Sean “Diddy” Combs’ former girlfriend, the R&B singer Cassie, took the witness stand in his intercourse trafficking trial on Tuesday, a day after prosecutors confirmed jurors video of the music mogul beating her in a resort in 2016.
Testimony within the trial started Monday. Prosecutors advised jurors that, for years, Combs used his standing as a strong government to coerce ladies into abusive sexual encounters and have become violent in the event that they refused.
Cassie, noticeably pregnant on the witness stand, was emotional from the beginning. She would take deep breaths and typically paused as she spoke.
Assistant U.S. Legal professional Emily Johnson began questioning of Cassie by asking her age, which is 38, and her occupation, which she stated is “musician, an entertainer.” She stated she was in a relationship with Combs for simply over 10 years.
Cassie testified that her relationship with Combs ran the gamut from good occasions to arguments and bodily altercations.
“In the event that they had been violent arguments, it might normally end in some form of bodily abuse and dragging, simply various things,” Cassie advised jurors.
She testified that Combs would mash her head, drag her, kick her and stomp her within the head when she was down.
Requested how incessantly Combs grew to become violent along with her, Cassie softly responded: “Too incessantly.”
When the prosecutor questioned her about “freak-offs,” she stated she was barely 22 when Combs first requested her to do them. She stated she was “confused, nervous, but in addition liked him very a lot.”
Requested how she felt when Combs first proposed partaking in a “freak-off,” Cassie stated: “I simply keep in mind my abdomen falling to my butt. Simply the nervousness and confusion in that second.”
“Freak-offs” had been the extremely orchestrated intercourse events that she stated stemmed from Combs’ curiosity in voyeurism. They’d entail hiring an escort and “establishing this expertise in order that I might carry out for Sean,” Cassie stated.
“The freak-offs grew to become a job,” she stated, noting that different encounters took wherever from 36 or 48 hours. The marathon classes incessantly required intervals of restoration from dehydration, fatigue and drug use, she stated.
Proven nonetheless pictures from the now-infamous 2016 safety digital camera footage of Combs beating her at a Los Angeles resort, Cassie stated previous to the altercation: “We had been having an encounter known as a ‘freak-off’ and I used to be leaving there.”
She stated she didn’t really feel like she might say no to Combs as a result of she “didn’t know what ‘no’ could possibly be, or what ‘no’ might flip into,” which she stated she discovered might embody violence and blackmail threats.
“Sean managed quite a lot of my life, whether or not it was profession, the best way I dressed, all the things, all the things. I simply didn’t have a lot say in it on the time,” Cassie testified.
Elaborating on why she felt it was so tough to refuse Combs’ calls for, Cassie reiterated her fears of violence and blackmail movies from “freak offs” being disseminated on the web.
“Sean is a very polarizing individual, additionally actually charming,” Cassie stated. “It’s exhausting to essentially have the ability to determine in that second what you want when he’s telling you what he desires. I simply didn’t know. I didn’t know what would occur.”
After relating the violence and “freak offs” which might be central to the federal fees, Johnson returned to eliciting biographical and historic details about Cassie, together with when she first signed to Unhealthy Boy Information in early 2006.
She stated her interactions with Combs, who owned the label, had been platonic at first. However then he kissed her throughout her twenty first birthday journey to Las Vegas within the toilet of his resort suite. “I used to be simply actually confused on the time,” she stated. “And younger.”
After the Las Vegas journey, Cassie stated, she was invited by Combs to accommodations in New York the place they’d discuss music initiatives and albums.
When Assistant U.S. Legal professional Emily Johnson requested what else occurred at accommodations, Cassie took a deep breath and stated she was launched to the “concept of oral intercourse” on the accommodations.
Cassie additionally famous that Combs is 17 years older than her and that she was “sexually inexperienced” after they first received collectively.
She stated she ultimately had intercourse with Combs on a ship throughout a visit to Miami. She stated she had wine within the afternoon after which Combs launched her to ecstasy for the primary time.
After that, she stated, she felt nearer to the rapper and producer, began spending extra time with him, and thought, on the time, that they had been in a monogamous relationship.
In hindsight, she stated, she is aware of that wasn’t the case. Requested why, she responded: “Sean Combs had many girlfriends.”
As Cassie testified, the prosecution launched photographs of her and Combs at occasions within the mid-2000s. The quite a few pictures included {a photograph} of the boat in Miami. One other {photograph} depicted the fledgling couple at a strip membership in New York on Halloween 2007, shortly after the journey to Miami. One other image confirmed them at the back of a automotive at the start of their relationship, Combs arm wrapped round her.
“I used to be simply enamored by him. We had been simply having time. It was actually enjoyable, at this level,” she stated.
Cassie famous that, early on of their relationship, they weren’t public about it. She stated Combs had expressed issues about perceptions, provided that his firm was additionally producing her music.
Over time, Cassie testified, Combs grew to become more and more controlling and typically was violent. She stated Combs would get abusive over the smallest perceived slights — if she wasn’t smiling at him the best way he wished, or if he thought she was appearing like a brat.
“You make the incorrect face and the following factor I knew I used to be getting hit within the face,” she stated.
Cassie stated that if she didn’t reply to his name instantly, there can be incessant calls till she did and Combs’ workers, together with safety staff, would be part of within the pursuit.
Jealousy was cited throughout opening statements Monday as a supply of a lot of the battle between Combs and Cassie. Assistant U.S. Legal professional Emily Johnson elicited from Cassie that she and Combs had been seeing different individuals at occasions.
At first, Cassie stated, she was “insanely jealous.” She stated that resulted from being “tremendous younger.”
“I didn’t get that he was him. As he would say, ‘I’m Puff Daddy. Puff Daddy has many guidelines. Likes the corporate of ladies,’” she recalled.
She stated that as time handed, she got here to imagine “as a rule” that they had been in a monogamous relationship. “He anticipated that of me so I assumed it was the identical.”
She stated Combs advised her: “I’m not coping with anybody else. It’s simply us.”
She famous that the rap star paid her lease at flats near his residences in New York and later Los Angeles, had his personal units of keys and made “quite a lot of unannounced visits.”
Cassie stated that as a birthday current, Combs rented her a Manhattan condo a number of blocks from the place he lived. One other condo Combs rented for Cassie in Los Angeles was only a three-minute drive from his dwelling and he’d typically drive a golf cart to get from one residence to the opposite.
Earlier than the trial paused for a 40-minute lunch break, Assistant U.S. Legal professional Emily Johnson pressed Cassie to elucidate what occurred to her music profession and the 9 albums that had been by no means launched.
Cassie stated she created lots of of songs, a few of which had been launched on the web previous to “correct launch and a few simply didn’t see the sunshine of day.” Cassie testified that a lot of her week went towards the “freak-offs.”
“Freak-offs grew to become a job the place there was no area to do the rest however to get well and simply attempt to really feel regular once more,” she stated.
A decide dominated that Cassie’s husband, Alex Advantageous, will be within the courtroom for many — however not all — of her testimony.
Choose Arun Subramanian, appearing on a protection request, stated Advantageous should go away the courtroom when questioning turns to Cassie’s allegation that Combs raped her in 2018. That’s as a result of Combs’ attorneys say they could name Advantageous as a witness later within the trial in an try to discredit Cassie’s allegation.
Prosecutors argued that Advantageous is a part of the emotional help system for Cassie, who’s pregnant with their third little one and must be within the courtroom when she testifies.
Cassie, a key prosecution witness anticipated to testify Tuesday, met Combs in 2005 when she was 19 and he was 37. He signed her to his Unhealthy Boy Information label and, inside a number of years, they began courting.
In her 2023 lawsuit, Cassie alleges Combs trapped her in a “cycle of abuse, violence, and intercourse trafficking” for greater than a decade, together with raping her and forcing her to interact in intercourse acts with male intercourse staff. Combs settled the lawsuit the following day.
Amongst different issues, Cassie alleges Combs raped her when she tried to go away him and sometimes punched, kicked and beat her, inflicting accidents together with bruises, burst lips, black eyes and bleeding. She additionally alleges that Combs was concerned in blowing up rival rapper Child Cudi’s automotive when he discovered Cudi was romantically focused on her, and she or he alleges that Combs ran out of his dwelling with weapons when he discovered Suge Knight, a rival producer, was consuming at a close-by diner.
The proceedings Tuesday additionally included the hip-hop mogul’s lawyer questioning Daniel Phillip, a male stripper who says he was paid to have intercourse with Cassie whereas Combs watched.
Protection lawyer Xavier Donaldson pointed to Phillip’s previous statements to federal prosecutors as he tried to point out inconsistencies in his recollection of occasions. Donaldson completed his cross-examination after suggesting Phillip had developed a crush on Cassie and wished to isolate her from Combs so he could possibly be along with her romantically. Phillip denied that however admitted: “I used to be interested in her. If she ever gave me the prospect so far her, I completely would have.”
As soon as Donaldson was completed, a prosecutor requested Phillip extra questions, underscoring the witness’ earlier testimony that it was Combs who directed his sexual exercise with Cassie.
Subramanian had beforehand acknowledged that in his opening remarks about whether or not sexually express movies and pictures anticipated to be proven to the jury throughout testimony by Cassie must be seen by members of the media.
He stated that whereas quite a bit had been dealt with underneath seal earlier than the trial, “we are actually in trial and there’s a heightened First Modification concern.”
In the course of the dialogue about whether or not sexually express movies must be accessible for viewing by members of the media, lawyer Robert Balin advised the decide on behalf of media shops that information organizations weren’t focused on reporting “one thing salacious” and weren’t looking for copies of the reveals.
He additionally instructed instead {that a} group of pool reporters could possibly be allowed to view the reveals.
Assistant U.S. Legal professional Emily Johnson argued towards letting media shops see sexually express movies, saying there was good authorized precedent to maintain such supplies out of the general public report.
Combs’ lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, stated there was no facet of the movies that was not “within the nature of grownup pornography.” He stated all of them contained pictures of people who find themselves nude having intercourse or about to have intercourse.
On behalf of reports shops, Balin advised the decide the First Modification is “at a zenith” in the sort of case and that it was vital that the “individuals, although the press, have the ability to see justice is being accomplished.” He stated the most effective proof of whether or not sexual acts that had been recorded had been coerced — as prosecutors allege — was the movies themselves.
10:48 a.m. Could 13: Up to date with extra of Cassie’s testimony.