A judge and jury have overseen seven gruelling weeks of disgraced rapper Sean Diddy Combs standing on trial after allegedly hosting so-called ‘freak off’ parties
The jury in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ sex trafficking trial have reached verdicts on four of the five charges – but the trial will continue.
The jury have made a decision on all of the counts except for charge one – racketeering conspiracy.
Judge Arun Subramanian, who has been overseeing the trial, welcomed the jury back into the courtroom in Manhattan, New York. He acknowledged that the jury had reached verdicts on four of the five counts, consisting of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and transportation to engage in prostitution.
He asked that they keep deliberating on Count 1, which is racketeering conspiracy. He then reminded them of the instructions they were given, that they should not hesitate to change their opinion, and that they should follow the law.
The jurors were dismissed from the courtroom, but quickly sent a note back. They have completed their deliberations for the day and will return on Wednesday (July 2), at 9am New York time, 2pm in the UK.
The note said the jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict on the racketeering conspiracy charge because there were jurors with “unpersuadable views” on both sides.
Subramanian didn’t appear keen on having jurors announce their partial verdict without first trying to decide the remaining count.
He said that juries have a right to deliver a partial verdict, but indicated that’s more of a last resort and that given the short amount of time the panel has been deliberated, he’d rather give them more time and wait to have a full verdict.
Combs’ lawyers surrounded him at the defence table soon after the note was sent to the court. The hip-hop mogul appeared morose as they explained to him what was happening.
At one point, lead defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo stepped away from the huddle, returned with a piece of paper and handed it to Combs, who read it solemnly.
Prosecutors, meanwhile, were at their table, glued to their phones and laptop computers.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Maurene Comey suggested the judge give the jury a modified version of what’s known as an Allen charge – instructions encouraging them to keep deliberating after reaching an impasse.
Racketeering conspiracy – count one on the jury’s verdict sheet – is the most complicated of the charges against Combs because it requires the jury to decide not only whether he ran a “racketeering enterprise,” but also whether he was involved in committing some or all of various types of offences, such as kidnapping and arson.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
