A New York judge has sentenced disgraced music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs to four years and two months’ prison following his conviction for prostitution-related crimes earlier this year.
Judge Arun Subramanian also handed down a fine of $US500,000 ($758,000), and urged Combs to show the world what “real accountability” looks like.
“We all have voices, but you have a megaphone,” the judge told Combs.
“I’m counting on you to make the most of your second chance.”
Combs, 55, was convicted in July of two offences under the US’s “Mann Act”, which criminalises transporting people across state lines for sex work.
Just before he was sentenced, he tearfully acknowledged his past behaviour was shameful, disgusting and sick.
He offered multiple apologies, including to his former girlfriend, Casandra Ventura (known as the singer Cassie), who he was caught on camera physically attacking in a hotel room.
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“I know I’ll never put my hands on another person again,” Combs told Judge Subramanian.
But the judge said a lengthy sentence was necessary to send a message to offenders and victims alike that violence against women would be met with real accountability.
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He said Combs’s violence, coercion and abuse had devastating consequences on his two former partners and he was unconvinced that Combs would not reoffend.
Combs had arranged for paid sexual encounters between his girlfriends and male sex workers at marathon sex parties he called “freak-offs”.
Ms Ventura told his eight-week trial that Combs ordered her to have “disgusting” sex with strangers hundreds of times during their decade-long relationship.
The judge said she and another ex-girlfriend, known only by the pseudonym Jane, shared “horrific stories, but stories of courage” during the trial.
“We heard you,” he added. “I am proud of you for coming to the court to tell the world what really happened.”
After his time in prison, Combs will need to spend another five years under supervised release.
Sean Combs was emotional at various points throughout the hours-long sentencing hearing. (Reuters: Jane Rosenberg)
The prosecution had sought a jail term of 11 years and three months, and a $US500,000 fine. They said Combs had shattered his victims’ lives, and the case had highlighted a pattern of violence that needed appropriate punishment.
But Combs’s lawyers had argued that he had already suffered enough. They requested a sentence of no more than 14 months in prison, meaning he would have been freed almost immediately on time already served.
Combs begs for ‘another chance’
The judge’s decision followed a series of pleas for leniency from Combs, his legal team and his six adult children, who each stood up in court and begged for mercy.
Sean Combs’s children held hands as they arrived at court, where they asked the judge for leniency. (Reuters: Brendan McDermid)
Just before he was sentenced, Combs was given a chance to speak. He broke down in tears and said he had lost all self-respect but: “If you give me another chance, I won’t let you down.”
“I want to thank you for finally giving me a chance to speak up for myself,” he told the judge.
“One of the hardest things I’ve had to handle is to be quiet, not able to express how sorry I am for my actions.”
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Combs, who did not give evidence during his trial, wrote a letter to the judge as well as addressing the court in person.
Several of his lawyers and a church minister also spoke in support of a shorter sentence.
His legal team played a highly produced 11-minute video showing clips of his life before prison, including playing with his children and coaching youth football.
And his children begged the judge to let their father come home.
“We’ve already lost so much,” his 18-year-old daughter, D’Lila Combs, said. “Please, your honour, please, give our family the chance to heal together.”
Cassie Ventura with Sean Combs at the 2018 Met Gala. (Getty: John Shearer)
‘A bully for a really long time’
The judge told Combs he had “considered the fact that you are a self-made artist and businessman who has innovated, inspired and lifted up communities, including communities of colour, worldwide”.
But, he said, “a history of good works can’t wash away the record of this case”.
The evidence shows Combs abused and controlled women in his life, the judge said. “The evidence of abuse with respect to freak-offs and hotel nights is massive.”
Combs’s former publicist, Rob Shuter, said Combs had “been a bully for a really long time” and he was unconvinced by his belated displays of remorse.
Rob Shuter is Sean Combs’s former publicist. (ABC News: Cameron Schwarz)
“Let’s remember when Cassie brought up these incidents, he was the first to call her a gold digger,” he told the ABC.
“Now we know what she went through, thankfully, because of that tape.
“This is not remorse. This is Diddy being caught. Could he change? Maybe, but I’m not buying that just before his sentencing, he’s suddenly a new man.”
Cassie’s fears of ‘swift retribution’
Ahead of the sentencing, Ms Ventura wrote to the judge, saying she feared retribution for testifying against him.
“My worries that Sean Combs or his associates will come after me and my family is my reality,” she wrote in the letter, which was part of the prosecution’s sentencing submission.
“I have in fact moved my family out of the New York area and am keeping as private and quiet as I possibly can because I am so scared that if he walks free, his first actions will be swift retribution towards me and others who spoke up about his abuse at trial.”
Her lawyers, Douglas Wigdor and Meredith Firetog, released a statement shortly after the sentencing, which said:
“While nothing can undo the trauma caused by Combs, the sentence imposed today recognises the impact of the serious offences he committed.
“We are confident that with the support of her family and friends, Ms Ventura will continue healing knowing that her bravery and fortitude have been an inspiration to so many.”
Prosecutor Christy Slavik said Combs had not accepted responsibility for his actions and had shown little remorse.
Giggles, scuffles and trial by TikTok: The Diddy courtroom circus
She said Combs had booked speaking engagements in Miami next week in anticipation of a light sentence, which she called “the height of hubris”.
Combs has already spent 13 months behind bars.
His legal team is expected to appeal his conviction.
Entertainment lawyer Lisa Bonner said she doubted an appeal would succeed.
“The judge has been very thorough, he has been very methodical,” she told the ABC.
“They’re going to just go up the ladder in terms of the appeal process … but I don’t think that is going to go anywhere, in my opinion.”
The trial jury found Combs not guilty of more serious charges related to racketeering and sex trafficking.
If he had been convicted of those charges, he could have received a life sentence.
ABC/wires