Latest news with #MarcAgnifilo
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Diddy Trial Reaches Explosive Conclusion as Defense Asks Jury to ‘Summon That Courage' to ‘Acquit Sean Combs'
On the final day of the Sean 'Diddy' Combs trial before jury deliberations, the hip-hop mogul's attorney Marc Agnifilo enlivened the courtroom with an impassioned closing argument. In the coming days, the jury will determine whether Combs is guilty of sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution. A conviction could land him behind bars for life. Agnifilo's demeanor was animated and at times folksy, unlike the prosecution's cold, formal tone. He paced around the courtroom, beginning his summations by gushing about Combs' character and business acumen, saying he was a champion of diversity. 'Sean Combs has become something that is very, very hard to be,' Agnifilo said. 'He is a self-made, successful, Black entrepreneur.' He recounted some of the positive things Combs' former employees said about him on the witness stand, adding, 'Did they always like him? No way. Let's not even go there. But they loved him. They didn't want to leave him.' More from Variety Diddy Prosecutors End Five-Hour Closing Argument: 'It's Time to Hold Him Accountable. It's Time for Justice' Diddy Speaks Out in Court: He Will Not Testify, Thanks Judge for 'Doing an Excellent Job' Diddy's Ex-Girlfriend Suggests He Had a 'Bi-Curiosity' He Was 'Ashamed to Explore' as His Lawyer Asks Her to Define 'Cuck' The defense put a spotlight on the presence of Combs' children and mother in the courtroom, saying, 'The man takes care of people.' Taking a swipe at one of Combs' alleged victims, 'Jane,' Agnifilo said, 'I hope she's having a nice day, but ya know where she's doing it? In a house he's paying for.' Agnifilo argued that Combs is on a 'false trial,' that he is not guilty of sex trafficking but is instead a member of the 'swingers lifestyle' who participated in consensual 'threesomes' with his ex-girlfriends and male entertainers. 'No one's forcing her to do this,' Agnifilo said of Casandra 'Cassie' Ventura, Combs' ex who accused him of raping her and coercing her into hundreds of 'freak-offs,' drug-fueled sex parties that lasted days on end. At the center of the trial is a 2016 surveillance video that depicts Combs beating Ventura in a hotel hallway and allegedly attempting to drag her back into a 'freak-off.' 'We own the domestic violence,' Agnifilo said. Throughout the trial, the defense has admitted that Combs was violent with Ventura, but that the violence was not connected to the 'freak-offs.' Agnifilo painted Ventura as a strong, smart woman who enjoyed her sex life with Combs. 'She's a woman who actually likes sex,' Agnifilo said. 'Good for her! She's beautiful, she should. She's intense. She's unafraid.' Agnifilo referenced Ventura's testimony about her brief love affair with the singer Scott Mescudi, aka Kid Cudi. Ventura said she tried to keep her relationship with Mescudi a secret from Combs by purchasing a second cellphone. 'Whoooaaa! A burner phone!' Agnifilo said, his voice jumping up an octave. 'Cassie is keeping it gangsta!' He said Ventura 'played' both Combs and Mescudi, implying she would not have had a secret relationship if she was actually 'scared to death of Sean Combs.' Addressing the kidnapping allegations against Combs, which pertain to his racketeering charge, Agnifilo referenced former assistant Capricorn Clark's claim that she was held for five days in a Manhattan office building, forced to take a lie detector test about stolen jewelry. 'A door-to-door kidnap,' Agnifilo said mockingly, emphasizing that Clark slept at home, and that one of Combs' security guards drove her to and from the building each day. 'You guys are here for long hours,' he told the jury. 'Anyone here feel kidnapped?' Agnifilo's tone was incredulous: 'He's charged with kidnapping. That's real!' And he told the jurors they 'have the right' to question the government's claims and disregard witness testimony. The lawyer picked apart the allegations of bribery, witness tampering and obstruction — and focused heavily on the implication that Combs orchestrated an act of arson on Mescudi's car. (Combs had allegedly said previously that he was going to blow up the vehicle, but an investigation at the time found no evidence leading to Combs.) 'That's not his style,' Agnifilo said, suggesting that Combs would prefer a man-to-man confrontation with Mescudi — 'a good old-fashioned John Wayne, eight-in-the-morning Hollywood Hills fight.' Throughout the closing argument, Combs nodded and listened intently, either leaning back in his chair or crossing his arms on the table. In the morning, one of his sons, Justin Combs, was wearing a shirt that read 'Free Sean Combs,' which is not permitted in the courtroom. A court marshal approached him, and Justin left and re-entered the room without the message visible. Agnifilo was theatrical in his summation — and often used sarcasm to drive home his arguments. He used a mocking tone when describing the raids on Combs' properties, saying they made America 'safe from Astroglide.' 'Way to go fellas, you guys just do you. They took Astroglide and baby oil and that is the evidence in this case,' he said. When pooh-poohing the drug distribution racketeering charges, Agnifilo admitted 'there's no question' Combs 'had a drug problem,' but that his drugs were for personal use only, and not part of a criminal enterprise. That when his staff picked up and delivered drugs like Xanax and ecstacy to Combs, they were not aware they were committing crimes — they were just carrying out personal assistant duties as is common in the entertainment industry. 'I don't suppose we'll see Beyoncé at CVS,' Agnifilo said. Addressing the racketeering charges, the attorney said there is a 'gaping lack of evidence,' and with respect to the transportation to engage in prostitution charges, he repeated the defense's stance that Combs paid male escorts for their 'time,' not for sex. Wrapping things up, Agnifilo leveled with the jury. 'It takes a lot of courage to acquit,' he said. He said the concept of a jury is one of the great things about America, and that it is a difficult thing for a juror to rule against the federal prosecutors. 'You guys are the United States of America,' he said, raising his voice. 'You should feel bold, you should feel the courage that you will need to call this as you see it, and I am asking you to summon that courage and to do what needs to be done and to do the right thing.' He asked the jurors to acquit his client on all charges. 'He sits there innocent. Return him to his family who have been waiting for him.' Beginning her rebuttal, which is the last time the jurors will hear from the attorneys after seven grueling weeks of trial, prosecutor Maurene Comey sighed: 'We're almost done.' Comey delivered her most fiery remarks yet, taking the baton after fellow prosecutor Christy Slavik delivered a five-hour closing argument on Thursday. She laid into the defense, saying the notion that the male escorts were not paid for sex 'doesn't even pass the laugh test.' When Combs handed them wads of cash at the end of 'freak-offs,' it wasn't for their 'scintillating conversation,' Comey said. She referred to an escort's testimony that supported her argument. Despite what the defense posited, the escorts did not need to label themselves as prostitutes for their conduct to be considered prostitution. Supporting the racketeering charge, Comey listed a handful of alleged crimes carried out by Combs' employees on his behalf. 'This is a guy who cannot get his own water bottle or plug in his own phone charger,' she said, implying that of course he would not commit his own crimes. 'He's the general. Not a foot soldier, not a lieutenant. He delegated. And his inner circle did the dirty work for him,' Comey added, pointing to his chief of staff Kristina Khorram as his primary alleged co-conspirator. With respect to the drug distribution charges, Comey said, 'There is no requirement that drugs be distributed for profit or in large quantities to be illegal.' In other words, Combs handing ecstacy pills to Ventura and Jane would still be considered distribution under the law. The tone of her rebuttal intensified as Comey addressed the defense's underlying argument: that Ventura, another rape accuser 'Mia' and Jane are 'lying.' She explored each alleged victim's incentives to commit perjury. Ventura already won a $20 million settlement against Combs, so there's no money grab there. Mia similarly already settled with Combs, and because she isn't seeking fame or attention, she testified under a pseudonym. And Jane, who never sued Combs and has no plans to, testified that the defendant continues to pay her rent and legal fees. For that reason, if she had any incentive to lie, it would be in favor of Combs, Comey argued. Since opening arguments back in May, the defense has painted Combs' accusers as 'strong' women with agency. 'You know what, they're right about that,' Comey said. 'They were strong enough to survive what the defendant put them through and testify at this trial.' Comey returned to what she called 'the most clear-cut example of sex trafficking in this case,' when, in June 2024, Combs allegedly violently attacked Jane before giving her drugs and arranging a 'freak-off' with a male escort. 'Is this coercion?' Combs allegedly said to Jane, mocking the federal investigation looming over him. The trial reached an explosive climax as Comey rested her rebuttal. 'For 20 years, the defendant got away with his crimes. That ends in this courtroom,' she said. 'The defendant is not a god. He is a person. And in this courtroom, he stands equal before the law. Overwhelming evidence proves his guilt. It is time to hold him accountable. Find him guilty.' The jury could make its decision as early as next of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week 'Harry Potter' TV Show Cast Guide: Who's Who in Hogwarts? 25 Hollywood Legends Who Deserve an Honorary Oscar
Irish Independent
6 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Sean Combs' lawyer mocks sex-trafficking charges, saying evidence was ‘badly exaggerated'
©Associated Press Sean 'Diddy' Combs' lawyer portrayed the hip-hop mogul yesterday as the victim of an overzealous prosecution that twisted his recreational drug use and swinger lifestyle into a racketeering conspiracy charge that could put him behind bars for life. In a closing argument, defence attorney Marc Agnifilo mocked the government's case and belittled the agents who seized hundreds of bottles of Astroglide lubricant and baby oil at his properties as he began a presentation expected to last several hours. 'Way to go, fellas,' Mr Agnifilo said of the agents.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'Not a god': arguments end in Combs trial ahead of deliberations
Sean "Diddy" Combs's lawyer aimed Friday to skewer the credibility of the music mogul's accusers, saying in closing arguments they were out for money while rejecting any notion he led a criminal ring. But in their rebuttal -- the trial's final stage before jurors are tasked with deciding the verdict -- prosecutors tore into the defense, saying Combs's team had "contorted the facts endlessly." Prosecutor Maurene Comey told jurors that by the time Combs -- once among the most powerful people in music -- had committed his clearest-cut offenses, "he was so far past the line he couldn't even see it." "In his mind he was untouchable," she told the court. "The defendant never thought that the women he abused would have the courage to speak out loud what he had done to them." "That ends in this courtroom," she said. "The defendant is not a god." For most of Friday's hearing defense attorney Marc Agnifilo picked apart, and even made light of, the testimony of women who were in long-term relationships with Combs, and who said he had coerced them into drug-fueled sex parties with paid escorts. Agnifilo scoffed at the picture painted by prosecutors of a violent, domineering man who used his employees, wealth and power to foster "a climate of fear" that allowed him to act with impunity. Combs, 55, is a "self-made, successful Black entrepreneur" who had romantic relationships that were "complicated" but consensual, Agnifilo said. In his freewheeling, nearly four-hour-long argument, Agnifilo aimed to confuse the methodic narrative US attorney Christy Slavik provided one day prior. She had spent nearly five hours meticulously walking the jury through the charges and their legal basis, summarizing thousands of phone, financial, travel and audiovisual records along with nearly seven weeks of testimony from 34 witnesses. Central to their case is the claim that Combs led a criminal enterprise of senior employees -- including his chief-of-staff and security guards -- who "existed to serve his needs." But Agnifilo underscored that none of those individuals testified against Combs, nor were they named as co-conspirators. "This is supposed to be simple," the defense counsel told jurors. "If you find that you're in the weeds of this great complexity, maybe it's because it just isn't there." If convicted, Combs faces upwards of life in prison. - 'Brazen' - Casandra Ventura and a woman who testified under the pseudonym Jane described abuse, threats and coercive sex in excruciating detail. Combs's defense has conceded that domestic violence was a feature of the artist's relationships, but that his outbursts did not amount to sex trafficking. The defense insisted the women were consenting adults. Prosecutor Comey snapped back that they were being "manipulated" into "brazen" acts of sex trafficking, reiterating once again for jurors what the government says are the clearest-cut examples. Agnifilo pointed to Ventura's civil lawsuit against Combs in which she was granted $20 million: "If you had to pick a winner in this whole thing, it would be Cassie," he said. Comey called that notion insulting: "What was her prize? Black eyes? A gash in her head? Sex for days with a UTI?" The prosecutor also pointed to a violent episode between Combs and Jane, when she says she struck him in an argument before he brutally beat her, knocked her down in the shower, and then forced her into giving an escort oral sex. "Jane may have started that fight, but he finished it with a vengeance," Comey said, calling that incident the most obvious sex trafficking case and saying he had "literally beaten her into submission." Throughout the trial, jurors were shown voluminous phone records, including messages of affection and desire from both women -- and Agnifilo emphasized the love and romance once again. Both prosecutors said taking those words literally, and in isolation, doesn't paint the whole picture. They also referenced testimony from a forensic psychologist who explained to jurors how victims become ensnared by abusers. "The defense is throwing anything they can think of at the wall, hoping something will stick," Comey said. On Monday, Judge Arun Subramanian will instruct jurors on how to apply the law to the evidence for their deliberations. Then, 12 New Yorkers will determine Combs's future. But Combs's legal worries may not end there, after three new sexual assault lawsuits were filed against him this week. One was by a woman who alleged the rapper's son, Justin, lured her from the southern state of Louisiana to Los Angeles where she was held captive, drugged and gang raped by three masked men in 2017. One of the men was allegedly Sean Combs. The other two cases were filed by men who accuse the rapper and his team of drugging and sexually assaulting them at parties in 2021 and 2023. mdo/sla/acb
The Independent
8 hours ago
- The Independent
Jury set to begin deliberating in Sean ‘Diddy' Combs' sex trafficking trial. Here's what to know
For seven weeks, a jury in Manhattan has listened as prosecutors laid out a criminal sex trafficking and racketeering case against rapper Sean 'Diddy' Combs. They heard his ex-girlfriends and other witnesses deliver shocking accounts of violence and drug-fueled sexual marathons. On Monday, jurors are set to begin deliberating, ultimately deciding whether Combs was running a criminal enterprise, as the government says, or — as his lawyer insists — merely living a swinger lifestyle that included recreational drug use and, regrettably, domestic violence. The answer will determine the future of one of the biggest music moguls and cultural figures of the past four decades. If convicted, Combs, 55, would face 15 years to life in prison. Here's what to know about the case: What are the charges? The three-time Grammy Award winner has pleaded not guilty to five felony charges: one count of racketeering conspiracy; two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. Prosecutors say Combs coerced women into abusive sex parties involving hired male sex workers, ensured their compliance with drugs like cocaine and threats to their careers, and silenced victims through blackmail and violence that included kidnapping, arson and beatings. 'He's the leader of a criminal enterprise. He doesn't take no for an answer," Assistant U.S. Attorney Christy Slavik said in her closing arguments on Thursday. Combs' lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, portrayed the Bad Boys Records founder as the victim of overzealous prosecutors who exaggerated elements of his lifestyle and recreational drug use to bring charges that resulted in what he called a 'fake trial.' What is racketeering? The most serious charge, racketeering conspiracy, alleges that Combs ran a criminal enterprise for two decades that relied on bodyguards, household staff, personal assistants and others in his orbit to facilitate and cover up crimes. Federal prosecutors brought the charge under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO. Congress passed the federal law in 1970 with the declared purpose of targeting organized crime, but its use has been more widespread. To prove the charge, prosecutors must show that an enterprise existed and was involved in a pattern of racketeering activity. In this case, that alleged activity includes kidnapping, arson, bribery and sex trafficking. Key pieces of evidence Early in the trial, prosecutors showed jurors 2016 security video of Combs beating and kicking his former longtime girlfriend Cassie at a Los Angeles hotel. Cassie, an R&B singer whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, testified the assault took place as she was trying to leave one of the sexual encounters, which witnesses say he referred to as 'freak-offs" or 'hotel nights.' Jurors saw numerous explicit clips of such encounters, some involving Cassie and others involving a later girlfriend who was identified only by the the pseudonym ' Jane.' Both women took the stand. Cassie testified over four days that she participated in hundreds of the events with paid sex workers while she and Combs were in a relationship from 2007 until 2018, often feeling like she didn't have a choice. She sued Combs in 2023, alleging years of abuse. He settled within hours, and dozens of similar lawsuits followed. Jane testified over six days that she was romantically involved with Combs from 2021 until his September arrest at a New York hotel, and that she, too, felt forced to have sex with the hired strangers in multiday sex marathons while Combs watched. The Associated Press doesn't generally identify people who say they are victims of sexual abuse unless they come forward publicly, as Cassie has done. Testimony also included hours of text message exchanges, some of which involved Combs or other people in his orbit, that were read aloud by a Homeland Security Investigations agent. In all, 34 people took the stand, all of them called by the prosecution. Combs did not testify. How will jury deliberations work? Judge Arun Subramanian will give instructions to the jurors on Monday before sending them off to deliberate inside the Manhattan federal courthouse. The jury of 8 men and 4 women must unanimously decide guilty or not guilty on each count. That means all 12 jurors must agree. If jurors don't reach an agreement, they could come back and say they are deadlocked. Traditionally, the judge would then encourage them to continue deliberating, but if they can't reach a consensus, it would be up to the judge to decide whether to declare a mistrial.
Malay Mail
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Malay Mail
‘Not a god': Arguments end in Combs trial ahead of deliberations
NEW YORK, June 28 — Sean 'Diddy' Combs's lawyer aimed yesterday to skewer the credibility of the music mogul's accusers, saying in closing arguments they were out for money while rejecting any notion he led a criminal ring. But in their rebuttal—the trial's final stage before jurors are tasked with deciding the verdict—prosecutors tore into the defense, saying Combs's team had 'contorted the facts endlessly.' Prosecutor Maurene Comey told jurors that by the time Combs—once among the most powerful people in music—had committed his clearest-cut offenses, 'he was so far past the line he couldn't even see it.' 'In his mind he was untouchable,' she told the court. 'The defendant never thought that the women he abused would have the courage to speak out loud what he had done to them.' 'That ends in this courtroom,' she said. 'The defendant is not a god.' For most of Friday's hearing defense attorney Marc Agnifilo picked apart, and even made light of, the testimony of women who were in long-term relationships with Combs, and who said he had coerced them into drug-fueled sex parties with paid escorts. Agnifilo scoffed at the picture painted by prosecutors of a violent, domineering man who used his employees, wealth and power to foster 'a climate of fear' that allowed him to act with impunity. Combs, 55, is a 'self-made, successful Black entrepreneur' who had romantic relationships that were 'complicated' but consensual, Agnifilo said. In his freewheeling, nearly four-hour-long argument, Agnifilo aimed to confuse the methodic narrative US attorney Christy Slavik provided one day prior. She had spent nearly five hours meticulously walking the jury through the charges and their legal basis, summarizing thousands of phone, financial, travel and audiovisual records along with nearly seven weeks of testimony from 34 witnesses. Central to their case is the claim that Combs led a criminal enterprise of senior employees—including his chief-of-staff and security guards—who 'existed to serve his needs.' But Agnifilo underscored that none of those individuals testified against Combs, nor were they named as co-conspirators. 'This is supposed to be simple,' the defense counsel told jurors. 'If you find that you're in the weeds of this great complexity, maybe it's because it just isn't there.' If convicted, Combs faces upwards of life in prison. 'Brazen' Casandra Ventura and a woman who testified under the pseudonym Jane described abuse, threats and coercive sex in excruciating detail. Combs's defense has conceded that domestic violence was a feature of the artist's relationships, but that his outbursts did not amount to sex trafficking. The defense insisted the women were consenting adults. Prosecutor Comey snapped back that they were being 'manipulated' into 'brazen' acts of sex trafficking, reiterating once again for jurors what the government says are the clearest-cut examples. Agnifilo pointed to Ventura's civil lawsuit against Combs in which she was granted US$20 million: 'If you had to pick a winner in this whole thing, it would be Cassie,' he said. Comey called that notion insulting: 'What was her prize? Black eyes? A gash in her head? Sex for days with a UTI?' The prosecutor also pointed to a violent episode between Combs and Jane, when she says she struck him in an argument before he brutally beat her, knocked her down in the shower, and then forced her into giving an escort oral sex. 'Jane may have started that fight, but he finished it with a vengeance,' Comey said, calling that incident the most obvious sex trafficking case and saying he had 'literally beaten her into submission.' Throughout the trial, jurors were shown voluminous phone records, including messages of affection and desire from both women—and Agnifilo emphasized the love and romance once again. Both prosecutors said taking those words literally, and in isolation, doesn't paint the whole picture. They also referenced testimony from a forensic psychologist who explained to jurors how victims become ensnared by abusers. 'The defense is throwing anything they can think of at the wall, hoping something will stick,' Comey said. On Monday, Judge Arun Subramanian will instruct jurors on how to apply the law to the evidence for their deliberations. Then, 12 New Yorkers will determine Combs's future. But Combs's legal worries may not end there, after three new sexual assault lawsuits were filed against him this week. One was by a woman who alleged the rapper's son, Justin, lured her from the southern state of Louisiana to Los Angeles where she was held captive, drugged and gang raped by three masked men in 2017. One of the men was allegedly Sean Combs. The other two cases were filed by men who accuse the rapper and his team of drugging and sexually assaulting them at parties in 2021 and 2023. — AFP
