The jury in the sex trafficking trial against Diddy retires to deliberate

New York.- The twelve jurors who will decide the future of Sean Combs, known as Diddy, in the trial for sexual trafficking that he faces in New York retired this Monday to deliberate, thus reaching the final stage of the judicial process. “They have to make important decisions, review the evidence and avoid reaching quick conclusions based on their personal opinions (…). I am sure that, if they follow their common sense, they will reach a fair verdict,” said the judge in the case, Arun Subramanian, while Diddy, impassive, stared at the jurors. The rapper, who today wore a white jersey with gray pants again, once again had the support in court of six of his children and their mother, who exchanged notes among themselves from the third row of the courtroom.

Diddy, who could spend the rest of his life in prison if found guilty of all charges, also passed notes to his lawyers, whom he also hugged upon entering the court.

For about two hours, Subramanian instructed the jurors on how to deliberate, and broke down one by one the charges Combs faces: one for racketeering, two for sex trafficking, and two for transportation for the purpose of prostitution. Thus, she explained what each of them consists of: for example, in the case of illicit association, the prosecutors must have demonstrated that there was mutual agreement “between two or more people” to commit various crimes, including kidnapping, sexual trafficking, drug distribution or kidnapping. While regarding the accusations of sex trafficking, the juries must have been convinced that Combs forced, through force, fraud, or coercion, his now ex-partners Cassie Ventura and an anonymous woman who has testified under the generic pseudonym of Jane, to participate in acts of prostitution. Finally, the prosecution must have shown that Combs also transported or facilitated the transport of people between U.S. states and countries to engage in paid sexual activities with money. Subramanian reminded them that they must reach a unanimous verdict and that, if they find Combs guilty, they must do so “beyond any reasonable doubt”, taking into account the evidence presented at trial and not the opening and closing statements of the defense and prosecution.

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“If you have any doubts, it’s your duty to acquit (Combs),” the judge insisted. Furthermore, he urged them to assess for themselves the credibility of the more than thirty witnesses who have been called to testify by the prosecutors: “There is no magic formula for doing this, you have to scrutinize the witnesses and the statements they gave, taking into account whether they were inconsistent in their testimony or if they believe someone lied when testifying,” he emphasized. The jury will now have to choose a spokesperson who, through notes, will communicate with the judge if there is any doubt among the panel members and, finally, when a consensus verdict is reached.