As jury selection wound down and opening arguments inched closer in the trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, lawyers for the embattled music mogul previewed part of their argument in a courtroom back and forth.
The defense team for Combs, who is accused of sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution, made clear that they planned to paint his fraught relationship with ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura as violent on both sides.
In an extensive courtroom exchange on May 9, Combs’ lawyers insisted that they wanted to be able to cross-examine Victim-1, widely believed to be Ventura, about a “propensity for violence.”
How these New York City laws opened the door for Cassie and more to sue Diddy
Their line of questioning, they said, would center on “other instances where she has been violent” in an attempt to illustrate her her character and nature for “getting into physical altercations with other people.”
Lawyers for Combs, who has pleaded not guilty on all counts, are attempting to rewrite a narrative that the music producer’s relationship with Ventura featured one-sided abuse − a narrative aided by CNN’s release of a video in 2024 depicting Combs throwing his ex-girlfriend to the ground, kicking her and dragging her down a hotel hallway.
Defense lawyers fought unsuccessfully to exclude the video from evidence and many potential jurors were asked whether they had seen the footage.
On May 9, Combs’ lawyers said they wanted to question Ventura regarding past violence to illustrate she was “a strong, capable person who does not shy away from confrontations,” therefore eroding prosecutors’ argument that she was “coerced” throughout their relationship.
Rather than deny any violence, Combs’ lawyers said they want to show that there was “mutual violence in their relationship” and “hitting on both sides.”
“Domestic violence, we are absolutely admitting that,” Combs’ lead attorney Marc Agnifilo said, but added that it was “mutually violent.”
Characterizing how they will portray Ventura’s alleged violent behavior, Agnifilo leaned on the very language that has been levied against Combs, saying: “I think we’re probably going to refer to that as domestic violence,” according to Reuters.
Which charges does Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs face – and could he go to jail?
In November 2023, Ventura sued Combs, accusing her former partner of rape, sex trafficking and physical abuse. The lawsuit was settled a day after it was filed for an unspecified amount.
Ventura’s filing is now widely viewed as the initial string pulled in what has become the unraveling of one of music’s most powerful men.
In addition to the federal case, Combs faces a torrent of civil suits that paint the one-time hip-hop kingmaker as a longtime abuser.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Diddy, Cassie relationship was ‘mutually violent,’ defense will say
