Sean “Diddy” Combs’ legal team is asking a judge to allow prospective jurors in his upcoming s… trafficking trial to be questioned about their opinions on sensitive topics such as s…, drugs, and violence.
As part of their preparations for his May 5 trial in Manhattan federal court, Combs’ lawyers submitted a proposed questionnaire to be filled out by those called for jury duty. They want to assess the willingness of potential jurors to view s..ually explicit videos or footage that shows physical assault, as well as their views on people having multiple s…ual partners.
In a letter to the judge on Friday, the defense team argued that these questions are crucial for determining the impartiality of potential jurors. However, prosecutors criticized the 72-question questionnaire as being excessively long and inappropriate, suggesting that many of the topics should be addressed by the judge in person, if at all.
Prosecutors dismissed the defense’s questions as “irrelevant to jury duty” and referenced the Ghislaine Maxwell trial as an example of the problems that arise from using long questionnaires. In that case, after Maxwell’s conviction in December 2021, a juror admitted to failing to disclose their own s..ual abuse history, attributing the omission to being “distracted” and “skimming too fast” when filling out the form.
Judge Arun Subramanian has already indicated that prospective jurors will be sent the questionnaire by the end of April, with questioning set to begin on May 5 and opening statements likely scheduled for May 12.
Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to accusations that he subjected individuals to s..ual abuse over a period of 20 years. The founder of Bad Boy Records has been in jail without bail since his September 2023 arrest.
The indictment claims that Combs used his position as a powerful figure in the music industry to manipulate and control women, often pretending to have romantic intentions before coercing them into commercial s.. acts. The charges accuse him of using force, threats, and intimidation, including violence, financial harm, reputational damage, and verbal abuse.
One key piece of evidence in the trial will be a video allegedly showing Combs punching his former protege and girlfriend, the R&B singer Cassie, and throwing her to the floor in a hotel hallway.
In response, Combs’ legal team contends that the prosecutors are using charges to demonize consensual s… acts between adults. They argue that it is critical for jurors to be able to speak freely about the media frenzy surrounding the case and how it may affect their perception of Combs.
The defense also requested that jurors be asked if they have watched certain television programs that have recently aired, including titles such as “The Fall of Diddy,” “Diddy Do It?”, “The Downfall of Diddy,” and “Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy”. The lawyers believe these shows could influence jurors’ views before the trial even begins.
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