A New York judge will decide this week whether to allow Sean "Diddy" Combs bail as he awaits the May 2025 trial in his sex trafficking case.
During 55-year-old Combs' third bail hearing on Friday, U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian decided that he needed more time to determine if the disgraced mogul would be released from the Metropolitan Detention Center Brooklyn.
Subramanian ordered Combs' legal team to submit letters by Monday at noon laying out what kinds of communication Combs should be permitted to engage in after prosecutors accused him of contacting potential witnesses and influencing the jury pool from behind bars.
Combs' lawyers filed their letter minutes before the noon deadline, arguing that he should be evaluated based on the "most demanding scrutiny" that former President Donald Trump's case used. In citing the case, Combs' lawyers noted that a court found "only a significant and imminent threat to the administration of criminal justice" supports restricting a defendant's speech.
Since Combs is a criminal defendant who is presumed innocent, his lawyers argued he has a "greater constitutional claim" than other trial participants to criticize and speak out against the prosecution, according to the ruling in Trump's case.
"Accordingly, the Court should apply Trump's heightened standard when considering Mr. Combs' speech here," his attorneys wrote.
His attorneys also argued that Combs' communications, including public statements and social media posts, are protected under the First Amendment.
They stated Combs has the right to speak out about the prosecution and defend his reputation against widespread negative publicity.
"The government's arguments that asking his children to post birthday wishes on Instagram and that he is not entitled to publicly express his opinion that this prosecution is racially motivated are, quite simply, an unconstitutional effort to silence him," his lawyers wrote.
The "Bad Boy For Life" rapper's lawyers are once again proposing a $50 million bail, secured by Combs' Miami mansion, which his team claims is worth about $48 million.
Marc Agnifilo, a lawyer for Combs, told Subramanian on Friday that Combs would stay in a three-bedroom apartment in New York City's Upper East Side if granted bail.
"There'd be two security guards in the apartment and one downstairs, so a total of three. No access to phones or the internet, except for calls with counsel arranged by the security personnel. This is more restrictive than in the MDC," Agnifilo said, Law & Crime reported.
Two different judges previously decided Combs would be a flight risk and a danger to the community, including to alleged victims and possible witnesses.
Combs was arrested and charged on September 16 with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and transportation to engage in prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing.
Last week, Combs' lawyers were granted a last-minute court hearing after his defense accused a government investigator of photographing handwritten notes from the rapper's jail cell.
Combs' team argued that the photographed legal pads and notes were found in a folder labeled "Legal" and are attorney-client material.
They called the search of Combs' cell and seizure of personal items and paperwork an "outrageous government conduct amounting to a substantive due process violation."
Subramanian agreed with the motion from the defense and ordered prosecutors to destroy copies of 19 pages of the notes.
Subramanian ruled that the original papers will remain in the court's custody while both sides submit briefs over the next few weeks while he determines if they can be used in the trial.
Combs is also facing nearly 30 lawsuits filed by alleged victims of his sexual misconduct. Houston-based lawyer Tony Buzbee is representing 120 alleged Combs victims.
This is a developing story. More information will be added as it becomes available.
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