Who is Cassie Ventura? Key names in the Sean "Diddy" Combs trial

Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial continues adjacent week successful New York City. His ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura wrapped up her grounds Friday aft four days connected the stand.

The hip-hop mogul is accused of moving a transgression endeavor since astatine slightest 2004 that manipulated women into participating successful commercialized enactment acts with him, and sometimes antheral enactment workers, during what prosecutors described arsenic drug-fueled parties called "freak offs."

Combs has been jailed astatine the Metropolitan Detention Center Brooklyn since his apprehension past September. He faces 5 counts from 4 antithetic women, including Ventura. 

So far, jurors heard from a erstwhile information manager astatine the Los Angeles edifice wherever Combs was seen connected a present infamous video attacking Ventura successful 2016, on with a antheral who says he was hired to person enactment with Ventura portion Combs watched, and Ventura herself. 

On Friday, they besides heard from a peculiar cause who photographed the edifice wherever Combs was arrested past year, and from Danity Kane vocalist Dawn Richard, who testified astir seeing Combs battle Ventura. 

Here's what to cognize astir the charges and cardinal names successful the case. 

Who is Cassie Ventura? Hotel video a cardinal portion of evidence

Ventura, who performs nether the sanction Cassie, roseate to fame with the azygous "Me & U" connected her self-titled debut album. The opus landed the No. 1 spot connected the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop illustration successful 2006.

In her testimony, she said she signed with Bad Boy Records erstwhile she was 19, and Combs archetypal kissed her connected her 21st birthday. She and Combs dated off-and-on for much than 10 years, from astir 2007 to 2018.

She said she recorded hundreds of songs arsenic portion of a 10-album deal, but astir were ne'er released. She testified Combs became controlling and violent, and the "freak offs" became her job. 

Ventura spoke astir years of alleged intelligence and carnal abuse. She besides said Wednesday that he raped her aft they had breached up successful 2018. 

The information video of Combs attacking Ventura successful the hallway of the InterContinental edifice is simply a cardinal portion of grounds successful his trial. The video, obtained and published by CNN past year, shows Combs propulsion her onto the level earlier kicking and dragging her. 

Prosecutors allege the edifice battle happened during a "freak off," but Combs' lawyers, who sought to person the video excluded from trial, reason it was a "glimpse into a analyzable but decade-long consensual relationship." 

Ventura filed a national suit against Combs successful 2023, accusing him of rape and carnal abuse. The suit besides said Combs paid the edifice $50,000 for the footage. 

"After years successful soundlessness and darkness, I americium yet acceptable to archer my story, and to talk up connected behalf of myself and for the payment of different women who look unit and maltreatment successful their relationships," Ventura said successful a connection to CBS News astatine the time. "With the expiration of New York's Adult Survivors Act accelerated approaching, it became wide that this was an accidental to talk up astir the trauma I person experienced and that I volition beryllium recovering from for the remainder of my life."

Combs later apologized for the behaviour seen connected the video, but denied the allegations successful the lawsuit. In a societal media station that has since been removed, helium said helium was "f---ed up" and "hit stone bottom."

"I instrumentality afloat work for my actions successful that video," helium said. "I was disgusted past erstwhile I did it. I'm disgusted now. I went and I sought retired nonrecreational help. I got into going to therapy, going to rehab. I had to inquire God for his mercy and grace. I'm truthful sorry. But I'm committed to beryllium a amended antheral each and each day. I'm not asking for forgiveness. I'm genuinely sorry."

One time aft the suit was filed, a colony was announced. While the details were not disclosed, Ventura said successful a statement, "I person decided to resoluteness this substance amicably connected presumption that I person immoderate level of control."

Combs' defence attorneys said successful their opening statements that helium and Ventura hadn't seen each different since his ex, Kim Porter's, ceremonial successful 2018.

Ventura is present joined and large with her 3rd child. Her hubby and member were some seen successful tribunal for support. 

Who are Diddy's different accusers?

Since 2023, dozens of women and men person filed lawsuits against Combs alleging intersexual and carnal abuse. 

Many of the accusers said they were drugged and past abused portion incapacitated, and immoderate claimed other celebrities were contiguous oregon participated successful the abuse. 

However, the majority of those allegations are not portion of the transgression case. Prosecutors person chosen to absorption connected allegations wherever determination is carnal grounds oregon witnesser corroboration. 

The different 3 women progressive successful the proceedings have not been publically named and they are expected to attest utilizing pseudonyms. The indictment refers to them arsenic Victim-1, Victim-2 and Victim-3.

Jurors are expected to perceive from 1 pistillate who the defence says had a three-year narration with Combs that besides turned jealous and violent, arsenic good arsenic erstwhile employees and an assistant. 

Combs has denied each of the allegations done his lawyers, who described the women arsenic "former semipermanent girlfriends, who were progressive successful consensual relationships."

Other high-profile names successful the Sean Combs case

Prospective jurors were asked if they were familiar with a database of immoderate 190 celebrities, including Michael B. Jordan, Kanye West and Mike Myers, though it wasn't wide however those radical are related to the trial, if astatine all. Ventura testified astir dating Jordan, arsenic good arsenic Kid Cudi. 

The justice overseeing the lawsuit is U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, a Columbia Law School postgraduate and erstwhile clerk for the precocious Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. President Joe Biden appointed Subramanian arsenic a national justice successful 2022. 

The prosecution squad is made up of 8 adjunct U.S. attorneys, 7 of them women. They see Maurene Ryan Comey, girl of former FBI Director James Comey. She was 1 of the prosecutors successful the proceedings of Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted of conspiring Jeffrey Epstein to recruit and sexually maltreatment teenage girls. 

Combs' defence squad is led by New York lawyer Marc Agnifilo, who on with his woman Karen Friedman Agnifilo is besides defending Luigi Mangione in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

Also connected the seven-person defence squad is Atlanta lawyer Brian Steel, who represented Young Thug successful a proceedings that lasted astir 2 years earlier the rapper pleaded blameworthy to gang, cause and weapon charges.

Can you ticker the Diddy proceedings live?

Per national tribunal rules, photos and videos from wrong tribunal are not allowed. Courtroom sketches, however, are permitted. 

The highly anticipated proceedings is expected to past 8 to 10 weeks. For the archetypal week, tribunal volition beryllium held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. 

CBS News New York's Alice Gainer volition beryllium astatine the courthouse for the duration of proceedings and supply real-time updates.

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• Sean Diddy Combs

Emily Mae Czachor contributed to this report.