The jury’s verdict to acquit Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs of charges related to sex trafficking and racketeering has been called a ‘travesty’ by columnist Maureen Callahan, as she believes it conveys a disturbing message to victims of sex crimes.
During an interview on the Mail’s acclaimed podcast, The Trial, Callahan expressed that the prosecution had ‘indisputably established’ Combs’ guilt regarding the most severe allegations he faced and speculated whether he had influenced the jury’s decision.
Combs, 55, was convicted on Wednesday of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution but acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering.
He will be sentenced on October 3 and faces up to 20 years in prison, though legal analysts predict he will receive much less.
‘The verdict makes no logical sense to me’, Callahan, host of The Nerve podcast, told the Mail’s Kayla Brantley.
‘The decision to convict Combs on lesser charges that have little impact, rather than the primary trafficking charges that were clearly substantiated by the prosecution, is baffling,’ she remarked.
The jury’s decision to clear Diddy of sex trafficking and racketeering is a ‘travesty’ that sends a terrible message to survivors of sex crimes, columnist Maureen Callahan has argued.
Callahan said the prosecution had ‘incontrovertibly proved’ that Combs was guilty of the most serious charges against him
The columnist raised the spectre of whether the rap mogul had ‘gotten to the jury’
‘Compound that with seeing his supporters, as the verdict was read out, spraying each other with baby oil and exalting shirtless in front of the courthouse – it’s a travesty.
‘This whole thing, from front to back, just feels like a smack in the face to women everywhere.’
Callahan argued the prosecution relied too heavily on the ’emotionality’ of their evidence, particularly the freak-off videos.
The case was also weakened, she believes, by the absence of celebrity co-conspirators who must have ‘cut a deal’ to keep their names out of the headlines.
Callahan said: ‘It was highly suspicious that no other big names were brought into this – that no one was charged alongside Diddy.
‘The prosecution wanted to say this was a national network of criminal activity. But if you’re going to claim that it’s not enough to say it was the hired help that was renting out hotel rooms and cleaning them up. I wonder how many people cut deals.’
Asked whether the jury composition – eight men aged 30-60 and four women – influenced the verdict, Callahan said it worked in Combs’s favour.
She explained: ‘The composition of that jury worked in the defence’s favour. I would love to know who the prosecution had as their jury consultant.
‘There is a generational understanding among older people of, how could a woman be abused whilst texting such loving messages to her abuser?
The case was weakened, Callahan believes, by the absence of celebrity co-conspirators
Maureen Callahan: ‘Combs will not be remorseful, not hindered by this verdict. He will not seek to do better or turn his life around.’ Listen now
‘I will also say this – I wouldn’t put it past Sean Combs if he had gotten to at least one or two of the jurors.
‘We heard that when the jury went into deliberations, one of them was being so recalcitrant that the other 11 were highly alarmed.
‘I thought to myself then, I don’t like this.’
Callahan highlighted the dangerous precedent the verdict sets for victims trying to hold the rich and powerful accountable.
She also warned that Diddy will feel ’emboldened’ and continue his abusive behaviour upon release.
‘I can only hope the judge gives deep thought to the message Diddy’s sentencing will send’, she said.
‘Not just to abused women, but to celebrities, the wealthy and the powerful, who, now for good reason – really do believe they are above the law.
‘Combs will not be remorseful, not hindered by this verdict. He will not seek to do better or turn his life around.
‘I can only hope that America’s five-star hotels will stop taking his bookings from now on.’
To listen to the explosive interview with Maureen Callahan in full, search for The Trial of Diddy now, wherever you get your podcasts.
