Diddy’s lawyers appeal, accusing judge of acting as ‘thirteenth juror’

Sean “Diddy” CombsThe legal team has filed a new appeal accusing Judge Arun Subramanian of acting as the “thirteenth juror” in his criminal trial in place of the judge.

Diddy’s lead attorney asked for his “immediate release” from prison, arguing that the court determined his 50-month sentence after his conviction on two prostitution-related charges by “relying heavily on acquitted conduct.”

Meanwhile, Sean “Diddy” Combs recently made headlines for breaking a few prison rules, including allegedly drinking alcohol behind bars.

Diddy’s legal team has filed a new appeal that somehow targets Judge Arun Subramanian, intensifying their fight against what they call his “draconian” 50-month sentence.

In court documents filed by lead attorney Alexander Shapiro, Diddy’s team accused the presiding judge of acting as the “thirteenth juror” in the rapper’s criminal trial by handing down a sentence “based on the very allegations of coercion and other acquitted conduct that the jury had rejected.”

Shapiro demanded that Judge Subramanian effect Diddy’s “immediate release” from prison, and added that the Court “either enter a judgment of acquittal or vacate and place remand for resentencing.”

In the filing, Shapiro alleged that Diddy’s constitutional rights were violated as the court incorrectly said it would consider the more violent charges of sex trafficking and racketeering even though the music mogul had been acquitted of them.

She said the court ignored the verdict when it “insisted on the need to impose a ‘severe sentence’ reflecting the ‘aggravating factors I mentioned,’ particularly ‘coercion’.”

A representative for the Bad Boy Entertainment founder said in a letter to rolling stone that the brief “argues that the district court imposed a record sentence based on conduct that the jury explicitly rejected, in direct conflict with the 2024 Sentencing Guidelines and fundamental constitutional principles.”

They added: “The filing asks the Court of Appeal to vacate the sentence and order immediate release, or to vacate the convictions or to pretrial detain for a statutory re-sentencing limited strictly to the offenses for which the conviction was based.”

Diddy was initially charged with sex trafficking, racketeering, and transportation to engage in prostitution. However, he was acquitted of the first two charges and convicted of two prostitution-related charges.

He endured months of a grueling trial during which some of his alleged actions were revealed, including physical assaults on his ex-girlfriends, as well as arranging “freak-offs” where prostitutes are forced to have sex with his partners while he directs and watches.

Shapiro’s filing presents “a separate and independent basis for overturning Combs’ convictions” as she argued that her First Amendment rights were violated by the court as a “consumer of sexual performances that took place during scares and hotel nights.”

They claim the “Bad Boy For Life” rapper was only an “observer and producer,” adding that he did not have sexual relations with the people who participated in the orgies he filmed.

Diddy has already spent a year at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn following his arrest in September 2024.

After his conviction, he asked Judge Subramanian to transfer him to FCI Fort Dix in New Jersey so he could be close to his family and also deal with his substance abuse issues.

However, he made headlines for violating some prison rules by getting involved in a three-way conference call, as well as making a homemade spirit himself using Fanta, sugar and apples, then letting it ferment for two weeks.

At the time, reports suggested prison officials considered moving him to another section, but ultimately allowed him to stay there.