What we covered here
• Combs sentenced: Sean “Diddy” Combs has been sentenced to four years and two months in prison for his conviction on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. He also must pay a $500,000 fine.
• Combs speaks: He addressed the court earlier and begged the judge for mercy, calling his actions “disgusting, shameful and sick.” Combs apologized to the victims and “all the victims of domestic violence.”
• Defense response: Brian Steel, a defense attorney for Combs, slammed the judge’s sentence as “un-American.” Steel told CNN he thinks the sentence “sends the wrong message” and argued Combs was sentenced for conduct the jury did not find him guilty of.
Combs defense attorney argues sentence was “un-American” and says they will appeal
A defense attorney for Sean “Diddy” Combs slammed the judge’s sentence of his client of 50 months in prison as “un-American” in comments after the hearing today.
Brian Steel told CNN he thinks the sentence “sends the wrong message” and argued Combs was sentenced for conduct the jury did not find him guilty of.
“People get — god forbid — falsely accused of a crime, they go to trial, they have all the witnesses testify, credibility is determined, the jury reaches a verdict, and finds in their favor — and then they get sentenced for the same exact conduct that the jury found that they did not commit,” Steel said. “It seems un-American.”
Steel told CNN’s Kara Scannell that since Combs was not convicted on sex trafficking and racketeering charges, the judge should not have considered those elements in his sentence.
“There is no such corresponding element in the Mann Act,” he said. “This was a very hard sentence.”
Asked if he thought the judge was wrong, Steel said, “We’ll find out on appeal.”
The defense attorney said he talked to Combs after the sentencing but declined to give more details about their conversation or how his client was feeling. “Two years is an eternity in custody,” Steel said.
Marc Agnifilo, another one of Comb’s defense attorneys, said outside the courthouse that the legal team feels they have “strong basis to appeal.”
“The jury reached a verdict on coercion and found there was not coercion and I think the judge said coercion today as a basis for his sentence at least a dozen times,” Agnifilo said, adding that he thinks this is “unconstitutional.”
Here are the judge’s key lines before he sentenced Diddy to 50 months in prison
From CNN’s Aditi Sangal, Lauren del Valle, Nicki Brown and Kara Scannell
Sean “Diddy” Combs at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute Gala in New York, on January 5, 2017.Lucas Jackson/Reuters
Judge Arun Subramanian delivered powerful remarks before sentencing Sean “Diddy” Combs to four years in prison and levying a $500,000 fine on the rapper.
Here’s the key lines as Subramanian addressed Combs directly:
- Considering all of Combs’ history: Subramanian clarified that the sentence was for the offenses of conviction — the Mann Act charges — and not the sex trafficking and racketeering charges he was acquitted of. He also said that while the drugs may be behind the Combs’ violent behavior, “the court has to consider all of your history here.”
- Combs’ success and devotion to family: Subramanian said he has considered that Combs is devoted to his family, a self-made artist and businessman who has “inspired and lifted up communities,” and noted that his successes are even more impressive given the struggles in his childhood.
- On the defense’s arguments: Subramianian rejected the defense’s attempt to “characterize the “Freak Offs” and hotel nights as intimate consensual experiences or just a “sex drugs and rock ‘n’ roll’ story.”
- On victims: Subramianian said a substantial sentence must be given to send a message that abuse of women is met with accountability, adding that the court is “not assured” that Combs would not commit these acts again. Combs “irreparably harmed two women,” the judge said. Subramianian also thanked the witnesses and victims for coming forward and telling the world what happened.
Other notable developments from the afternoon:
After lunch, there were short statements from a reverend and a re-entry program head. The defense wrapped its statement, followed by a short rebuttal from prosecution, who pointed that only one of the five defense attorneys today mentioned the victims. Then Combs addressed the court, using similar material from the letter he wrote to the judge yesterday.
