Diddy update: Violent video emerges as civil lawyers seek dismissal, sanctions
It's been nearly two months since federal agents raided Sean 'Diddy' Combs' homes in Los Angeles and Miami in a criminal sex trafficking investigation.
A video of Sean “Diddy” Combs assaulting his former girlfriend eight years ago was published Friday by CNN, pushing his legal peril back into the public spotlight as litigation continues in his civil cases.
Lawyers for the hip-hop mogul, who is the subject of a federal criminal investigation, recently filed a dismissal motion in his federal sexual assault lawsuit. Lawyers for Universal Music Group also on Friday asked a federal judge to sanction plaintiff’s attorney Tyrone Blackburn for his tactics in another sexual assault lawsuit against UMG, Diddy and others on behalf of music producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones.
Diddy still does not have lawyers on record in Blackburn’s case, but his lawyers in his other cases have been busy: In addition to the federal dismissal motion, a dismissal motion was filed last month in a New York state sexual assault lawsuit. It was mooted Friday when plaintiff attorneys filed an amended complaint.
Diddy’s team hasn’t publicly acknowledged the new video, which was referenced in the Nov. 16 federal complaint from R&B singer Cassie, who is Diddy’s former longtime girlfriend and the woman assaulted in the video. UPDATE May 19: Diddy posted a video on social media. I discussed on LiveNOW:
The assault took place at the now-closed InterContinental Hotel in Los Angeles’ Century City after what the complaint describes as abusive escapades with hired sex workers that Diddy called “freak offs.”
Cassie and Diddy settled confidentially two days after the lawsuit was filed, and they released statements in the same email that said they were settling “amicably.”
Cassie’s lawyers at Wigdor LLP in New York City didn’t appear to expect such a fast ending: The settlement was announced on a Friday evening, a few hours after attorney Meredith Firetog posted on LinkedIn that she was “so honored to represent this woman, who has endured more than any human ever should, and has used her resilience and strength to hold those responsible accountable.”
Diddy’s lawyer at the time, Ben Brafman, said his client’s decision to settle “does not in any way undermine his flat-out denial of the claims.”
“Just so we’re clear, a decision to settle a lawsuit, especially in 2023, is is no way an admission of wrongdoing,” Brafman said in a statement. Diddy “is happy they got to a mutual settlement and wishes Ms. Ventura the best.”
Three weeks later, Firetog and her law partners Douglas H. Wigdor and Michael J. Willemin filed a new lawsuit on behalf of the woman under the Jane Doe plaintiff pseudonym. They continue to represent Cassie: Wigdor issued a statement on Friday after CNN published the video
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office said on Friday “if the conduct depicted occurred in 2016, unfortunately we would be unable to charge as he conduct would have occurred beyond the timeline where a crime of assault can be prosecuted.”
But Diddy already is facing a broader criminal investigation after federal agents raided his homes in Miami and Los Angeles on March 25 as part of an ongoing sex trafficking investigation.
There’s been no news about the criminal investigation since the raids, but Diddy’s civil lawyers filed a dismissal motion on May 10 in the federal sexual assault lawsuit accusing him and Bad Boy Entertainment President Harve Pierre of raping a 17-year-old girl in 2003.
The motion calls the “trigger warning” statement on the complaint “legally irrelevant” and “calculated to focus attention on its salacious and depraved allegations.”
“This stunt is intended to prominently showcase a baseless and time-barred claim, which was designed to cause the Combs Defendants unwanted publicity, embarrassment, and financial costs, so Plaintiff could extract an undeserved financial recovery from them,” according to the 17-page memorandum from Jonathan D. Davis and Anthony C. LoMonaco in New York City. It calls the single claim of violating New York City’s Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Law “entirely false and hideous.”
The plaintiff is identified in the court filings as Jane Doe, but Diddy’s lawyers wouldn’t stipulate to allowing her to proceed anonymously, and U.S. District Judge Jessica G.L. Clarke sided with them on Feb. 29 and said the woman must publicly identify herself because “without more specific support, Plaintiff fails to overcome the prejudice to Defendants and public interest factors implicated here.”
Diddy’s lawyers said the woman “has a public-facing identity.”
Judge Clarke said she doesn’t need to identify herself until after Clarke decides a motion for judgment on the pleadings for the corporate defendants, which was mooted when Wigdor filed an amended complaint on March 29 with more allegations about Bad Boy’s role, including that Combs “used the facts of his ownership of and title at Bad Boy in order to facilitate the unlawful conduct described herein.”
That’s the complaint Diddy’s May 10 motion seeks to dismiss. Wigdor’s firm is to file opposition by June 7.
UMG seeks sanctions after Lil Rod claim dismissal
Meanwhile, the sanctions motion filed Friday in the Lil Rod lawsuit follows Blackburn voluntarily dismissing all claims against UMG, Motown Records and UMG Chairman and CEO Sir Lucian Grainge, who was accused of financing Diddy’s illegal acts. Claims against Diddy still stand. Diddy’s son Justin Dior Combs also is a defendant.
UMG’s lawyers said the company incurred “more than $450,000 in legal fees and expenses” after Blackburn was told “that the claims and allegations were completely false and baseless.”
“They could have dismissed the claims and withdrawn all allegations against UMG at that point, but they did not. Instead, they doubled down, requiring UMG to prepare and file a costly motion to dismiss and to prepare and serve a Rule 11 motion,” according to a memorandum supporting the motion. Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure governs sanctions for attorneys who sign pleadings with misrepresentations to the court.
Blackburn dismissed his claims within 21 days of the motion, so UMG’s lawyers say he “may be saved by Rule 11’s 21 day safe harbor from the imposition of Rule 11 sanctions they richly deserve for their conduct.”
“But they cannot, and should not be permitted to dodge sanctions under this Court’s inherent power and under 28 U.S.C. § 1927,” according to the memo from Donald S. Zakarin of Pryor Cashman LLP. “The claims and allegations against UMG were completely baseless to begin with and should never have been brought. Plaintiff and Blackburn had no factual or legal basis for any of the claims asserted.”
Further, Zakarin said Blackburn’s “massively improper actions” are not “some outlier or aberration.”
“They are instead Blackburn’s MO,” Zakarin wrote, citing U.S. District Judge Denise Cote’s decision in an unrelated case to refer Blackburn to the Southern District of New York’s grievance committee over his failure to properly research venue. Cote’s April 3 order said “a reasonable inference” is Blackburn improperly files cases for media attention.
“If Judge Cote’s referral to the Southern District’s grievance committee was not sufficient to put a stop to Blackburn’s improper conduct, perhaps meaningful monetary sanctions that directly impact his wallet will,” Zakarin wrote. “One thing is clear: sanctions in this case are absolutely warranted.”
Blackburn has several high-profile rape and sexual assault lawsuits currently pending, including against rap superstar Nicki Minaj’s husband, Kenneth Petty, and, as of last week, hip-hop commentator and provocateur DJ Akademiks. He has not yet responded to the sanctions motion.
I discussed the source of the newly released hotel video and where Diddy goes from here on my LiveNOW interview.
I almost didn’t post the video because I’m settling into a new place and my background and lighting are very bad, but it’s still a decent interview and I’ll have my important books and cool trinkets on full display next time. Thank you for your support.
Past coverage:
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