Shawn ‘Diddy’ Combs’ lawyers argue that his four-year sentence for prostitution crimes is excessive, citing the acquittal’s conduct as a major issue in the appeal.
New York: Lawyers for Sean “Diddy” Combs urged an appeals court to throw out the hip-hop mogul’s more than four-year prison sentence for prostitution-related crimes. The disgraced artist was not present at the Manhattan courthouse as his defense sought to convince the three-judge panel.
Defense attorney Alexandra Shapiro argued that the sentence of four years and two months was unreasonably long. He claimed that District Judge Arun Subramaniam should not have considered the evidence related to the charges leading to acquittal.
“The evidence the judge was relying on was completely different and actually acquitted him of the conduct,” Shapiro said. Combs was acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering but convicted of two counts of prostitution transportation.
Prosecutors disagreed with the defense’s position on the evidence. He pointed to an instance where Combs showed videos of Ventura at sex parties before another event.
“These incidents are exclusively transport-related,” prosecutor Christy Slavich told the court. Slavik used the pizza analogy to highlight how certain pieces of evidence were relevant to the conviction.
The court did not immediately rule on what one judge called an “extraordinarily difficult case.” Combs is also appealing his conviction, although this was not discussed in detail.
He is being held in the low-security Fort Dix prison in New Jersey. Combs is scheduled for release in spring 2028.
