(NewsNation) — Attorneys for Sean “Diddy” Combs filed a motion Wednesday asking a judge to set aside a jury verdict convicting him on federal prostitution charges or grant him a new trial on those charges alone.
Combs’ lawyers argued the prostitution convictions under the Mann Act are legally unsupported, constitutionally flawed, and inconsistent with longstanding Department of Justice policy.
Earlier this month, a jury convicted Combs on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution under the Mann Act, which has a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. He was acquitted of the more serious charges of racketeering and sex trafficking.
In their filing, lawyers said Combs is the only person ever convicted under this statute in which there was no commercial motive, no coercion, no sex and no financial benefit.
“We are aware of no other case in which a person was convicted under [the law] even though he made no money from the ‘prostitution,’ didn’t have sex with the alleged prostitutes, and didn’t arrange the ‘transportation’ with the intent of committing sexual assault, sex trafficking, or a sex crime involving a minor,” the motion stated.
A judge has the ability to set aside a jury verdict, but it’s a rare occurrence and only under specific circumstances. This occurs if a judge believes the jury’s decision is not supported by the evidence, is based on an error of law, or is influenced by improper factors.
Combs’ lawyers also argued the “unprecedented conviction” relied on a statute with racist origins and that it was never meant to apply to consenting adults.
They maintained during his trial that the acts conducted during sexual events he called “Freak Offs” were not coerced and that all participants had free will.
“Mr. Combs, at most, paid to engage in voyeurism as part of a ‘swingers’ lifestyle,” lawyers wrote. “That does not constitute ‘prostitution’ under a properly limited definition of the statutory term.”
They also contended that private performances between adults fall under constitutionally protected sexual expression under the First Amendment.
The defense said that if the judge does not agree to vacate the conviction, Combs should be given a new trial limited to the evidence related to the Mann Act charges, “due to severe spillover prejudice from reams of inflammatory evidence” related to the sex-trafficking and racketeering allegations.
During the trial, the government brought forth two of Combs’ former partners, singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura and “Jane,” a social media influencer who testified under a pseudonym.
Ventura testified about the decade-long abuse she said she faced at Combs’ hands. She said she felt pressured to engage in hundreds of “Freak Offs” with sex workers. These encounters were often filmed, and Ventura said she was threatened by Combs, who used the videos as leverage over her.
Jane testified for six days about sexual performances she called “hotel nights,” saying she felt coerced into engaging in them as recently as last August but did so because she loved — and still loves — Combs.
Earlier this week, Combs’ lawyers also submitted a renewed request for his release from jail as he awaits sentencing, saying there were “exceptional circumstances” that warrant his bail.
In their bail motion filed Tuesday, Combs’ attorneys laid out several reasons why he should be released, including the argument that he is the only person with a similar conviction under the Mann Act to remain incarcerated.