Cassie Recounts ‘Violent Arguments’ and ‘Physical Abuse’ by Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs During Testimony
The singer began testifying before a federal jury in the sex-trafficking and racketeering case against the music mogul.Casandra Ventura, the singer and model known as Cassie, began testifying for a federal jury on Tuesday morning in the sex-trafficking and racketeering case against Sean Combs, recalling a pattern of physical abuse and psychological control that she said long dominated her life.In the first minutes of her testimony, Ms. Ventura was asked by prosecutors to describe the more than decade-long relationship she had with Mr. Combs.“There were violent arguments that would usually result in some sort of physical abuse,” she answered, later detailing that she would get busted lips, black eyes, knots in her forehead and “bruises all over my body.”Lawyers for Mr. Combs have portrayed the relationship as loving but deeply toxic — they have acknowledged he was responsible for “domestic violence” — while maintaining that any sexual arrangements were completely consensual.Ms. Ventura, 38, wore a brown turtleneck dress that accentuated her pregnant belly. As she entered court, Mr. Combs turned back in his chair to see her walk in. His lawyers had asked the judge to have her present on the stand before the jury entered, a request that the judge apparently denied.During her testimony, which is expected to last through the end of the week, Ms. Ventura was soft-spoken and visibly emotional, dabbing at her nose and eyes with a tissue. Jurors watched Ms. Ventura intently as she spoke.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More