Federal prosecutors are raising concerns about a possible tactic by Sean "Diddy" Combs' legal team that could introduce testimony involving past consensual sexual encounters not directly related to the charges he faces in his upcoming federal trial.
According to The US Mirror, prosecutors are asking a judge to prevent the defense from introducing evidence of Diddy's previous sexual history with anyone not listed as a victim in the case, according to court filings. They argue that such testimony would be both "irrelevant" and risk causing a "substantial likelihood of juror confusion."
In their motion, government attorneys asked the court "to preclude any testimony of consensual sexual encounters between the defendant and persons who are not victims in this case." They warned that allowing such testimony could lead to "minitrials on issues of whether these women were actually consenting."
"Such testimony would introduce entirely new individuals to the jury, potentially result in minitrials on issues of whether these women were actually consenting, and would risk confusing the jury," prosecutors wrote.
They also contended this defense could "provide a backdoor" for admission of "good acts evidence," which is usually not allowed to be presented in federal trials.
Defense Strategy May Hinge on RICO Charges
The defense did not provide further details but suggested the testimony may pertain to racketeering conspiracy charges, or RICO charges, that Diddy is also facing.
Diddy's legal team noted that "good acts evidence" is generally inadmissible, but allowed that it "may be offered for another purpose" in this case.
Namely, it could be proof that a co-conspirator had no knowledge or intent to commit a particular act.
Judge Previously Allowed Limited Use
An earlier ruling allowed the defense to present evidence of past consensual sexual activity, but only if that evidence had been given to the government in advance. As the trial nears in the days ahead, the prosecution is once again trying to prune back that evidence.
In a filing, prosecutors said, "The Government expects certain of the Victims to testify that co-conspirators, at times, facilitated both consensual and nonconsensual Freak Offs involving themselves and the defendant.
They also clarified that they do not claim that Diddy's associates arranged only nonconsensual meetings but rather that victims may tell of a combination of the two. Accordingly, they contend the perceived testimony provided by the defense remains beyond the scope of relevance.
Request for Jury Safeguards
If the court allows such testimony, prosecutors are asking the judge to give the jury tight instructions.
"Jurors should not infer that because the defendant engaged in some consensual sexual encounters, other of the defendant's sexual encounters must have also been consensual," they wrote.
While the motion is marked as resolved in the court docket, the final decision itself has not been made public.
Diddy is facing several charges linked to sex trafficking, conspiracy to commit racketeering, and transportation for prostitution in three different federal indictments. He pleaded not guilty to all charges and denied any wrongdoing.
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