{"id":29722,"date":"2025-07-02T17:08:58","date_gmt":"2025-07-02T17:08:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/?p=29722"},"modified":"2025-07-02T17:08:58","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T17:08:58","slug":"after-split-verdict-in-diddy-trial-supporters-chant-free-puff-outside-courthouse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/?p=29722","title":{"rendered":"After Split Verdict in Diddy Trial, Supporters Chant &#8216;Free Puff&#8217; Outside Courthouse"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"article-subheading text-utility-300\">Sean &#8220;Diddy&#8221; Combs was found not guilty of the most serious charges he faced on Wednesday<\/h2>\n<div id=\"mntl-article-meta-dynamic_1-0\" class=\"comp mntl-article-meta-dynamic mntl-article-meta mntl-block pre-content\" data-tracking-container=\"true\">\n<div id=\"people-bylines_1-0\" class=\"comp people-bylines mntl-bylines text-utility-200\">\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_1-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\">Supporters of<a href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/tag\/sean-diddy-combs\/\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\">\u00a0Sean &#8220;Diddy&#8221; Combs<\/a>\u00a0chanted his name as members of his family left the courthouse Wednesday, shortly after the media mogul was acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering charges in a closely followed high-profile federal trial in New York City.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Free Puff! Free Puff!&#8221; some gathered outside the courtroom chanted, while others chanted &#8220;Bad Boy! Bad Boy!&#8221;<\/p>\n<div id=\"mntl-sc-block_2-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-adslot mntl-block\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_3-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\">Combs, 55,<a href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/diddy-split-verdict-trial-11761102\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\">\u00a0was convicted<\/a>\u00a0on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, and could face up to 20 years in prison if he is sentenced to consecutive maximum prison terms, per CNN.<\/p>\n<div id=\"mntl-sc-block_4-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-adslot mntl-block\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_5-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\">A large crowd gathered outside the courthouse Wednesday, including members of the media, as well as contingents of Combs supporters and protestors. Combs&#8217; mother Janice walked out of the courthouse surrounded by her grandchildren, including Justin Combs, Chance Combs, and twins D&#8217;Lila and Jessie Combs, who smiled as the crowd both cheered and chanted.<\/p>\n<div id=\"mntl-sc-block_6-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-adslot mntl-block\"><\/div>\n<figure id=\"mntl-sc-block_7-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block people-sc-block-image mntl-sc-block-image mntl-sc-block-image--no-theme no-theme figure-landscape figure-high-res\">\n<div class=\"figure-media\">\n<div class=\"img-placeholder\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"mntl-sc-block-image_1-0\" class=\"mntl-image mntl-image universal-image__image lazyloadwait lazyloaded\" src=\"https:\/\/people.com\/thmb\/vqI9UbRF9gsElFMhnz21uICJZMM=\/4000x0\/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x209:751x211):format(webp)\/sean-diddy-combs-071224-1-be0837e501244a9b92923742c4a7cbef.jpg\" sizes=\"auto, 4000px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/people.com\/thmb\/vqI9UbRF9gsElFMhnz21uICJZMM=\/4000x0\/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x209:751x211):format(webp)\/sean-diddy-combs-071224-1-be0837e501244a9b92923742c4a7cbef.jpg 4000w\" alt=\"Sean &quot;Diddy&quot; Combs attends Sean &quot;Diddy&quot; Combs Fulfills $1 Million Pledge To Howard University At Howard Homecoming \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u0080\u00c2\u0093 Yardfest at Howard University on October 20, 2023\" width=\"1500\" height=\"1000\" data-src=\"https:\/\/people.com\/thmb\/vqI9UbRF9gsElFMhnz21uICJZMM=\/4000x0\/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x209:751x211):format(webp)\/sean-diddy-combs-071224-1-be0837e501244a9b92923742c4a7cbef.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/people.com\/thmb\/vqI9UbRF9gsElFMhnz21uICJZMM=\/4000x0\/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x209:751x211):format(webp)\/sean-diddy-combs-071224-1-be0837e501244a9b92923742c4a7cbef.jpg 4000w\" data-sizes=\"4000px\" data-expand=\"300\" data-tracking-container=\"true\" data-img-lightbox=\"true\" data-click-tracked=\"true\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption id=\"mntl-figure-caption_1-0\" class=\"comp mntl-figure-caption text-utility-100 figure-article-caption\"><span class=\"figure-article-caption-text\">Sean &#8220;Diddy&#8221; Combs.<\/span>Shareif Ziyadat\/Getty<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_8-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\">Combs will remain in a holding cell until 1 p.m., when Judge Arun Subramanian will decide whether to release the music mogul on bond prior to sentencing.<\/p>\n<div id=\"mntl-sc-block_9-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-adslot mntl-block collapsed\">\n<div id=\"mm-ads-native-fluid_1-0\" class=\"comp mm-ads-native-fluid mm-ads-native \" data-right-rail-index=\"2\">\n<div id=\"mm-ads-native__adunit_1-0\" class=\"comp mm-ads-native__adunit mm-ads-gpt-dynamic-adunit mm-ads-gpt-adunit scads-to-load gpt native dynamic js-immediate-ad js-immediate-ad-loaded\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_10-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\">If Combs had been convicted on the charges of sex trafficking or racketeering, he could have spent the rest of his life in prison. Instead, it&#8217;s relatively good news for the music mogul, who has spent the past several months behind bars and whose public reputation has taken a massive hit in the wake of the charges.<\/p>\n<div id=\"mntl-sc-block_11-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-adslot mntl-block\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_12-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\">Combs&#8217; star-powered defense team successfully argued that prosecutors had failed to prove the serious charges.<\/p>\n<div id=\"mntl-sc-block_13-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-adslot mntl-block\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_14-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\">Over the course of the trial, which began in May, prosecutors called 34 witnesses over the course of 29 days of testimony. Among them was\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/tag\/cassie\/\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\">Casandra &#8220;Cassie&#8221; Ventura<\/a>, Combs&#8217; ex, with whom he was in a relationship for 11 years.<\/p>\n<div id=\"mntl-sc-block_15-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-adslot mntl-block\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_16-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\">Prosecutors sought to prove that she had been coerced into participating in &#8220;Freak Offs,&#8221; which were elaborate sex performances with male sex workers.<\/p>\n<div id=\"mntl-sc-block_17-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-adslot mntl-block\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_18-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\"><strong><em>Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/people-true-crime-newsletter-sign-up-8692775\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\">PEOPLE&#8217;s free True Crime newsletter<\/a>\u00a0for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<div id=\"mntl-sc-block_19-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-adslot mntl-block\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_20-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\">Ventura, who was eight and a half months pregnant,\u00a0gave several days of emotional testimony describing abuse and detailing the &#8220;Freak Offs.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div id=\"mntl-sc-block_21-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-adslot mntl-block\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_22-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\">Combs&#8217; attorneys argued throughout the trial that the sexual encounters had been consensual and introduced several exhibits, including text messages, intended to reinforce that argument.<\/p>\n<div id=\"mntl-sc-block_23-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-adslot mntl-block\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_24-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\">Though Combs was acquitted on the most serious counts, he still faces several dozen lawsuits accusing him of sexual misconduct, meaning his legal battles will continue. Still, being found not guilty in federal court is a massive victory for Combs, who now sports gray hair, having spent the months leading up to his highly anticipated trial behind bars.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; &nbsp; Sean &#8220;Diddy&#8221; Combs was found not guilty of the most serious charges he faced on Wednesday Supporters of\u00a0Sean &#8220;Diddy&#8221; Combs\u00a0chanted his name as members of his family left &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":29723,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29722","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29722","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=29722"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29722\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29724,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29722\/revisions\/29724"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/29723"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=29722"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=29722"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=29722"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}