Sean Combs: The verdict.

Summary

Dateline NBC Podcast Summary Episode: Sean Combs: The Verdict
Host: NBC News
Release Date: July 3, 2025

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Introduction

In this gripping episode of Dateline NBC, NBC News dives deep into the highly publicized racketeering trial of music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs. Hosted by Blaine Alexander with on-the-ground reporting by Chloe Melas, the episode provides an in-depth analysis of the trial's conclusion, exploring the verdict's implications, courtroom reactions, and the potential future legal maneuvers by both the defense and prosecution teams.

Verdict Details

After an intense deliberation period spanning three days and over 13 hours, the jury delivered a split verdict on Sean Combs' charges. Chloe Melas breaks down the outcome:

• Acquittals: Sean Combs was found not guilty on charges of RICO conspiracy and sex trafficking.

  • "Not guilty on RICO conspiracy and sex trafficking," [02:28] Chloe Melas reports.

• Convictions: He was convicted on two counts related to the transportation and engagement in prostitution. This includes:

  • Transportation: Involvement in moving individuals to participate in illegal activities.
  • Prostitution: Hiring men to perform at drug-fueled sex parties known as "freak offs."

This partial victory for Combs marks a significant triumph for his legal team, dubbed the "Dream Team," while simultaneously representing a substantial setback for the prosecutors involved.

Courtroom Reactions

The episode vividly captures the emotional atmosphere inside the courtroom during the verdict announcement:

• Combs' Reaction:

  • "He held his hands in prayer form and kind of looked over at the jury. You could tell he was overcome with emotion," [02:59] Chloe Melas describes.
  • At one point, Combs was seen kneeling and praying over his chair, showcasing his emotional turmoil.

• Defense Team:

  • Tenny Garagos, one of Combs' lawyers, was visibly moved, "began to cry. We saw her wiping away tears," [03:11] Chloe Melas notes.

• Family and Supporters:

  • Combs' mother attended court daily, expressing support by blowing kisses, while his children responded positively by clapping.
  • Outside the courthouse, over 150 supporters rallied, chanting "free Diddy" and donning his signature "free puffy shirts," accompanied by a substantial police presence.

Prosecution's Response

Despite the setback, prosecutors maintained a composed front:

• Public Statement:

  • They expressed gratitude towards investigators and the victims, recognizing the challenges in bringing such cases to light.
    • "We fight for justice," [03:50] as stated by Chloe Melas.

• Courtroom Demeanor:

  • The prosecution remained stoic, masking their disappointment while acknowledging the jury's decision.

Jury Deliberation Insights

Chloe Melas provides an insider’s perspective on the jury's behavior and the deliberation process:

• Juror Behavior:

  • Many jurors appeared disengaged, with signs of boredom such as nodding off, rolling eyes, and shaking heads during the trial.
    • "Some of them are sleeping, they're rolling their eyes, they're shaking their heads," [04:21]

• Unexpected Deliberation Outcome:

  • Originally anticipated to be an extended and possibly inconclusive deliberation, the jury reached a verdict surprisingly quickly after additional deliberation time.
  • "A good night's sleep and some coffee might have helped them come to a unanimous decision," [08:07] Chloe reflects.

Bail Hearing and Future Sentencing

Following the verdict, a bail hearing addressed whether Combs could be released pending sentencing:

• Bail Decision:

  • Combs' bail was denied, resulting in him being held at Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) until the sentencing.
  • The judge cited prior bail denial from September and highlighted evidence of Combs’ violent behavior:
    • "This evidence shows that Combs broke laws while he was under federal investigation," [11:30]

• Potential Sentencing Outcomes:

  • Mandatory Maximum: 10 years.
  • Defense's Request: Approximately 24 months.
  • Prosecutors' Demand: Upwards of 50 months.
  • "He's gonna get a couple of years time served, maybe out a little early for good behavior," [12:49] according to Chloe.

• Pre-Sentencing Hearing:

  • Scheduled for July 8th, both legal teams are expected to negotiate a possible sentencing agreement.

Possible Appeal Process

Combs' legal strategy may involve an appeal:

• Appellate Representation:
  • Led by Alexandra Shapiro, Combs' appellate lawyer.
  • "They are literally putting things on the record for a potential appeal," [13:43] Chloe notes, indicating ongoing preparations for legal challenges.

Victims' Statements and Reactions

Key victim Cassie Ventura's stance influenced the bail hearing:

• Legal Statement:

  • Ventura, through her lawyer Doug Wigdor, expressed concerns about Combs posing a danger to the victims and the community.
    • "Ms. Ventura believes that Mr. Combs is likely to pose a danger to the victims who testified in this case, including herself," [11:45]

• Prosecutors' Satisfaction:

  • They expressed approval of holding Combs accountable, stating they are "pleased that he's finally been held responsible for two federal crimes," [12:15] though they wished for broader convictions.

Juror Conduct and Post-Verdict

The episode touches on the potential for jurors to speak out post-trial:

• Juror Confidentiality:
  • Although jurors are not prohibited from speaking publicly, the judge advised discretion.
  • "They all left in a sprinter van together. Who knows where they go from here," [15:02] Chloe speculates, anticipating media outreach attempts.

Final Thoughts and Future Implications

Chloe Melas reflects on the broader implications of the verdict and the trial’s impact:

• Personal Insights:

  • "I have learned a lot about sexual abuse," [15:16] Chloe shares, emphasizing the trial's significance within the music and entertainment industries.

• Ongoing Story:

  • Despite the verdict, the story remains active with upcoming sentencing hearings and the possibility of an appeal, suggesting that the case will continue to unfold in the public eye.

Conclusion

This episode of Dateline NBC offers a comprehensive examination of the verdict in Sean Combs' racketeering trial, capturing the emotional and legal intricacies of the case. Through meticulous reporting and firsthand accounts, listeners gain a nuanced understanding of the courtroom dynamics, the impact on all parties involved, and the potential future legal steps that await Combs. As the saga continues, Dateline NBC remains committed to providing thorough and insightful coverage of this high-stakes legal battle.

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Notable Quotes:

• "Not guilty on RICO conspiracy and sex trafficking," — Chloe Melas [02:28]
• "He held his hands in prayer form and kind of looked over at the jury. You could tell he was overcome with emotion," — Chloe Melas [02:59]
• "We fight for justice," — Chloe Melas [03:50]
• "Some of them are sleeping, they're rolling their eyes, they're shaking their heads," — Chloe Melas [04:21]
• "A good night's sleep and some coffee might have helped them come to a unanimous decision," — Chloe Melas [08:07]
• "This evidence shows that Combs broke laws while he was under federal investigation," — Chloe Melas [11:30]
• "Ms. Ventura believes that Mr. Combs is likely to pose a danger to the victims who testified in this case, including herself," — Chloe Melas [11:45]
• "They're putting things on the record for a potential appeal," — Chloe Melas [13:43]
• "I have learned a lot about sexual abuse," — Chloe Melas [15:16]

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This detailed summary encapsulates the critical elements of the Sean Combs trial as covered in the Dateline NBC podcast episode, providing listeners with a comprehensive overview of the trial's outcome and its broader implications.

Transcript

[Blaine Alexander]

Close your eyes.

[Chloe Melas]

Exhale.

[Blaine Alexander]

Feel your body relax and let go.

[Chloe Melas]

Of whatever you're carrying today.

[Blaine Alexander]

Well, I'm letting go of the worry.

[Chloe Melas]

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[Blaine Alexander]

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[Blaine Alexander]

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[Chloe Melas]

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[Blaine Alexander]

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[Chloe Melas]

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[Chloe Melas]

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[Blaine Alexander]

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[Chloe Melas]

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[Blaine Alexander]

Head to Claude.com, that's C-L-A-U-E.com and start chatting with Claude for free. This is on Trial, a special series from Dateline True Crime Weekly bringing you daily coverage of the Sean Combs racketeering trial. I'm Blaine Alexander and it's Wednesday, July 2nd. Just a heads up. In this episode, we're going to be talking about some graphic details and harrowing subject matter today. After more than 13 hours of deliberation over three days, the jury emerged with a verdict. NBC news correspondent Chloe Melas has been downtown the duration of this entire trial and she joins us now in front of the federal courthouse to tell us what the jury decided and how the courtroom reacted. Chloe, Hi.

[Chloe Melas]

Hey, Blaine.

[Blaine Alexander]

We have a verdict. Wow.

[Chloe Melas]

We do. And it's split.

[Blaine Alexander]

It's split. So just kind of break down this verdict for us. He was facing five counts. How did the jury decide here?

[Chloe Melas]

Not guilty on RICO conspiracy and sex trafficking. Guilty on two counts of transportation. To engage in Prostitution, that's the escort element. Hiring these men who would perform at those drug fueled sex parties known as freak offs. This is a huge victory for Combs legal team that's been nicknamed the Dream Team and a massive blow for the prosecutors.

[Blaine Alexander]

Let's talk about the reaction inside the courtroom. I'm so curious how Combs was reacting when the verdict was read.

[Chloe Melas]

He held his hands in prayer form and kind of looked over at the jury. You could tell he was overcome with emotion and then at one point kneeling down on the floor and praying over his chair. There's a really powerful courtroom sketch for anybody that's interested since there aren't cameras in the courtroom. One of his lawyers, Tenny Garagos, began to cry. We saw her wiping away tears. His mother, who's been in court every single day blowing kisses and his children clapping. And outside the courthouse, a lot of supporters, people saying free Diddy and people wearing free puffy shirts. I mean, there is a massive amount of people here. Definitely over 150 people. A pretty big police presence.

[Blaine Alexander]

You mentioned that this was a big blow to the prosecution. How were they reacting when the verdict was read?

[Chloe Melas]

Stoic. But obviously they're disappointed. They've released a statement saying that they are grateful for all of the investigators who took part in this as well as the victims who came forward. And they acknowledged how difficult it is to speak out about crimes like sex trafficking and that they fight for justice.

[Blaine Alexander]

I'm very curious about the jury. You mentioned that Combs kind of turned and gave prayer hands to them. But how did jurors respond as the decision was read out?

[Chloe Melas]

I mean, they were stone faced, not really looking over at Combs. You know, he nodded to the jurors and the judge thanked them for all of their time. And I said all along I was looking at these jurors in the courtroom and I would tell Andrea, I would say some of them are sleeping, they're rolling their eyes, they're shaking their heads. During closing arguments last week, Mark Agnifolo eliciting laughter from these jurors.

[Blaine Alexander]

I think that is just so interesting to hear, Chloe, that when you think about the way that the jurors were responding, because there's kind of a backstory to this verdict coming out. We got the verdict this morning, but yesterday there was some activity as well. Just, just kind of back up and talk a little bit about yesterday evening.

[Chloe Melas]

Yeah, so at 4:15, I was inside the courthouse for the first time that day because I was so hot. And I decided to get some federal air Conditioning. So I went into something called the overflow room, which is where you can watch the trial on televisions closed circuit. I was like, I'm not going to go up to the courtroom cuz there's only about an hour left. And I noticed the prosecutors did his legal team filing back into the courtroom and it was clear that something was going on. Although everyone thought, oh, it's just a jury note saying that the jury wants to go home. I'm like, well it's 4:15, that's 45 minutes early. That's a little strange. Combs was sitting there looking stressed and then they handed him the jury note and you saw him rub his eyes, shake his head, look at the ground. And at one point I thought he was going to cry. And that's when I ran, I bolted out of that courthouse. Luckily I wasn't wearing heels. But what I found out when I came outside is that it was raining. So I was running through the rain. And when I got to the tent where our cameras are, all of our producers, they're all following along in this live Google document because we have other reporters in something called the media room where they are taking live notes on their computers. Cannot breach a verdict on count one. There you go. Because we have jurors with unpersuadable views. Next thing you know, I was putting on my verdict blazer and I was on TV1.

[Blaine Alexander]

I love that you have a verdict blazer. But number two, everyone needs one of those, right? When covering a trial.

[Chloe Melas]

Yes.

[Blaine Alexander]

Behind the scenes, jury goes home. It's about 5:20. The judge says go home, come back at 9amyou got there earlier than 9am you were out there to do a hit for today's show. What was the mood outside while we were waiting for this day of deliberations to begin?

[Chloe Melas]

Pretty quiet. I got here around 6:30 in the morning and if they want a long weekend, they will be coming back on Monday, July 7th. Craig, Corey Melas outside the courthouse force there. Thank you. Then I decided to go into the overflow room, lay my eyes on Combs for what could potentially be the last time because I knew I would not be in there for the verdict, that I would need to go up live for a special report on NBC News. And I'm really glad that I did. I saw him turn around and start praying with his family, his six children that were in the courtroom. All of his children pretty much were wearing black and they were pretty somber. And then I came out just in case something happened. And I was actually headed to Get a coffee. And I paid for it. And that coffee, it's. I need to go back and get my coffee. Okay, Blaine, because I got a call from Candace Quo, one of our producers, and she goes, run. And I ran like something out of Forrest Gump.

[Blaine Alexander]

Chloe, let's talk about how quickly that happened, because 9:00am the jury is beginning their deliberations at 1002. I went back and looked. 10:02, my phone started buzzing saying, hey, there's a possible verdict. So we're talking about just over an hour after coming to the judge yesterday and saying, hey, we can't come to a decision here.

[Chloe Melas]

That part was really surprising to me, Blaine, because we knew that there were, quote, unpersuadable jurors. So the fact that, like, a good night's sleep and some coffee might have helped them come to a unanimous decision.

[Blaine Alexander]

Stunningly short amount of time to go from we can't reach a decision to we've got it when we come back. Where is Combs? Now?

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[Chloe Melas]

As soon as the verdict came down, his team and his lead defense attorney, Mark Ignifolo, he came out swinging. He was like, set my client free. Essentially, the bail was denied. The judge said that, you know, he was denied bail after he was arrested last September, and he sees no reason to change that. That's exactly what he said. He said that. Plus there was some of the evidence that came out at trial that he was violent with Cassie and his other girlfriend, Jane. The judge actually pulled up the transcript from when Combs defense team said, quote, we own the domestic violence. Diddy's defense team looking stone cold after they had been so emotive earlier in the day.

[Blaine Alexander]

Yeah, what an emotional kind of roller coaster for Combs and his team. You and I talked last week about that moment with Combs defense team team saying, you know, we own the domestic violence. I hope you guys know that. But essentially, that came back to haunt them today.

[Chloe Melas]

It definitely did. The judge said that this evidence that was presented during the trial shows that Combs broke laws while he was under federal investigation. Now, the judge, he didn't mention this part, but Cassie Ventura, she's weighed in on this bail hearing via a letter from her lawyer, Doug Wigdor. And it says, quote, Ms. Ventura believes that Mr. Combs is likely to pose a danger to the victims who testified in this case, including herself, as well as to the community.

[Blaine Alexander]

Have we heard any reaction from her to the verdict?

[Chloe Melas]

We haven't heard directly from her, but Douglas Wigdor spoke to the press this morning. Blamed. The reaction is that we're pleased that he's finally been held responsible for two federal crimes, something that he's never faced in his life. Of course, we would have liked to have seen a conviction on the sex crimes in rico, but we understand beyond a reasonable doubt is a high standard and we're just pleased that, that he still faces substantial jail time. All right, thank you.

[Blaine Alexander]

And do we know exactly how long of a prison term he's facing here?

[Chloe Melas]

We don't. The mandatory maximum is 10 years. Blaine, his legal team asking for about 24 months. But then you have the prosecutors wanting upwards of 50 months. So I feel like they're gonna have to split the baby here. And he's gonna get a couple of years time served, maybe out a little early for good behavior. So he's gonna be there back at MDC for a couple of months, it seems, until this sentencing hearing. We know that on July 8th they're gonna have a pre sentencing hearing and both sides are supposed to meet and try to come to some sort of an agreement. And even before that.

[Blaine Alexander]

Yeah, I mean, it's so interesting to think that earlier in the day, Chloe Combs and his team were possibly thinking that he was going to walk out the front doors of the courthouse today. And now it's clear he's headed back to mdc. I guess my question is, are we, are we expecting to see an appeal from Combs?

[Chloe Melas]

He had an appellate lawyer the whole time on his legal team. Her name is Alexandra Shapiro. And I actually spoke to her colleague today. I mean, they are literally putting things on the record for, for a potential appeal. So even if it's a short prison sentence, he could try to get an appeal and you never know. All right, I first want to thank my client, Sean Combs, for trusting us, myself and everybody here, this incredible dream team that he put together.

[Blaine Alexander]

We heard from Combs defense team in the form of a press conference today. I want our listeners to take a listen to a little bit of that.

[Chloe Melas]

Today's a great victory. It's a great victory for Sean Combs. It's a great victory for the jury system. You saw that the Southern District of New York prosecutors came at him with.

[Dr. Patrick McGrath]

All that they had.

[Chloe Melas]

They're not stopping. But one thing stands between all of us and a prison, and that is a jury of 12 citizens.

[Blaine Alexander]

Chloe, what about the jurors? I mean, I know that reporters from every single media outlet, certainly you included, I'm sure, are wanting to hear from them, wanting to get in touch with them. The judge said today that they're not prohibited from speaking to the public. They can speak if they want to, but he essentially dissuaded them from doing so. Right.

[Chloe Melas]

Well, they all left in a sprinter van together. Who knows where they go from here. I'm almost certain, Blaine, that we're going to hear from at least a couple of them, but definitely that is really the next step other than hearing from Combs. Himself.

[Blaine Alexander]

I just want to get your final thoughts on this. I mean, you've covered not only this trial for the better part of two months, but really every twist, every turn in the Combs saga, the civil lawsuits. If you could just give me your thoughts on the verdict, your reaction and just where do you think things go from here?

[Chloe Melas]

Well, I have many thoughts and I have learned a lot about sexual abuse. Obviously, my main job is to tell a story and get the facts right. And it's been unbelievable to be really getting a front row seat to history, especially in the music industry and across the entertainment industry. But again, the story is still not over.

[Blaine Alexander]

Well, Chloe, I think it's been a fascinating trial to watch. You've done an incredible job of covering it from beginning to end. And I thank you as always for your insights today and throughout the entire duration of the trial. Thank you.

[Chloe Melas]

Thank you so much. And it's been so amazing working with the DATELINE team. You, Andrea and our producers, Franny, who's been here every single day on the sidewalk, and obviously Alison Orr and Liz and everybody over at dateline.

[Blaine Alexander]

Thanks so much for listening. On Trial is produced by Franny Kelly with help from the Dateline True Crime Weekly team. Our senior producers are Alison Orr and Liz Brown Kurloff. Original Music by Jesse McGinty, Paul Ryan is executive producer and Liz Cole is senior executive producer of dateline. And we'd like to name a few more people who made this whole series possible. Thanks very much to Adam Reese, Kat Corrigan, Sue Kroll, Candice Kuo, Jen Feng, Kathryn Korensky, Austin Mullen and Mike Calia. Thanks also to Bryson Barnes, Rob Byers and Hazik Daniel Bin Ahmad Farid. And a very special thanks to Cheryl, David and Lindsay Gaza.