Sean Combs arrives for the 2018 Met Gala on May 7, 2018, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
Attorneys for Sean “Diddy” Combs filed a motion Tuesday requesting that his accusers in a federal sex trafficking case be publicly identified so he can prepare a proper defense.
The motion requests that U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian of the Southern District of New York identify Combs' accusers because, his lawyers argue, the torrent of anonymous allegations are damaging his reputation, leading to a “media circus" and depriving him of a fair trial.
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Identifying anonymous accusers would allow Combs to adequately prepare for his trial, prevent any surprises and protect him from double jeopardy should he be prosecuted again for the same offense, according to the filing from Combs’ team of lawyers.
“His case is unique, in part because of the number of individuals levying allegations against Mr. Combs due to his celebrity status, wealth, and the publicity of his previously settled lawsuit,” the motion reads.
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It also alleges grand jury leaks and false inflammatory statements by Department of Homeland Security agents tied to the release of security video showing Combs beating his ex-girlfriend, singer Casandra "Cassie" Ventura, in the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel in 2016. (Combs apologized for the incident, saying that it was a one-off instance and that he had sought therapy and had changed, and he settled a lawsuit in which Ventura had accused him of rape and physical abuse.)
Combs’ legal team filed a petition claiming the government provided the video to CNN and was responsible for leaking other information to the media.
“Between the grand jury leaks and the incendiary public statements, the agents all but ensured that the grand jury would be tainted as well as the general public from which we will soon select a jury,” the filing says.
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“This had a pervasive ripple effect, resulting in a torrent of allegations by unidentified complainants, spanning from the false to outright absurd. Yesterday alone, anonymous accusers filed an additional six lawsuits,” it argues.
The motion also mentions a recent news conference at which Texas-based attorney Tony Buzbee said he is representing 120 accusers in a series of lawsuits against Combs, with allegations including sexual abuse of minors. The filing called the news conference a "publicity stunt" and the allegations "outrageous and deeply prejudicial."
"These accusations came on the heels of more than a dozen lawsuits previously filed and currently pending, several of which have already been discredited but only after irreparably damaging Mr. Combs’ character and reputation," the motion says. "These swirling allegations have created a hysterical media circus that, if left unchecked, will irreparably deprive Mr. Combs of a fair trial, if they haven’t already.”
On Monday, Buzbee filed six complaints in the Southern District of New York on behalf of four males and two females, none of whom are named in the filings. The incidents alleged in the complaints span 1995 to 2021 and include accusations of sexual assault and rape.
Buzbee announced at a news conference on Oct. 1 that he was representing accusers with allegations against Combs under the Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Act. Under the law, victims have a two-year window ending in March 2025 in which to file older claims.
“We’re going to just try to file cases that we feel are credible and legitimate,” Buzbee said.
The lawsuits name Combs and his various businesses as defendants, and the accusers are seeking unspecified damages. Lawyers for Combs denied the allegations in the suits.
NBC News has not independently corroborated any of the allegations in the complaints.
Combs is fighting his pretrial detention on federal racketeering and sex trafficking charges, for which Subramanian set a May 5 trial date.
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