Judge plans ruling on dropping ‘Diddy’ charges
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NEW YORK (AP) -- A federal judge said Thursday he'll rule "very shortly" whether to toss out two prostitution-related charges that Sean "Diddy" Combs was convicted of in July or to move forward with a sentencing planned for next week.
Judge Arun Subramanian listened to nearly 90 minutes of arguments by lawyers over whether the charges were properly brought against the Grammy-winning hip-hop producer.
Combs, 55, is scheduled to be sentenced next week in Manhattan federal court for his conviction on two counts alleging that he arranged interstate travel for people engaged in prostitution.
Defense attorney Alexandra Shapiro urged the judge to toss out two violations of the Mann Act that resulted in conviction, saying the "infamous law" had "racist and sexist origins" that are "well documented and beyond dispute." The jury acquitted him of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy.
"The whole history of the statute is really, I would submit, an embarrassment to the United States of America," she said.
Prior to trial, the judge declined to throw out charges and he sounded skeptical at times as Shapiro pressed her arguments that Combs was improperly convicted of the charges.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christy Slavik said the prosecution against Combs illustrated the necessity of fighting prostitution because of the violence, drugs and sexual diseases that often accompany it.
Prosecutors said Combs paid for and arranged the drug-fueled sexual marathon performances between male sex workers and his girlfriends, some of whom testified about being beaten, kicked and choked by Combs.
Shapiro argued that Combs cannot be held responsible for financing and helping to arrange the transportation domestically and internationally for elaborate sex performances that he frequently filmed over a 15-year period.
Slavik argued that the jury verdict should stand, saying it was in the public interest to prevent prostitution, particularly when it involves the kind of violence and drugs that occurred when Combs was involved.