On Tuesday, a New York federal judge granted Sean “Diddy” Combs a bail hearing in his sex trafficking case.
The New York Post that Combs’ attorneys said “changed circumstances” in his case should deem him eligible for bail as he awaits trial. Though the defense did not disclose what this evidence entails, they said it shows prosecutors’ “case is thin.”
Combs’ attorneys also claimed that a video of Combs beating then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura at a California hotel in 2016 only provided a small glimpse “into a complex but decade-long consensual relationship between” the pair.
U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian scheduled the hearing for November 22.
Combs proposed a $50 million bail arrangement that would use his $48 million Florida home as collateral. His attorneys also offered for Combs to undergo home confinement and to be watched by security personnel as part of his bail.
Prosecutors said Combs should remain jailed as Combs could intimidate key witnesses while out on bail. The defense has dismissed those claims as speculative.
Meanwhile, Judge Subramanian denied Combs’ bid for a gag order preventing witnesses from publicly speaking about the case. The defense claimed the 30 civil lawsuits against Combs are jeopardizing his right to a fair trial.
READ: Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Seeking Bail a Fourth Time as Judge Denies Gag Order
On September 16, Combs was arrested outside a Manhattan hotel on federal charges of racketeering, sex trafficking, and transportation to engage in prostitution. Combs has been denied bail twice, as Judge Andrew L. Carter determined he should remain in custody.
Combs’ legal team sought home detention with GPS monitoring. In exchange, they offered to post $50 million bail and to use Combs’ home as collateral.
“The government has proven the defendant is a danger. The bail package is insufficient even on risk of flight,” Carter said while denying Combs’ bail a second time.
In March, federal authorities raided Combs’ homes in Holmby Hills, California, and Miami. Reports indicated that the raid was connected to an ongoing sex trafficking investigation that resulted in his arrest months later.
The reported raids also occurred four months after Ventura, accused him of sex trafficking and abuse. In a multimillion-dollar lawsuit, she alleged that Combs drugged her and forced her to have sex with other men. The pair settled the lawsuit a day after its filing.
However, in May, a video surfaced showing Combs assaulting Ventura at a California hotel in 2016. After the video was released, Combs put out a video expressing remorse for his behavior. That video is mentioned in the criminal charges filed against Combs.
Two more accusers came forward a week after Ventura’s lawsuit. One of the women claimed Combs drugged and raped her at Syracuse University in New York in 1991. Combs denied those allegations before a third accuser, Liza Gardner, levied similar allegations against him.
In that case, Gardner claimed Combs and singer-songwriter Aaron Hall drugged and raped her and a friend following an Uptown Records event in 1990. Gardner said she was 16 at the time of the incident. She also accused Combs of choking her a day after the assault.
Days after footage of the 2016 assault was publicized, two more women filed lawsuits against Combs. One of those women was April Lampros, a New York Fashion Institute of Technology student who reportedly met Combs in 1994. Lampros accused Combs of sexually assaulting her on four instances between the mid-1990s and the early 2000s.
Lampros claimed Combs promised to mentor her and connect her with executives in the fashion industry. Instead, Combs allegedly forced her to drink before raping her in a hotel room. Lampros recalled another instance in which Combs forced her to perform oral sex on her in a parking garage while a parking attendant watched.
Combs’ federal trial is scheduled to begin in May.
For the latest true crime and justice news, subscribe to the ‘Crime Stories with Nancy Grace’ podcast.
[Feature Photo: Instagram]
