Sean “Diddy” Combs made a court appearance on Thursday, where it was determined the disgraced music mogul will stand trial in Spring 2025.
Judge Arun Subramanian scheduled Diddy’s trial to begin on May 5. The prosecution expects the government’s case to take three weeks to lay out, while Diddy’s legal team estimated needing one week to argue the rapper’s defense.
The US Attorneys Office also noted the investigation is ongoing and pointed to the possibility of a superseding indictment, which could lengthen the trial.
Combs’ family attended his status conference at a Manhattan courthouse, where Diddy’s defense and the prosecution discussed issues regarding the evidence discovery process and potential trial dates. Diddy’s mother, Janice Combs, arrived roughly an hour before her son’s scheduled court appearance in a black Cadillac SUV. She was escorted into the courthouse by a woman and a security guard.
Diddy’s children – twins Jessie & D’Lila, daughter Chance and sons Christian, Justin, and Quincy – were also present.
The “Last Night” singer arrived at court wearing a long-sleeved tan prison shirt and pants. He was not handcuffed, but Diddy’s feet were shackled. The musician glanced around the room before sharing a brief laugh and smiles with his attorney while waiting for the judge.
After the hearing, Diddy turned around and faced his family. He waved, blew kisses, and bowed in praise. His daughters blew him kisses back. Judge Subramanian thanked Diddy’s family for attending the status conference. The family then remained in the courtroom as press was escorted out.
WATCH: DIDDY’S MOM ARRIVES AT FEDERAL COURT FOR RAPPER’S STATUS CONFERENCE
Diddy’s legal team is expected to receive the discovery material within the next 30 days, according to the prosecution. The government seized a total of 96 devices from Combs during raids of his homes – nine at the airport, 36 in Miami and 51 in Los Angeles.
Authorities also seized Combs’ phone during his Sept. 16 arrest and conducted a search of his hotel room in Manhattan.
The US Attorneys Office expects the device downloads to be completed by next week, but noted discovery will continue through December.
Combs remains held without bail at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. He is no longer requesting to move unless there is an issue with reviewing discovery.
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Ahead of Thursday’s status conference, Diddy requested to go to trial in April or May in a letter submitted to Judge Arun Subramanian, who is expected to preside over his case moving forward.
Prosecutors said they are available during those two months, but did not specify a preference for trial.
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In a joint letter submitted ahead of Thursday’s hearing, the prosecution revealed the process of turning over evidence to Diddy’s legal team had begun. The US Attorneys Office had turned over search warrants, the musician’s phone along with iCloud reports. The prosecution is also in the process of copying information off of 40 additional electronic devices seized during the March raids on Diddy’s homes.
Diddy’s team filed for his 3rd attempt at bail on Tuesday after Judge Andrew L. Carter Jr. recused himself from the case. Carter Jr. had denied the “I’ll Be Missing You” singer’s second attempt at bail, citing the possibility that Diddy would tamper with witnesses. The judge conceded the prosecution had proven “by clear and convincing evidence that there is no condition or set of conditions” to secure community safety.
“Indeed, hardly a risk of flight, he is a 54-year-old father of seven, a U.S. citizen, an extraordinarily successful artist, businessman, and philanthropist, and one of the most recognizable people on earth,” his lawyers argued in his latest filing.
Combs also requested an evidentiary hearing in an Oct. 9 filing. Lawyers for Diddy claimed the disgraced Bad Boy billionaire was deprived of the right to a fair trial through a series of “unlawful government leaks.”
He accused Department of Homeland Security agents of providing “false and prejudicial statements” to various press outlets over the last seven months following the raids on his homes in Miami and Los Angeles, where his sons were “handcuffed and manhandled by federal agents armed with assault rifles.”
The “Last Night” singer then accused officials of leaking the 2016 surveillance video from the Intercontinental Hotel to CNN, which allegedly showed Combs assaulting his then girlfriend, Cassie Ventura.
The government denied being the source of the leak in a separate filing. Assistant US Attorney, Emily Johnson, explained to Diddy’s lawyer that the government was “not in possession of the video” before CNN published in May. “The Government was not in possession of the video before its publication by CNN. Indeed, at the time of CNN’s publication, the Government did not possess any video of the March 2016 incident,” she wrote in emails shared with the court.
“To be clear, to our understanding, DHS did not have possession of the videotape prior to CNN’s publication of it,” Johnson wrote in a follow-up email. “Only the government has authority to obtain grand jury material, and the video broadcast by CNN was not obtained through the grand jury process.”
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WATCH: IF DIDDY DOESN’T TESTIFY, ‘HE IS DEAD ON ARRIVAL’
Combs was charged with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, and transportation to engage in prostitution in an indictment unsealed Sept. 17. If found guilty, he faces a minimum of 15 years behind bars or a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Authorities alleged Combs ran a criminal enterprise through his businesses, including Bad Boy Entertainment, Combs Enterprises and Combs Global, among others. He used “firearms, threats of violence, coercion, and verbal, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse” to fulfill his sexual desires, according to the unsealed indictment obtained by Fox News Digital.
Combs and his employees would “intimidate, threaten, and lure female victims into Comb’s orbit, often under the pretense of a romantic relationship. Combs allegedly then used force, threats of force, and coercion, to cause victims to engage in extended sex acts with male commercial sex workers that Combs referred to as, among other things, ‘Freak Offs.'”
Lawyers for Combs denied the allegations and have maintained the rapper is innocent.
