Why Diddy’s Lawyers Are Returning To Court Ahead Of The Rapper’s Sentencing Hearing

The sex-trafficking trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs may be over, but there’s still more business that needs to be handled within the courtroom. As it stands, the 58-year-old hip hop mogul is waiting to be sentenced, with that hearing set to take place in October. Combs’ legal team, in the meantime, has continued to work on his behalf. It would now appear that the attorneys are going to return to court just ahead of the sentencing hearing. And it would appear that this situation has to do with Diddy’s lawyers’ attempts to have him released.

A new court hearing has officially been set by Judge Arun Subramanian, who presided over the Sean John founder’s sex-trafficking trial earlier this summer. Per ABC News, Diddy’s lawyers will be present at the hearing to argue for his acquittal on the two transportation to engage in prostitution charges he was found guilty of under the Mann Act. The hearing is set to take place in Manhattan and will occur on September 25, which is the week before the rapper is set to be sentenced.

This latest hearing was initiated due to a motion filed by Sean Combs’ attorneys, with which they requested Judge Subramanian either toss his convictions or present him with a new trial. On the other side of that equation, prosecutors argued that neither an acquittal or new trial would be fitting in this particular situation. In the prosecution’s eyes, the judge’s ruling was supported by “more than sufficient evidence.”

Diddy received a mixed verdict in July, which saw him not only convicted of the prostitution-related charges but also acquitted of racketeering (RICO) and sex-trafficking. As legal analysts have since noted, the latter two charges were considered the most severe ones that the “Workin” performer was facing. The verdict came down after weeks of testimony shared by individuals summoned by prosecutors. Also, Diddy’s legal team switched strategies and, ultimately, the defense rested after only 20 minutes.

Much has been said about how the legal proceedings played out with some journalists discussing what it was like being present in the courtroom. All the while, one of Diddy’s top lawyers, Marc Agnifilo, has weighed in on whether he thought the trial was fair. While sharing his take on that, Agnifilo opined that the case “wasn’t perfect” but that Judge Subramanian “did an outstanding job in being thoughtful, being careful, giving a lot of time to the parties.”

Since the trial ended, Combs’ lawyers have made multiple attempts to get their client out on bail, with one attempt involving a deal with $50 million. The legal team has also argued that home confinement could be a potential option for the rapper. As for whether the star’s attorneys will make similar arguments during the newly set hearing, that remains to be seen. At this time, though, Combs remains incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.

Of course, it remains to be seen what will occur during the sentencing hearing, which is scheduled for October 3. A former collaborator of Diddy’s, Aubrey O’Day, thinks his lawyers will use the hearing as a stepping stone to rehabilitating the rapper’s image. O’Day’s thoughts are purely speculative at this point, as the public can only wait to see how both judicial hearings play out.