Legal Experts, Advocates React to Diddy Sex Trafficking Trial Verdict
A federal jury in Manhattan on Wednesday acquitted hip-hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs of racketeering and sex trafficking charges while convicting him on two counts of transporting individuals for prostitution.
Several legal experts and advocates for sexual violence prevention expressed frustration following the mixed verdict, such as Douglas Wigdor, the attorney who represented Casandra Ventura, who told Newsweek the case showed that "change is long overdue," adding that his team would "continue to fight on behalf of survivors." Dani Pinter of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation said the organization is "disappointed" that Combs was not found guilty of sex trafficking despite what she described as "overwhelming" evidence.
Neama Rahmani, a former federal prosecutor, however, told Newsweek that the verdict "is nothing less than a complete and total failure by the prosecution in what will go down as the most expensive prostitution trial in American history."
Why It Matters
The jury deliberated for more than 13 hours over three days after an eight-week trial at a federal courthouse in Lower Manhattan. The prosecution rested its case on June 24, having called 34 witnesses. The defense called no witnesses.
Combs is facing a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for each transportation to engage in prostitution conviction.
Before the case even moved forward, Combs faced public backlash and lost several deals over the allegations. Hulu canceled production of a reality series about Combs and his family, and Howard University rescinded his honorary degree, returning his $1 million donation and ending a scholarship program in his name.
Following the verdict, the public reaction was mixed, with many calling out the jury for not finding him guilty of sex trafficking, and others celebrating the decision.
What To Know
A jury on Wednesday found Combs guilty on two counts related to the transportation of individuals for prostitution but acquitted him of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges involving Ventura and a woman identified as "Jane."
Janice Combs (c), mother of Sean Combs, seen leaving the trial of her son Sean 'Diddy' Combs after a jurors found the music mogul guilty of prostitution, but not guilty on lesser charges, outside U.S....
Janice Combs (c), mother of Sean Combs, seen leaving the trial of her son Sean 'Diddy' Combs after a jurors found the music mogul guilty of prostitution, but not guilty on lesser charges, outside U.S. Federal Court in downtown Manhattan, New York, NY, July 2, 2025. More
Anthony Behar/Sipa USA/AP Images
Combs is facing a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for each transportation to engage in prostitution conviction. The defense requested he be released on $1 million bond, while the prosecution argued for him to remain incarcerated.
In the courtroom, he was joined by his mother and children. Many individuals in the overflow room applauded after the jury announced that they found Combs not guilty on three charges. Supporters of Combs celebrated outside the courthouse following the verdict.
Following the jury's decision, several experts have reacted to the mixed verdict.
What People Are Saying
Neama Rahmani, president of the firm West Coast Trial Lawyers in Los Angeles, told Newsweek in an email Wednesday: "Today's verdict is nothing less than a complete and total failure by the prosecution in what will go down as the most expensive prostitution trial in American history. The jury didn't believe any of the victims...The sex trafficking charges were weak because of the overwhelming evidence of consent. The prosecution's only real chance of a victory was racketeering and to prove a non-sex related predicate act like kidnapping, arson, extortion, or bribery. The fact that the jury even rejected that argument shows the many flaws in the prosecution's case...Judge Subramanian should grant him bail today, and Diddy should be a free man. The jury has spoken and prosecutors in the prestigious Southern District of New York should take this very embarrassing loss and move on."
Dani Pinter, senior vice president and Director of the Law Center, National Center on Sexual Exploitation, told Newsweek in an email statement: "We are disappointed that Sean Combs was not found guilty of sex trafficking for which we believe the evidence against him was overwhelming. However we are glad he will be held accountable for illegally transporting persons for prostitution and we commend the Southern District of New York for taking on this difficult case against a high profile bad actor on behalf of the victims. Our thoughts and prayers now are with the victims and witnesses and we hope they are receiving the support and protection they deserve."
Attorney Douglas Wigdor, who represented Ventura in the case, told Newsweek in an email Wednesday: "This entire criminal process started when our client Cassie Ventura had the courage to file her civil complaint in November 2023. Although the jury did not find Combs guilty of sex trafficking Cassie beyond a reasonable doubt, she paved the way for a jury to find him guilty of transportation to engage in prostitution.
"By coming forward with her experience, Cassie has left an indelible mark on both the entertainment industry and the fight for justice. We must repeat – with no reservation – that we believe and support our client who showed exemplary courage throughout this trial."
Scott Berkowitz, founder and president of RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network), told Newsweek in an email statement: "The details of Combs' crimes were shocking and, in many ways, uncommon. But the experiences of those he victimized, and the courage that they showed in their testimony, are familiar to millions of survivors. If you look past the 'freak-offs' you'll see the reality that this case is like every other case of sexual violence: real harm was done to real humans, and justice demands real consequences for the offender.
"We're grateful to Ventura, 'Jane' and the other witness who testified, and appreciative of the jurors who ensured a measure of justice for these survivors."
Lonnie Hart, Jr., a criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor, in comments sent to Newsweek for another article: "I'm not surprised at the verdict at all. The racketeering charge was ill conceived from the beginning. The prostitution charges were much easier to prove."
UltraViolet, a women's rights organization, said in a Wednesday statement: "This is a decisive moment for our justice system, one which threatens to undo the sacrifice of courageous survivors who stepped forward to share their stories in this trial, as well as to all those abused by Diddy who weren't able to. Today's verdict is not just a stain on a criminal justice system that for decades has failed to hold accountable abusers like Diddy, it's also an indictment of a culture in which not believing women and victims of sexual assault remains endemic. We will continue to stand with the brave women and men who took great risk to reveal the person Diddy really is."
Dr. Ann Olivarius, a lawyer who specializes is sexual harassment, assault, and abuse, cases, said in an X ,formerly Twitter, post on Wednesday: "If you've see the video of Combs viciously beating Cassie Ventura you know what happened when Cassie said 'no'. Saying 'yes' to avoid a beating is not 'consent'. It's coercion, which is what the prosecution must prove under the TVPA [The Trafficking Victims Protection Act]."
What Happens Next
The judge is expected to make a decision later Wednesday on whether Combs must remain in custody as he awaits sentencing.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Refinery29
9 minutes ago
- Refinery29
Diddy Found Guilty On Two Counts & Acquitted Of Most Serious Charges. What's Next?
Sean 'Diddy' Combs could walk out of jail as early as today after being found guilty on two of the five charges he faced in his federal case, skirting the allegations tied to racketeering and sex trafficking. Just before 10:30 a.m. Wednesday and after three days of deliberation, a jury of eight men and four women found Combs guilty of violating the Mann Act, a federal law that prohibits the transportation of individuals across state lines for the purpose of prostitution. The two counts stemmed from his former relationships with Cassandra 'Cassie' Ventura and an anonymous woman who went by 'Jane.' The verdict is already being criticised by advocates and observers as a setback for the dozens of women who came forward, sharing deeply personal accounts in pursuit of accountability. While the jury did not convict on the most serious charges, many see the partial verdict as a signal that power and proximity to fame can still sway outcomes, especially when the accused holds cultural influence. For some survivors, it raises hard questions about how the system treats allegations of abuse, and whether justice is equally accessible to those who speak out, like Ventura, Mia — a former employee who was identified by a pseudonym — and 'Jane.' Ventura's lawyer, Douglas H. Wigdor, shared a statement with Variety in response to the verdict. "Although the jury did not find Combs guilty of sex trafficking Cassie beyond a reasonable doubt, she paved the way for a jury to find him guilty of transportation to engage in prostitution,' Wigdor said. 'By coming forward with her experience, Cassie has left an indelible mark on both the entertainment industry and the fight for justice. We must repeat — with no reservation — that we believe and support our client who showed exemplary courage throughout this trial. She displayed unquestionable strength and brought attention to the realities of powerful men in our orbit and the misconduct that has persisted for decades without repercussion." On Tuesday, the jury submitted a verdict in which they were undecided on the racketeering count, which accused him of running a criminal enterprise powered by fear, violence and control, resulting in a hung jury, prompting the judge to send jurors back for further deliberation. Upon hearing the verdict, Combs' defence attorney, Marc Agnifilo, petitioned the U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian to release Combs, noting that his present family members could sign a bond. Prosecutors objected to the hip-hop mogul walking free, arguing that he still faces up to 20 years in prison and could be a flight risk. The judge is expected to rule on the matter soon. ' The verdict is already being criticised by advocates and observers as a setback for the dozens of women who came forward, sharing deeply personal accounts in pursuit of accountability. ' When the trial began, the three-time Grammy winner pleaded not guilty to five charges: one count of racketeering conspiracy, two counts of sex trafficking and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. From the beginning, prosecution argued that Combs, 55, was the centre of a criminal enterprise in which he allegedly 'used power, violence and fear to get what he wanted,' including coercing women into sex, often under the influence of drugs, and maintaining control through manipulation and assault. But the defence lawyers convinced the jury otherwise. They leaned heavily on Combs' text messages with Cassie and Jane to prove that he was engaged in a consensual swinger lifestyle that involved drug usage and domestic abuse. During the trial, the defence never called a single witness. Combs did not take the stand to testify. Ahead of closing arguments, he told the judge that he was doing an 'excellent job.' Combs has been held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn since being arrested on Sept. 16, 2024, by U.S. Homeland Security investigators in Manhattan. For seven weeks, the jury listened to 34 witness testimonies, including ex-girlfriends, sex workers, former employees and others. Especially damning remarks came from Ventura, who testified she experienced drug-fueled sex marathons with multiple sex workers, physical abuse and manipulation during her nearly 11-year on and off relationship with the Bad Boy Records founder. Her testimony was followed by extended surveillance footage from a 2016 hotel showing Combs dragging and kicking Ventura in the hallway of the InterContinental Hotel. The video was critical evidence prosecution used to attempt to show that Combs did not allow Ventura to leave without his consent. Jurors were also shown footage of the drug-induced sex parties known throughout the trial as 'freak offs' — the name witnesses used for drug-induced sex parties allegedly organised by Combs. ' For some survivors, it raises hard questions about how the system treats allegations of abuse, and whether justice is equally accessible to those who speak out, like Ventura, Mia, and 'Jane' courageously did. ' Two other women who said they were sexually assaulted by Combs also took the stand: Mia said she was subject to hostile work environments and violence; 'Jane,' an unnamed woman who dated Combs from 2021 to 2024, also recounted violence and a pattern of unwanted sex involving male prostitutes that she tried to end. Former employee Capricorn Clark testified that Combs once kidnapped her and plotted to kill Scott 'Kid Cudi' Mescudi, who also took the stand to recount Combs breaking into his home and possibly being involved with setting his car on fire. Ahead of closing arguments, the prosecution dropped several charges, including attempted kidnapping, attempted arson, and aiding and abetting sex trafficking. They sent a letter to the judge stating they would not ask jurors to consider attempted kidnapping, attempted arson and aiding and abetting sex trafficking while deliberating in an effort to 'streamline' the jury instructions. Combs' family, including his children, were present while the foreperson read the verdict. Others, including Kanye West, attended during the duration of the trial in support as well. Though defence is likely to appeal the charges, Combs' troubles don't end with this trial. Along with a major blow to his career as a musician and entrepreneur, he's facing a significant number of civil suits with allegations ranging from sexual assault, drugging and sex trafficking. The latest was filed June 30 — while deliberations in his federal trial was underway — and obtained by USA Today in which an Orange County man accused Combs of drugging and raping him.
Newsweek
2 hours ago
- Newsweek
Liverpool FC's Diogo Jota Dies in Car Crash: Report
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. 🎙️ Voice is AI-generated. Inconsistencies may occur. The Liverpool FC star Diogo Jota has died in a car accident in Spain along with his brother, Spanish publication Marca reported. Local fire officials in Zamora, Spain, said two men aged 28 and 26 died in a car crash after their vehicle caught fire. This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.
Newsweek
3 hours ago
- Newsweek
North Sea 'Very Unprotected' Against Russia—NATO Admiral
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The North Sea is "very unprotected" and vulnerable to possible Russian sabotage attempts on critical undersea infrastructure NATO nations heavily rely on, according to a senior Dutch military official. Moscow's presence in the North Sea has increased, "and so the threat as well," said Rear Admiral Paul Flos, one of the founding members of the multinational Seabed Security Experimentation Center (SeaSEC) set up in The Hague to protect underwater infrastructure. The North Sea is "very much" at risk from Russian activity, Flos told Newsweek, adding: "They're not there because they like our waters." Critical Undersea Infrastructure Crisscrossing beneath our oceans and seas are cables and pipelines vital to everyday life, including ensuring the lights stay on and that bank payments are processed. Roughly 1.3 million kilometers of cables—equivalent to about 800,000 miles—are used for $10 trillion in financial transactions each day, NATO chief Mark Rutte said at the start of 2025. Undersea cables carry more than 95 percent of all internet traffic, Rutte said. Photo-illustration by Newsweek/Getty But these networks are exposed, and there are simply too many cables and pipelines to shield at any one time, said Laurence Roche, from NATO's Italy-based Centre for Maritime Research and Experimentation. It is "really hard to protect" critical undersea infrastructure, Roche told Newsweek. NATO is certainly trying. In 2024, the alliance established a new United Kingdom-based center, specifically tasked with developing strategies to protect undersea networks, reporting to NATO's Maritime Command. The alliance then launched its "Baltic Sentry" initiative to track ships moving through the Baltic Sea after several cables and pipelines were damaged or severed in late 2023. The U.K. also launched the Proteus, a first-of-its-kind surveillance ship, to monitor underwater activities and control uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs) nearly two years ago. North Sea and the Baltic The Baltic Sea is better known than the North Sea for highlighting the vulnerability of the alliance's critical undersea infrastructure. It is occasionally dubbed a "NATO lake," the water bracketed by alliance members and Kaliningrad, the Russian exclave home to a formidable military footprint and Moscow's Baltic Fleet. NATO countries have logged a spate of incidents involving critical undersea infrastructure in the past year and a half, largely blamed on suspected sabotage by Russia in the wake of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Accidental damage can, and often does, happen, but officials are increasingly speaking out about attacks blamed on Moscow. The most high-profile incidents include damage to a power cable and two communications lines in the Baltic Sea on December 25, 2024. Authorities quickly cast suspicion on the Eagle S, a Cook Islands-flagged oil tanker believed to be part of Russia's "shadow fleet" of vessels used to circumvent sanctions. Finnish authorities stated in mid-June that they had concluded a criminal investigation and suspected senior officers aboard the ship of "aggravated criminal mischief and aggravated interference with telecommunications" in connection with the dragging of an anchor. Helsinki's prosecutor general is weighing up charges, the country's National Bureau of Investigation said in a statement. Unnamed Western intelligence officials told the Associated Press in January that the recent damage to undersea infrastructure could be caused by anchors accidentally dragging on poorly staffed and decrepit ships. High-voltage cables that connect electricity systems between countries, when disrupted, can cost around $14 million each day, according to the Rand think tank. The total bill for oil and gas pipelines being knocked out for months can reach the tens of billions, the organization said in June. Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, the U.K.'s top military official, said in early 2022 that there had been a "phenomenal increase" in Russian underwater activity in the past two decades, with Moscow able to "potentially exploit the world's real information system, which is undersea cables that go all around the world." Former British Defense Minister Ben Wallace, still in post in 2023, stated that Russian submarines had taken "strange routes that they normally wouldn't do," including in the North Sea. The Baltic and North Seas have a relatively similar shallowness, but the North Sea is more sandy where the Baltic is rocky, said Flos. "So, often, cables are easier to destroy in the Baltic than in the North Sea," Flos said. "But the threat is the same," he said. Sabotage acts like dragging anchors can only be used at certain places in the world because of the shallowness of the water, like in the Baltic, said Sidharth Kaushal, a senior research fellow for sea power at the U.K.-based Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) think tank. To the west, several NATO countries look out onto the North Sea, including the U.K. and the Netherlands. British Defense Secretary John Healey said at the start of the year that the Yantar, a Russian vessel spotted in the North Sea, was a "spy ship" on a mission to gather intelligence and map the U.K.'s seabed network. The Yantar was spotted in November 2024 "loitering over U.K. critical undersea infrastructure," Healey said. The Russian embassy in London hit back at the remarks, stating in January that the claims were "completely groundless." "Russia has never posed such threats," the embassy added. The Yantar is one of the vessels operated by Russia's Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research, or GUGI, a shadowy branch of the military that answers directly to the Russian defense minister and, ultimately, to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The GUGI has a collection of submarines and surface ships, such as the Belgorod submarine, that can simultaneously carry nuclear-armed torpedoes and control small submersibles capable of diving deep underwater. GUGI performs a variety of roles for the Kremlin, ranging from laying sensors on the seabed to surveillance, espionage, and larger strategic functions, Kaushal told Newsweek. In the North Sea, rather than relying on anchor dragging, GUGI could use ships like the Yantar to detect critical infrastructure before deploying UUVs or remotely operated vehicles, he said. Within GUGI's ranks, Kaushal said, the organization has hydronauts—specialized personnel who pass "punishing" entrance criteria to steer submersibles at extreme depths. These hydronauts are pulled from Russia's 29th Separate Submarine Division, based at the submarine hub of Gadzhiyevo in the northwestern Murmansk region and close to the Northern Fleet headquarters. Who's Responsible for Protecting Cables and Pipelines? "We see you," the U.K.'s Healey told lawmakers in January this year. "We know what you are doing." Flos is less sure. "What they're doing there, nobody knows," he said. "That's the challenge." Although allied militaries can detect where Russia is poking around in the North Sea, their goals are murky, but there is "very strong evidence that they also used unmanned underwater vessels," Flos said. Reports in British media earlier this year indicated the U.K. military had found Russian drones close to critical undersea infrastructure. Western militaries are well-acquainted with unarmed surveillance ships like the Yantar, making this type of vessel much easier to track than some of Russia's advanced submarines, Kaushal said. And there has been rapid improvement on what the alliance can observe of Russia's activity in the North Sea, even since the start of the year, Flos said. "We're not blind anymore," he said. Cooperation between allied countries has improved over the last year, particularly in cultivating a better understanding of how civilian ships and support vessels are utilized by the Kremlin, Kaushal said. But a big question remains: Whose job is it to bat away Russia's interest in the North Sea's critical undersea infrastructure? Cables and pipelines are, the vast majority of the time, owned by private companies. "Are the asset owners responsible? Are the nations responsible? Is the Coast Guard responsible?" Flos asked. It's "hugely complicated," he said, adding that the conversations were still happening. NATO has emphasized the need to establish rapid connections with private companies and industrial players to more effectively detect threats to pipelines and cables, as well as to maintain infrastructure. "We have to increase out cooperation with industries on all kinds of levels," Flos said. The Dutch Navy official said he had emphasized in recent days that there needed to be more trust between governments, militaries and industry. There does seem to be a growing consensus within NATO that protecting infrastructure used by its members is a "collective military responsibility," added Kaushal. But it's often opaque which powers exist to stop suspicious ships operating in international waters, he said.
