Sean “Diddy” Combs confirmed at a hearing Thursday that he had rejected a plea deal from federal prosecutors in his sex trafficking case, paving the way for his trial to begin next week.
“Have you rejected the government’s offer?” U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, who is overseeing his trial in New York, asked him.
“Yes, your honor,” Combs replied.
Combs, wearing olive-colored clothing over a white thermal shirt, carried a black binder with notebooks in it as he entered the courtroom and waved to supporters in the gallery before he hugged and shook hands with his attorneys.
He has pleaded not guilty to charges of sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution.
Defense attorney Marc Agnifilo said that Combs’ legal team discussed the offer with him and that together they decided to reject it. Assistant U.S. Attorney Maurene Comey said the proposal would have given Combs a lighter sentence than he would receive if he is found guilty at trial on all charges.
The hearing was the last before the trial begins with jury selection Monday. Subramanian said voir dire, or the questioning of potential jurors, would be conducted in a way to protect jurors’ privacy, including possible disclosures about experiences with sexual or domestic abuse.
Subramanian said he wanted to seat a jury of 12 and six alternates in three days.
The court will call 50 jurors each day to the 26th-floor courtroom in Manhattan. Each juror will either be excused for cause or asked to return to the main courtroom for further questioning.
The goal is to narrow the group to 45 people, who will each be interviewed separately with two attorneys from each side present. The court had requested 600 potential jurors.
If prospective jurors want to speak privately, they will go into Subramanian’s chambers, where the media will be excluded, he said. The transcript for those parts would be sealed.
Agnifilo had expressed concern that the media’s presence would prevent prospective jurors from speaking candidly.
Given the amount of attention the case has received, particularly in recent days, Agnifilo asked the court to add a question to the juror survey, regarding a questionnaire already sent to prospective jurors: “Have you read anything since completing the questionnaire?” Subramanian agreed to do so.
Comey said she understood the defense team had added two new attorneys and said prosecutors would like to know who they are. Agnifilo said that the new attorneys were in the courtroom, and that they would file their appearances by the end of the day. One of them is Xavier Donaldson, who has been present for several previous hearings.
A prosecutor said at a hearing last week that Combs had been offered a plea deal, the details of which have not been made public.
Subramanian asked all parties to be in his courtroom at 8 a.m. Monday and reminded them to avoid making public statements that could prejudice the trial’s outcome.
The reminder came in response to a court filing this week, in which Combs’ attorneys asked Subramanian to bar lawyers for witnesses, including Douglas Wigdor and Lisa Bloom, who represent people who have filed separate civil suits against Combs, from speaking publicly about the trial until its conclusion.
Combs attorney Teny Geragos said at Thursday’s hearing that Bloom had appeared on the BBC to try to bolster her client’s credibility. Bloom told the BBC that Richard was “absolutely terrified” of Combs.
“It is deeply disturbing to us and could violate the rules of judicial conduct,” Geragos said.
Bloom represents a John Doe and Dawn Richard, who was a member of two now-defunct groups formed by Combs, Danity Kane and a second one called Diddy — Dirty Money.
“How hypocritical that Mr. Combs and his attorneys, having made public statements many times, now want to silence me,” Bloom said Thursday. “Accusers and their attorneys have every right to speak out. I am very proud to represent my brave clients, Dawn Richard and John Doe, in litigation against Mr. Combs.
“I look forward to attending Mr. Combs’ upcoming criminal trial in New York and continuing to advocate for my clients consistent with the law and the ethical rules.”
Richard alleged in a suit filed last year, a week before Combs was arrested, that he had groped and threatened her and that she had witnessed him assaulting his former longtime girlfriend Cassie, whose full name is Casandra Ventura. Richards’ suit is pending, along with dozens of others filed by men and women accusing Combs of sexual misconduct, which Combs has vehemently denied.
Wigdor represents Ventura, whose bombshell lawsuit filed in November 2023 preceded the federal raids of his home in March 2024 and criminal charges. Ventura accused Combs of years of physical and emotional abuse and and alleged that he forced her to have sex with male sex workers — encounters she said he called “freak offs” that were fueled by drugs and alcohol — while he masturbated and recorded them. Freak offs are at the center of the government’s case.
Ventura and Combs settled the lawsuit within a day without disclosing the terms and with Combs denying any wrongdoing.
Wigdor pledged to fight Combs’ efforts to prevent him from speaking publicly about the case.
“We will vigorously oppose the motion seeking an extraordinary sweeping gag order as it is an obvious attempt at controlling and silencing victims and their counsel in contravention of well-established legal and ethical precedent,” he said in a statement. “Given this, it should come as no surprise that Combs fails to cite even one case to support his request.”
Combs is alleged in his the five-count indictment to have coerced and threatened women to participate in sexual acts and silenced them through blackmail and violence. Prosecutors allege he had help from a network of associates and employees.
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