NEW YORK – On Monday, a judge removed a juror from the sex trafficking trial involving Sean “Diddy” Combs, finding that his inconsistent statements regarding his residence raised concerns he might have an agenda or ulterior motive for remaining on the jury.
Judge Arun Subramanian decided to dismiss the juror despite objections from Combs’ lawyers, who argued that the change would affect the jury’s diversity by replacing a Black juror with a white one.
Subramanian initially announced the juror’s dismissal on Friday after questions were raised about whether he primarily lived in New York or New Jersey. However, after defense attorneys objected, the judge delayed his final decision until Monday.
The judge said a review of the juror’s answers to questions about his residency during jury selection, along with his subsequent responses to similar questions in the robing room, revealed “clear inconsistencies.”
“Taking these all together, the record raised serious concerns as to the juror’s candor and whether he shaded answers to get on and stay on the jury,” he said.
Subramanian said to leave the juror on the panel could threaten the integrity of the judicial process.
“The court should not, indeed cannot, let race factor into the decision of what happens. Here, the answer is clear. Juror No. 6 is excused,” Subramanian said before the jury, minus Juror No. 6, was brought into the courtroom for the resumption of testimony.
The judge expressed disappointment that the defense again raised the racial issue in a letter to the judge over the weekend and tried to accuse prosecutors of misconduct.
“There has been no evidence of prosecutorial misconduct brought to the court’s attention. Zero,” he said, rejecting a defense request for a mistrial.
Prosecutors have said they expect to rest sometime this week. The trial is in its sixth week.
Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy charges. He has been active throughout the trial with his lawyers and nodded his head Friday as his lawyers argued outside the presence of the jury against dismissing the juror.
Earlier in the trial, he was warned by the judge that he could be excluded from the courtroom if Subramanian believed he was trying to influence jurors after the judge said he saw him twice nodding his head toward jurors as his lawyer carried out an aggressive cross-examination of a witness.
Last week, prosecutors complained he was continuing to nod and shake his head at times with the jury in the room, although he was no longer looking toward jurors as he did it.
Combs was arrested last September at a New York hotel. He was denied bail multiple times and has remained incarcerated at a federal lockup in Brooklyn ever since.
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
