Several prominent news outlets, including ABC News, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Associated Press, Vox Media, and Business Insider, have filed a joint court motion requesting permission to view the wild videos from Diddy‘s infamous “Freak-offs.”
It’s not just the journalists only, they want the Judge to allow the public to also view these sexually explicit videos captured from Diddy’s freak-off parties.
Well, it’s up to the Judge to grant the motion or reject it.
In a court filing yesterday, legal council representing the Associated Press, Business Insider, Vox Media, Wall Street Journal and others requested that Judge Arun Subramanian permit both the public and the press to view videos of Combs’ “freak-offs,” in which the rap mogul engaged in days-long, drug-fueled sexual experiences. Combs’ ex-girlfriend Casandra “Cassie” Ventura testified against him on Tuesday, alleging that Combs was physically and psychologically abusive toward her during these events, which also involved male escorts.
“While the News organizations appreciate that some trial exhibits in this case may be sexually explicit and sensitive for the alleged victims, the public and the press should be permitted to view and consider this evidence (which lies at the heart of the Government’s case), consistent with the first Amendment right of access to criminal trials,” reads the filing.
The news outlets are not requesting copies of the videos themselves; rather, they want the ability to see them as they’re presented to the jury. The Combs trial is not televised, and members of the press and public are required to surrender all electronic devices before entering the courtroom. If the court finds that privacy interests would preclude news outlets at large from viewing them, then the outlets are instead asking for three pool reporters to watch and listen to the exhibits as they’re shown.
Though the council acknowledges that the videos are sensitive and that those shown in them have privacy interests, they argue that “given the central role that the videos may play in the determination of Mr. Combs’ guilt or innocence in this case, those privacy interests cannot overcome the public’s powerful First Amendment interest in monitoring the judicial process.”
A legal representative for Ventura, one of the key witnesses and victims in the case, swiftly responded with an opposition to the motion. Attorney Douglas H. Wigdor filed to deny the request last night, writing that the outlets “did not cite any case, and nor are we aware of any authority, granting this unprecedented request in a sex trafficking case to unseal videos depicting coercive sex acts.”
In his opposition, Wigdor cited that public right of access is not absolute, and that showing the videos would be a violation of Ventura’s privacy. He also argued that publicizing the videos would have a “chilling effect” on other victims, and that they have “minimal value to the public’s understanding of the trial.”
In court on Tuesday, both federal prosecutors and Combs’ defense attorneys argued in favor of sealing the “sexually explicit” evidence, which show nudity of alleged victims. The judge expressed First Amendment concerns and wondered if sealing the evidence could send a “signal” to the jury.
Combs’ attorney Marc Agnifilo characterized the “freak-off” videos as “adult pornography” and said the defense is not looking to seal anything that isn’t “sexually explicit,” calling it a “privacy issue.”
“What would The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times do with this information if they had it?” he asked in court.
It remains to be seen whether the judge will grant the motion and allow journalists access to the controversial footage. Stay with BSO for updates on this new development regarding Diddy’s sex trafficking trial.
