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Cassie Ventura wipes tears from her oculus portion testifying successful Manhattan national court, Tuesday, May 13, 2025, successful New York. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)
NEW YORK – The R&B vocalist Cassie returns to the witnesser basal Friday for much cross-examination by the defence squad for ex-boyfriend, Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Prosecutors allege that the hep hop mogul used his fame and fortune to orchestrate an empire of exploitation, coercing women into abusive enactment parties. His lawyers reason that each the intersexual acts were consensual, and though helium could beryllium violent, helium ne'er veered into enactment trafficking and racketeering. Combs has pleaded not blameworthy to racketeering conspiracy; enactment trafficking by force, fraud oregon coercion; and proscription to prosecute successful prostitution.
Defense lawyer Anna Estevao has made Cassie work retired large from messages expressing tendency for the drug-fueled radical enactment she antecedently testified near her traumatized. Estevao besides suggested that by exposing Combs' intersexual behaviour successful a lawsuit, it was Cassie who ended Combs' career, not the different mode around.
Prosecutors implored the justice overnight to marque the defence wrapper up its questioning successful clip to let for prosecution follow-ups connected Friday, citing interest for Cassie’s “health and safety” and the imaginable for a mistrial if she goes into labour with her 3rd child.
The Latest:
What to cognize Friday:
1. What are the charges against Combs? He faces 1 number of racketeering conspiracy , 2 counts of enactment trafficking by force, fraud oregon coercion, and 2 counts of proscription to prosecute successful prostitution. Combs denies each the allegations and has pleaded not blameworthy to national enactment trafficking and racketeering charges.
2. Where are we astatine successful the trial? Prosecutors spent 2 days questioning Cassie, their prima witness, astir Combs’ abusive behavior. Defense lawyers are seeking to represent Cassie arsenic a consenting subordinate successful his intersexual lifestyle, and accidental that portion helium could beryllium violent, thing helium did amounted to a transgression enterprise.
3. Why isn’t determination a livestream? Under national tribunal rules, nary photos oregon video of the proceedings volition beryllium allowed . Courtroom sketches are permitted.
Key moments from Thursday’s testimony
Messages betwixt Combs and Cassie — some romanticist and lurid — were the absorption of the 4th time of testimony successful a Manhattan courtroom. Defense lawyer Anna Estevao work what Combs wrote, portion Cassie recited her ain messages astir her information successful marathon encounters with enactment workers, called “freak-offs.”
4. In August 2009, Combs asked erstwhile she wanted the adjacent brushwood to be, and she replied “I’m ever acceptable to freak off.” Two days later, Cassie sent an explicit connection and helium replied successful anxious anticipation. She responded: “Me Too, I conscionable privation it to beryllium uncontrollable.” Later that year, however, she besides sent Combs messages that she was frustrated with the authorities of their narration and needed thing much from him than sex.
5. In a 2017 substance message, Cassie told Combs: “I emotion our FOs erstwhile we some privation it,” utilizing the initials of freak-off. On the stand, Cassie explained: “I would accidental loving FOs were conscionable words astatine that point.”
6. Cassie complained astatine 1 constituent that jurors weren’t proceeding the afloat discourse of the messages the defence was highlighting, saying, “There’s a batch we skipped over.”
7. Combs’ lawyer presented Cassie with intersexual texts she sent earlier a 2016 brushwood astatine a Los Angeles hotel, wherever Combs was caught connected surveillance video kicking and dragging her successful a hallway. Cassie said she wanted to get the brushwood implicit with, successful bid to support Combs blessed and debar a country up of movie premier she was attending days later.
▶ Read much astir Cassie’s grounds Thursday
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