Diddy rejects plea deal, embraces trial fashion

With just four days to go until Sean "Diddy" Combs' criminal trial begins, his team returned to courtroom 26A one last time before jury selection.

Appearing in court May 1 for a final pretrial conference, Combs was more animated, my colleague Patrick Ryan noted, as he waved to his supporters in the gallery and grinned as he hugged his team. He also donned wide-brimmed black glasses while reading documents at the defense table, a large crown tattoo on his neck on show atop his tan prison garb.

The May 1 session primarily focused on how the defense and prosecutors will efficiently sift through as many as 150 potential jurors starting May 5. As it turns out, it could take 20-30 minutes to question each person, but prosecutors seemed confident that 45 qualified jurors would be selected in three days.

Also, following a brief mention of a plea deal during the April 25 court session, the judge explicitly confirmed with Combs that he had rejected prosecutors' offer to cut a deal. "Yes I do, your honor, thank you," Combs replied.

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Diddy's courtroom attire, other issues settled before trial

This past week has seen a flurry of court documents from both sides. Among the topics covered in filings were:

Combs' courtroom apparel: On April 30, Judge Arun Subramanian agreed Combs can receive "up to five button down shirts, up to five pairs of pants, up to five sweaters, up to five pairs of socks and up to two pairs of shoes without laces to wear to court."

Unnamed witnesses: In an April 29 document, prosecutors revealed that after pushback from Combs' team, "Victim-3" will use her real name while testifying in court.

The juror questionnaire: Both sides went line by line down the proposed questions for potential jurors. They were able to find middle ground on much of the wording and order of questions, per an April 30 filing. Much of Combs' team's feedback related to couching questions with the words "alleged" and "allegations."

Expert testimony: There's been some back-and-forth about prosecutors objecting to the defense's proposed experts — and vice versa. Combs' lawyers have indicated they want to use testimony from forensic psychiatrist Dr. Elie Aoun, who could speak to Combs' "diminished capacity" at the time of his alleged crimes.

Read on to catch up on what went down during Combs' last week before trial.

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