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Katrina, just in the last few moments, a
judge run Subramanian has sentenced Sha
Combmes to 5050
months in prison for those two offenses.
He was found guilty of trafficking to
engage in prostitution. Now, bear in
mind, Combmes has already been in prison
behind bars for 13 months in the
Metropolitan Detention Center. Uh so,
we're waiting on more details from our
colleagues inside the courtroom. There
are no cameras inside the court, but one
would imagine that the judge would take
off the time already served, which would
mean Combmes will have another 3 years
and roughly 1 month to serve. As I say,
those details aren't confirmed uh just
yet, but what I do know is that 50
months uh in prison is the time being
given to Sha Combmes for those offenses.
Now, the judge previously said uh a
serious uh sentence was needed, a
substantial sentence to quote, "Send a
message to abusers and victims alike
that exploitation and violence against
women is met with real accountability."
Shan Combmes earlier addressed the court
for the first time. He did not speak
during the trial and gave a lengthy
speech to the judge pleading for mercy,
saying he was a reformed individual and
asking for leniency. The judge said,
"Accountability is key here, not reform,
but accountability for the crimes you've
committed. The sentence is 50 months."
And Rich, just talk us through what were
the range of options or what were both
sides arguing for in terms of what they
wanted for a sentence.
starkly different. So the judges kind of
landed almost in the middle here. The
prosecution were asking for 11 years in
prison. Now each of the two offenses for
which he was found guilty could have
separately taken a sentence of up to 10
years. So in theory he could have been
looking at 20 years in prison. Uh the
defense however were saying that as I
said he's he's reformed. He's he's a
changed man. He gives to his community.
In their more recent arguments, they
said he can now work for the government
as someone working for young people and
and advocating for young people and for
prison reform. They were arguing he
should only be serving 14 months,
bearing in mind the 13 he's already
done. So basically, we want him out of
jail as soon as possible. So, the judge
has to take into account these two
arguments, of course. Plus, he had to
take into account Shawn Combmes's very
groveling, frankly, letter that he wrote
the judge, this four-page letter that he
sent to the judge yesterday, going on
about what a reformed individual he is,
the counseling and the therapy he's been
through and how he reflects on the
selfish character that he once was, and
how he apologizes for the hurt that he
caused. But as I say that the judge
considers that in this case a serious
sentence is necessary to send a message
to victims and abusers alike that this
kind of behavior wielding power wielding
influence using your money to gain
control over other people is not
acceptable behavior.
And Rich, just talk to us a little bit
about the scene at the courthouse there
because this trial lasted for weeks and
weeks and there were large crowds
outside, some supporting um Shan Combmes
and some absolutely not supporting him.
Yeah, absolutely. It's a real mix. I
mean, what we have to start by saying is
that media organizations from around the
world are here. This has gained a lot of
press attention. But immediately outside
the court behind me, as we've said, uh
opponents and proponents of combs alike,
we've had lots of people riding past on
their bikes shouting, "Free Diddy. This
is There was a gentleman here just a few
minutes ago saying this. This is a
modern lynching. There are people here
to witness a lynching in a digital age
is what he said." Then we've also had
people demonstrating saying that
violence against women and girls, this
kind of controlling, coercive behavior
that we heard about in court, especially
from the star witness Cassie Ventura
Combmes's for former partner. These
people are saying that a strong message
needs to be sent to people like Combmes
who want to use their money, power,
influence in society, the networks they
have to get people to do what they want
them to do. And Rich, just remind us how
big a star uh he was certainly over the
last couple of decades and what people
across the country what kind of place he
occupies in the national conscious.
Yeah, I mean he's huge Lewis. He came on
the hip hop scene in the early 90s. He's
changed his name over many years. So
depending on the the the identity he
went by, people know him by different
things. Puff Daddy, P Diddy, Diddy. Then
there was Love, Brother Love, then Back
to Diddy. He started a record label in
the early 90s which signed major artists
like Notorious B.I., Mary J. Blige,
Usher. He was heavily involved in the
hip-hop conflicts between New York and
the West Coast of the '9s, the the
shootings of Tupac Shakur and notorious
B.I.,
He started his own fashion label Sha
John. He was for many years the face of
Siak Vodka, the vodka seen in the
high-end nightclubs of New York owned by
Diagio over the course of his contract
with them. He was paid a billion
dollars. He then went on to start
another record label, a media production
company. This is a man who had his
fingers in a lot of pies. And that was a
big part of the argument that the
prosecution put forward that this was
such a powerful, wealthy, well-connected
individual that he was able to wield
this influence and this control over
these people, many of whom uh were young
women, as we've heard, who thought that
this was their way into the industry or,
you know, to to do what Diddy wanted
them to. But even those who weren't
young or female still felt this pressure
on them to do what what Diddy wanted
otherwise there would be retribution.
And we also heard in the court in the
trial about how there was this
aggressive character. There was this
this violent streak and that is now what
the judge has delivered this this
serious sentence to serve to show that
this kind of behavior isn't tolerated.
So 50 months for Shan Diddy Combmes.
Rich, thank you so much for that. This
is BBC News.
Right, let's bring in our panel to get a
bit of reaction there. Mora and Mali are
standing by for us. Mora, your reaction
to that sentencing there.
Unfortunately, it just shows the power
that people have and the way they abuse
it. Uh it's disappointing,
you know, just across the board that
there are people out there so vehemently
defending uh Shan Combmes and what he
has done over his career. But I just I
think that he is one example of
unfortunately probably many who have
abused the power they had and and the
privilege they had uh and made life
difficult for other people. Uh but also
is it's a story about you know taking
accountability and responsibility uh and
who you put your trust in. Uh, and I
think it's it's a really really harsh
harsh lesson. Uh, but something to watch
play out like this and to see people
supporting him in the face of what has
transpired, what we learned during those
court hearings, it's pretty hard to
stomach.
Yeah.
Yeah. Mali, just your initial thoughts
there hearing that what, just over four
years for the sentence.
Yeah, I agree a lot with what my
panelist just said, my uh co-panelist.
This uh sentence I think should have
been longer. his uh crimes against women
have been detailed and thorough and it's
incredibly uh disheartening and
disgusting uh what he has done to people
and it's on a much uh lower scale but
it's similar to Jeffrey Epste. We see a
rich and powerful person who is able to
abuse women and girls and use their
power, wealth, fame, connections to
important people to evade
responsibility. Um, so I'm glad he's
going to prison, but honestly I wish he
would be in prison longer.
And Mali, just just on the point that
that Mora was raising there, that that
sense of um frustration that many will
have seeing people supporting him
outside court and indeed uh wider across
the country. Does that speak to
something about the current climate in
the US about people attaching uh to
their ideologies and their points of
views and their identities more closely
than for example the facts that were
laid out in court.
I don't know if this is more uh
political and that it it's breaking down
on a political side. I think it's more
cold of personality. You have folks once
they get famous, you'll have people who
might irrationally hate them, but you're
also going to have folks who
irrationally love them. And since you
since Diddy was famous, as uh your
correspondent outside the courthouse
detailed, uh you're going to have people
who since they had some association with
his music and liked his music, are never
going to see uh the wrong he did, even
though it's on video and incredibly
detailed, uh because he's famous. It's
it's unfortunate, but we see that a lot.
And Mora, just uh to you on the um I
suppose the broader point of American
celebrity culture. Is it a sense do you
are you agreeing there with with Mali's
point that this is a kind of cult of
personality and that's why the support
was out there?
Absolutely. I think it's more of that
than it is a political thing. I think
it's people supported him when he was uh
you know really really big here in the
United States as far as his music career
uh and the really what he built around
him. Uh but and hearing the stories and
knowing what he built around him plus
what he was doing behind the scenes and
how he was actually holding people back
and and hurting careers that that
doesn't necessarily change their
viewpoint of him. It's troubling for
sure, but I I think that it's something
that we've seen not just with Shawn
Combmes, but with other celebrities and
people who have uh questionable
character traits, but yet because of
their support for them from years prior
or wherever they fell in into the, you
know, where they decided that they were
on their side for better, for worse,
they're going to stay there. Okay,
Mora, thank you. Mali, thank you. Just
want to bring in Rich again just
briefly, just 30 seconds. Rich, for
people who are just joining us, uh, tell
us what we've heard from the court
there.
Yes, Lewis. In the last few moments, the
judge Subramanian here in New York has
handed down his sentence to Sha Diddy
Combmes for those two charges, sex
trafficking to trafficking to engage in
prostitution. The sentence is 50 months
in prison. That's four years and two
months. He's already been behind bars
for 13 months.
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