were not vulnerable or exploited or trafficked or sexually assaulted.'
The lawyers said that Combs, 'at most, paid to engage in voyeurism as part of a 'swingers' lifestyle' and argued that "does not constitute 'prostitution' under a properly limited definition of the statutory term.'
Combs was acquitted of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking, charges could have put one of hip-hop's celebrated figures in prison for life.
The new motion asks Judge Arun Subramanian to vacate the jury's verdict, or to order a new trial whose evidence is limited to matters related to the Mann Act counts, because of 'severe spillover prejudice from reams of inflammatory evidence' related to the more serious counts.
Prosecutors insisted during the eight-week trial that Combs had coerced, threatened and sometimes viciously forced two ex-girlfriends to have sex with male sex workers to satisfy his sexual urges. They cited multiple acts of violence he carried out against them as proof that they had no say.
A day earlier, Combs' team asked the judge to free him on a $50 million bond while he awaits sentencing in October after a jury found him not guilty of the most serious federal charges he faced earlier this month.
His lawyer argued that conditions at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn are dangerous, noting that others convicted of similar prostitution-related offenses were typically released before sentencing.
Subramanian previously denied a request that Combs be released on bail while he awaits sentencing, citing a now-infamous video of Combs beating a former girlfriend and photographs showing injuries to another ex-girlfriend.
The judge has not yet ruled on either of this week's motions.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
12 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Brazen Labubu thief steals $30,000 worth of viral toys from California shop
A group of masked burglars stole an estimated $30,000 worth of high-demand Labubu dolls during a smash-and-grab break-in at a small toy store in California. The brazen burglary occurred around 1:29 a.m. on Wednesday morning at One Stop Sales, a boutique in La Puente that has become known for selling the viral plush monster dolls, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Surveillance footage from inside the store shows at least four masked individuals smashing through the front door and targeting the wildly popular collectible dolls, bypassing electronics, the cash register, and other merchandise. 'Today we got robbed, and they took all of our inventory, trashed our store,' One Stop Sales wrote in an Instagram post. 'We are still in shock.' The burglars took dozens of boxes of Labubu dolls, totaling approximately $7,000 in retail value. However, due to the dolls' popularity, the collectible shop's co-owner Joanna Avendano estimates the total cost of all the stolen merchandise to be somewhere near $30,000. 'We worked so hard to get to this point, and for them to just come in and, like nothing, take it all away, it's really bad,' she told ABC7. Avendano, who opened the shop with her family just two months ago, suspects the burglary was premeditated, and said that she had noticed a suspicious truck parked outside the store before closing time on Tuesday evening. The timing of the break-in also raised red flags, coming just after she posted a restock announcement on the store's social media. 'I had a gut feeling to check my phone,' Avendano recalled. 'Once I checked my phone, I saw there was motion, a sound that was coming through the front.' 'I was watching everything, from when they got in, to what they were taking,' she said. 'I was panicking because I was just ... I couldn't do anything.' The shop has since shared images of the aftermath, including shattered glass at the entrance and product debris strewn across the floor. Footage of the break-in shows the suspects rushing in and hauling off boxes of merchandise, seemingly knowing exactly what they were after. The white Toyota Tacoma seen in surveillance footage and used in the burglary was later recovered by deputies, however, the suspects remain at large, according to police. An investigation into the brazen theft is ongoing. 'We just want justice,' Avendano said. 'And we want our store to feel safe again.' Labubus, first released in China in 2015 by designer toy company Pop Mart, have surged in popularity worldwide - spotted with celebrities like Rihanna, Lizzo, and BLACKPINK's Lisa. While they retail for about $30 each, some Labubus can sell for hundreds or even thousands of dollars on the resale market. A life-size Labubu even fetched a jaw-dropping $170,000 at a Beijing auction earlier this year, ABC7 reported. Pop Mart reported that its revenue doubled in 2024, reaching $1.8 billion, driven largely by the success of the Labubu line. 'These are not just toys,' Alex DePaoli, an associate teaching professor of marketing at Northeastern University's School of Business told ABC News. 'They are accessories. They are things that you can collect, not just to dress them up, not just be amused by, but also to complete an outfit.' Much of the appeal stems from the plush toys' scarcity and the way in which they are sold. Many Labubu dolls are available only in sealed packaging where buyers don't know which design they're getting, also known as 'blind boxes.' '[It's a] system essentially where you don't know what's in the box, you hope that what's in the box is what you want,' DePaoli explained. 'If you don't get what you want, you've got to go buy another one. A lot of folks have sort of likened that sort-of system to almost gambling.' The skyrocketing demand has also led to a growing counterfeit market, with knockoff versions - dubbed 'Lafufus' - flooding social media and resale sites.
BBC News
12 minutes ago
- BBC News
Michael Paul Brown, suspect in Montana shooting, arrested by cops
A military veteran accused of killing four people in a bar shooting in the US state of Montana last week has been arrested, according to Paul Brown, a US Army veteran, is accused of opening fire inside the Owl Bar in the city of Anaconda on 1 August. Local, state and federal authorities launched a manhunt, finding the suspect fled to the nearby foothills and shed his clothing after the attack at the pub, where he was reportedly a regular. No motive for the attack has been released. "I am proud of the unrelenting law enforcement effort this week to find and arrest Michael Paul Brown," Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen said, announcing the arrest. He said the suspect had been located in the Anaconda area, a town with a population of almost 10,000 in south-western Montana that is surrounded by dense, mountainous state's governor, Greg Gianforte, posted on X about the arrest and lauded the "incredible response from law enforcement officers across Montana".Officials have said the suspect walked into the pub, which he frequented and lived next door to, and opened fire almost immediately. The bar's owner has told US media that he believed the suspect just "snapped". "He knew everybody that was in that bar," David Gwerder, owner of The Owl Bar, told the Associated Press. "He didn't have any running dispute with any of them. I just think he snapped."The victims have been identified as Barmaid Nancy Lauretta Kelley, 64, and three customers - Daniel Edwin Baillie, 59, David Allen Leach, 70, and Tony Wayne Palm, Brown is a veteran of the US Armed Forces who served as an armour crewman from 2001-05 and was deployed to Iraq from 2004-05, a military spokeswoman told US the shooting authorities found a white Ford-150 pick-up truck that they said the suspect had used to get away, but no sign of also released a photo appearing to show Mr Brown fleeing the area. In the photo, a man is seen shirtless, barefoot and wearing only black shorts, and walking down stairs while leaning against a stone Knudsen said the photo was taken after the suspect got rid of some personal belongings and his believes Mr Brown later got other clothes and shoes, and was "able to get around".
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Suspect in killing of four at Montana bar caught after week-long manhunt
Aug 8 (Reuters) - A U.S. Army veteran accused of fatally shooting four people at a bar in the small Montana town of Anaconda earlier this month has been caught after a week-long manhunt, Governor Greg Gianforte said on Friday. The suspect, Michael Brown, 45, was captured "near the search area in Anaconda" around 2 p.m. local time on Friday, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen said in a statement. "The Anaconda shooter Michael Brown has been apprehended," Gianforte said on X. "I am proud of the unrelenting law enforcement effort this week to find and arrest Michael Paul Brown," Knudsen said. Brown had been sought in the shooting at Anaconda's Owl Bar, which killed bartender Nancy Lauretta Kelley, 64, and customers Daniel Edwin Baillie, 59, David Allen Leach, 70, and Tony Wayne Palm, 74. Officials have said they did not know of any motive for the killing. Family members have told local media that Brown, who served in the Iraq War, had a history of mental illness. Kristian Kelley, the daughter of slain bartender Nancy Kelley, told CBS News that Brown "was somebody that needed some serious resources. "He had some mental health issues as well as PTSD from being in the military," Kelley told CBS. "I've never known him to be violent. He was a person who would tell pretty strange stories and different things like that." The U.S. Marshals Service had posted a $7,500 reward for any information leading to Brown's capture after he vanished, sparking a search in nearby mountains.
