Potential jurors for the trial of Sean ‘Diddy‘ Combs have been asked their views on controversial rapper Kanye West.
West was dragged into the case when a potential juror said they recognized his name from a list of people who may come up in the trial.
The man, a scientist in his 40s, said that nothing he knew about West would affect his ability to be impartial.
West was one of several celebrities who came up in Manhattan federal court on Monday as juror selection began in Diddy’s sex-trafficking and racketeering case.
The rapper has recently defended Diddy, sharing controversial posts and claiming the two released a clothing collaboration together earlier this year.
It comes as comedian Mike Myers and actor Michael B. Jordan were also in a list of names handed to jurors. Their relevance to the case is unclear.
Other names mentioned on the list by a female juror who said she recognized them were Michelle Williams from Destiny’s child, actress Lauren London – who was the girlfriend of Nipsey Hussle who was fatally shot in 2019 – and rapper Kid Cudi.
Judge Subramanian said that the list of people and places runs ‘several pages’ and felt like an ‘appendix from Lord of the Rings’. To speed up the process, he ruled that jurors would be given the list to review before they are brought into court and questioned one by one before they seat a final panel of 12 jurors and six alternates.
Kanye West was dragged into the case when a potential juror said they recognized his name from a list of people who may come up in the trial
Composed and with his hands in his pockets, Diddy greeted potential jurors with a slight nod despite them holding his fate in their hands as his sex trafficking trial that could send him to prison for life began today
The rapper added he wished he had the same relationship with his father that Diddy has with his children
West praised Diddy as a parent, calling him a ‘way better dad than me’
The comments allude to the scale of the case, which dates back to 2004 and covers multiple states.
Several dozen prospective jurors got a brief description of the sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy charges against Combs from the judge, Arun Subramanian, who reminded them that Combs had pleaded not guilty and was presumed innocent.
As the judge spoke, Combs sat with his lawyers. He wore a sweater over a white collared shirt and gray slacks, which the judge had allowed rather than jail clothing. Combs, 55, has been held in a grim federal lockup in Brooklyn since his arrest last September. His hair and goatee were almost fully gray because dye isn’t allowed in jail.
Unlike other recent high-profile celebrity trials, Combs’ court case won’t be broadcast live because federal courtrooms don’t allow electronic recordings inside — meaning courtroom sketch artists serve as the public’s eyes in the courtroom.
The trial is expected to take at least eight weeks. If convicted, he faces the possibility of decades in prison.
Several prospective jurors indicated they had seen news reports featuring a key piece of evidence in the case: a video of the hip-hop mogul hitting and kicking one of his accusers, the singer Cassie, in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016.
One prospective juror described a still image she saw from the video as “damning evidence.” That woman was rejected from consideration.
Kanye’s support for Diddy will no doubt have come as a shock to many, given the pair have been locked in a feud since Kanye unveiled his controversial ‘White Lives Matter’ merchandise in 2022; West and Diddy pictured at a Vibe Magazine and Ciroc party in 2006
The first two celebrities to be named at Diddy’s trial were Mike Myers and Michael B. Jordan. Their names were read out to a potential juror from a list of people and places that may come up throughout the trial
After another juror was dismissed, Combs asked for a bathroom break, telling the judge, ‘I’m sorry your honor I’m a little nervous today.’
The 17-page indictment against Combs — which reads like a charging document filed against a Mafia leader or the head of a drug gang — alleges that Combs engaged in a two-decade pattern of abusive behavior against women and others, with the help of people in his entourage and employees from his network of businesses.
Combs and his lawyers say he’s innocent and any group sex was consensual. They say there was no effort to coerce people into things they didn’t want to do, and nothing that happened amounted to a criminal racket.
Prosecutors say women were manipulated into drug-fueled sexual performances with male sex workers that Combs called ‘Freak Offs.’
To keep women in line, prosecutors say Combs used a mix of influence and violence: He offered to boost their entertainment careers if they did what he asked — or cut them off if they didn’t.
And when he wasn’t getting what he wanted, the indictment says Combs and his associates resorted to violent acts including beatings, kidnapping and arson. Once, the indictment alleges, he even dangled someone from a balcony.
For the biggest updates direct from court, search for The Trial of Diddy wherever you get your podcasts now.
