Sean “Diddy” Combs is no stranger to a court fight, but the rapper-producer’s latest struggle could be one of the biggest. The music mogul and entrepreneur is fighting federal charges and alleging that prosecutors are unfairly singling him out using a racially discriminatory application of the Mann Act, which was previously known as the White-Slave Traffic Act of 1910.
Diddy’s lawyers claim that the prosecution is selectively enforcing the century-old law against him based on his race and because of his “high-profile” status. The Mann Act, which was initially passed to make it a crime to transport women across state lines for immoral purposes, has a physically charged history, including its controversial use in racially sensitive cases against Black men.
Diddy’s lawyers filed a motion to dismiss Count Three of the Superseding Indictment, arguing that the law that made the hip-hop mogul a target is being applied “unreasonably” and without precedent.
“This case is unique in many respects,” the filing said. “But, perhaps most significantly, and most troubling, no white person has ever been the target of a remotely similar prosecution.”
Diddy’s lawyers stress that no one else has been prosecuted under RICO for analogous conduct, especially no white person. The charges against Combs claim that he and two long-term girlfriends occasionally retained male escorts from another state, an alleged action that the government now uses as the basis for the Mann Act charges.
The defense says the charges are a gross overreach. “The government’s concocted criminal case is primarily based on allegations that Mr. Combs and two of Mr. Combs’ long-time girlfriends at times added a third party, notably, a male escort into their sexual relationship,” the filing said.
It added that the Mann Act has a long and troubled history, noting that “what was racist in its inception has often been racist in its operation.” The law has drawn wide criticism over the decades as a measure used historically to criminalize Black men, especially in cases involving consensual relationships with white women.
In addition to fighting the charges, Diddy’s legal team is accusing the prosecution of trying to damage his reputation through biased leaks to the media and a public smear campaign. “The government’s investigation of this case is evidence of bias and animus,” the motion claims. “It has bent over backwards to humiliate Mr. Combs, and to taint the jury pool with pretrial publicity that panders to racist tropes.”
Diddy, who is being held in federal custody in Brooklyn, has been charged with a series of serious offenses, including sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and transportation to engage in prostitution.
His trial is scheduled for May, and his legal team is signaling that they will keep up a fight against what they describe as a morally compromised and racially charged prosecution. It’s uncertain yet if the court will dismiss the charge.
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