Week 3 redux: Who has testified so far?
This newsletter contains graphic descriptions that some readers may find disturbing.
So much information has come out of Sean "Diddy" Combs' trial since opening statements on May 5. But as we head into the fourth week of this case, there's still much to uncover.
As a welcome back from the Memorial Day weekend, here's a recap of week three, which marked the second week of testimony: Last week, jurors heard from around a dozen people. These witnesses said they'd witnessed or experienced Combs' abuse or had experienced the aftermath of his alleged abuse. Two of them are government agents, and one is a psychologist who provided context to the complex relationships between victims and their abusers.
Get alerted to the biggest Diddy trial updates as soon as they’re available with our News Alerts newsletter.
Week 3 recap
Kerry Morgan said Combs grabbed her by the neck and hit her head with a wooden hanger in 2018. Regina Ventura testified that her daughter, Cassie Ventura Fine, was blackmailed with her sex tapes and "was beaten by Sean Combs" during their 10-year relationship. Sharay Hayes claimed Combs would pay for, direct and watch Hayes' sexual encounters with Ventura Fine. George Kaplan admitted he'd allegedly witnessed Combs abuse Ventura Fine but feared retribution if he were to report the incidents.
Then Scott Mescudi (aka Kid Cudi) spoke publicly for the first time about the fallout from his 2011 relationship with Ventura Fine, which allegedly infuriated Combs.
After many mentions of her name, former Combs employee Capricon Clark is supposed to testify this morning, followed by representatives from the Los Angeles Police Department and the LA Fire Department, presumably in relation to Kid Cudi's claims about the Molotov cocktail that exploded in his Porsche in 2011.
Here's who testified in week 3
For more information about each witness' testimony, select their name.
- Dawn Richard: former Danity Kane member and Diddy – Dirty Money collaborator
- Kerry Morgan: Cassie Ventura Fine's former best friend
- David James: Combs' former personal assistant
- Regina Ventura: Ventura Fine's mother
- Sharay Hayes, former exotic dancer who had sexual encounters with Ventura Fine
- Gerard Gannon, Homeland Security Investigations special agent
- Dawn Hughes, psychologist and expert witness
- George Kaplan, Combs' former executive assistant
- Scott Mescudi (Kid Cudi), Ventura Fine's former love interest
- Joshua Croft, Homeland Security Investigations special agent
- Frédéric Zemmour, L’Ermitage Beverly Hills general manager
- Mylah Morales, a former makeup artist for Combs and Ventura Fine
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline offers free, confidential, 24/7 support in English and Spanish. If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233 or text "START" to 88788.
Thank you for subscribing to this newsletter. You can follow me at @reporterkimi on Instagram and reach me at kimi.robinson@usatoday.com.