Federal prosecutors told a Manhattan judge this week that Sean "Diddy" Combs' latest effort to toss his prostitution convictions has no legal basis.
Combs, 54, was convicted in the spring on two counts of transporting women across state lines for prostitution. A jury cleared him of racketeering and sex trafficking charges, but he still faces two to five years in prison when sentenced in October.
Prosecutors Reject First Amendment Claim
In court papers filed Wednesday seen by Billboard, prosecutors said Combs' attempt to frame the encounters as adult films protected by free speech was unfounded. They argued his description of himself as a producer of "amateur pornography" distorted the record.
"The defendant twists the record beyond recognition in order to claim that his convictions run afoul of the First Amendment," prosecutors wrote. They called him "a voracious consumer of commercial sex," saying he paid male escorts hundreds of times to sleep with girlfriends while he watched.
His lawyers had argued that he never engaged with sex workers himself and should be treated as a client, not a trafficker. Prosecutors rejected that distinction, writing that Combs acted "in many respects more akin to a pimp than a john."
Trial Fallout
The case centered on allegations that Combs organized "freak-offs," where women, including ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, were pressured into sex with escorts while Combs observed. Jurors did not convict on the more serious racketeering and trafficking counts, but prosecutors say the evidence on the prostitution charges was overwhelming.
Combs' attorneys called the verdict "unprecedented" and argued his conduct fell outside federal prostitution laws. In their motion, they claimed he was criminalized for orchestrating consensual encounters among adults.
Prosecutors said that argument was an after-the-fact attempt to escape liability. They told the court his behavior fit the statutes and that his verdict should stand.
A ruling on Combs' motion is expected before sentencing. If the convictions are upheld, the hip-hop mogul will face the possibility of prison time despite avoiding the most serious counts.
The outcome marks another legal blow for Combs, who has faced mounting scrutiny and civil suits in the past year.
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