Diddy confirms he won't testify, praises trial judge

The question was posed by the Manhattan jurist after the prosecution rested following a more than six-week-long presentation of evidence against the hip-hop maven.

Later in the afternoon, the defence rested without calling any witnesses.

In a routine occurrence after prosecutors rest at criminal trials, Combs' lawyers made arguments to toss out the charges, arguing the charges were not proven.

The judge said he will rule at a later date.

Prosecutors have called 34 witnesses to try to prove sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy charges that resulted in Combs' September arrest, including two ex-girlfriends of Combs who testified they felt coerced into marathon sex events with male sex workers that were called "freak-offs" or "hotel nights".

Defence lawyers, though, say they were consensual sexual encounters consistent with the swingers lifestyle.

Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty and has remained incarcerated without bail in a federal lockup in Brooklyn after multiple judges concluded last autumn that he was a danger to the community.

It is standard practise at federal criminal trials for the judge to directly question the defendant about the decision to testify or not, in part to ensure that the defendant knows it is his decision, regardless of what his lawyers have told him.

When it came time for Subramanian to question Combs after prosecutors rested, the judge asked him how he is doing.

"I'm doing great, your honour," the Bad Boy Entertainment founder answered, before volunteering a compliment to the judge before another question could be posed.

"I want to tell you thank you, you're doing an excellent job," Combs said.

Combs said he "thoroughly" discussed the matter with his lawyers before deciding not to testify.

"That is my decision, your honour," Combs said, adding: "That is solely my decision."

Prodded by the judge, he clarified further: "I mean, it's my decision with my lawyers ... My decision to make. I'm making it."

Since the trial began in early May, government witnesses have included former employees of Combs' companies but the bulk of its proof has come from the testimony of two former girlfriends: Casandra "Cassie" Ventura and a model and internet personality known to jurors only by the pseudonym "Jane".

Ventura, 38, testified for four days during the trial's first week, saying she felt pressured to engage in hundreds of "freak offs" because the encounters would enable her to be intimate with Combs after performing sexually with male sex workers while he watched them slather one another with baby oil and sometimes filmed the encounters.

Jane testified for six days about the sexual performances she labelled "hotel nights," saying that she was putting them into perspective after beginning therapy three months ago.

She said she felt coerced into engaging in them as recently as last August, but did so because she loved and still loves Combs.

Ventura was in a relationship with Combs from 2007 to 2018 while Jane was frequently with him from 2021 until his arrest, which cancelled her plan to meet him at the New York hotel where he was taken into custody.

Throughout the trial, defence lawyers have made their case for exoneration through their questioning of witnesses, including several who testified reluctantly or only after they were granted immunity from any crimes they may have committed.

Combs has been active in his defence, writing notes to his lawyers and sometimes helping them decide when to stop questioning a witness.

In the past week, prosecutors and defence lawyers have shown jurors more than 40 minutes of recordings Combs made of the "freak offs".

Several jurors occasionally seemed squeamish as they viewed and listened to audio of the encounters but most did not seem to react.

In her opening statement, Geragos had called the videos "powerful evidence that the sexual conduct in this case was consensual and not based on coercion".

Closing arguments were scheduled for Thursday.

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