Sean 'Diddy' Combs to be sentenced in October after split verdict
Share and Follow


NEW YORK (AP) — Sean “Diddy” Combs will be sentenced in his federal criminal case on Oct. 3, a judge said Tuesday after probation officials rejected the defense and prosecution’s plan to move the date up by about two weeks.

Combs, who remains jailed after a split verdict last week, spoke briefly to his lawyer Marc Agnifilo during a virtual hearing on the scheduling issue that lasted all of two minutes. At one point he asked the lawyer to turn on his camera so they could see each other’s faces.

The hip-hop mogul’s lawyers had been urging Judge Arun Subramanian to sentence him as soon as possible after jurors acquitted him last week on racketeering and sex trafficking but convicted him on two prostitution-related charges.

Combs, 55, faces up to a decade in prison for each of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution for flying people around the country, including his girlfriends and male sex workers, for sexual encounters. A conviction on racketeering conspiracy or sex trafficking could have put him in prison for life.

Prior to Tuesday’s hearing, Combs’ lawyers and prosecutors filed a joint letter proposing a Sept. 22 sentencing date, subject to the consent of the U.S. Probation Office. A short time later, they filed a second letter stating that all parties — including the probation office — were on board with the Oct. 3 date Subramanian originally proposed.

Combs got a standing ovation from fellow inmates when he returned to jail after the verdict last week, Agnifilo said. The Bad Boy Records founder will remain at the federal lockup in Brooklyn where he’s been held since his arrest last September after Subramanian last week rejected his request for bail.

The judge, citing a now-infamous video of Combs beating a former girlfriend and photographs showing injuries to another ex-girlfriend, made clear that he plans to hold Combs accountable for the years of violence and bullying behavior that were exposed at his eight-week trial.

Combs’ lawyers want less than the 21 to 27 months in prison that they believe the sentencing guidelines recommend. Prosecutors contend that the guidelines, when properly calculated to include Combs’ crimes and violent history, call for at least four to five years in prison.

Combs’ punishment is Subramanian’s decision alone, and the judge will have wide latitude in determining a sentence. While judges often adhere to the federal judiciary’s formulaic guidelines meant to prevent disparity in sentences for the same crimes, they are not mandatory.

As part of the sentencing process, Combs must give an interview to probation officers for a pre-sentence investigation report that will aid the judge in determining the proper punishment.

Share and Follow
You May Also Like
New Israeli report says Hamas used sexual violence as a 'weapon of war' in Oct. 7 attack

A recent report from Israel reveals Hamas used sexual violence as a ‘weapon of war’ in October 7 assault

Newly released interviews and documentation further bolster evidence that Hamas systematically used…
Texas flood rescue effort takes grimmest turn yet as death toll soars

Grim Death Toll Rise in Texas Flood Rescue Operation

Rescue efforts to find survivors in the aftermath of flash floods in Texas were shifting…
Texas flooding: Mother and daughter rescued from roof

Mother and Daughter Rescued from Roof During Texas Flooding

HUNT, Texas (KXAN) Courtney Garrison and her daughter Stella woke up to…
Jacksonville drug bust seizes fentanyl for 600,000 doses

600,000 doses of fentanyl seized in Jacksonville drug bust

Jacksonville authorities dismantled a drug house near Downtown, seizing enough fentanyl to…
California rejects Trump demand to ban trans athletes

California refuses Trump’s request to prohibit transgender athletes

California education officials have formally rejected the Trump administration’s demand to bar…
Doctors using herpes to fight untreatable advanced cancer

“Researchers Harnessing Herpes Virus to Combat Incurable Advanced Cancer”

Herpes has been called “the gift that keeps on giving” — finally,…
Top Democrat Hakeem Jeffries mocked after getting busted in Photoshop fail

Hakeem Jeffries, a prominent Democrat, faces ridicule for Photoshop blunder

Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has been criticized for sharing a…

Three individuals taken into custody for reportedly attempting to vandalize US Border Patrol vehicles in Los Angeles

A trio of suspects was arrested for allegedly attempting to “impede and…