After two days of testimony about how her relationship with Sean “Diddy” Combs grew violent and coercive, Cassie Ventura confronted six hours of grueling cross-examination on Thursday, as protection attorneys tried to forged doubt on her credibility and painting her as a prepared participant of their sexual actions.
Protection attorneys turned to a decade of archived textual content messages to query Ventura concerning the consistency of her earlier testimony, highlighting her obvious eagerness to interact in Combs’ way of life of swinging at drug-fueled orgies. They insist that she was not a sufferer of intercourse trafficking or racketeering and that Combs is harmless of the federal prices he is going through.
Throughout different parts of the cross-examination, Combs’ legal professional Anna Estevao appeared to make use of seemingly mundane messages – like planning dates or expressing their romantic emotions to 1 one other – as a possibility to humanize Combs, who sometimes nodded his head as his attorneys questioned Ventura.
Combs’ attorneys have argued that, whereas he has made errors, engaged in home violence and abused medicine, he by no means sexually assaulted or trafficked anybody. Seated subsequent to his attorneys, Combs appeared engaged within the cross-examination and at one level signaled a coronary heart along with his fingers towards the spouse of his foremost protection legal professional, a former prosecutor whose shoppers now embody alleged UnitedHealthcare CEO homicide suspect Luigi Mangione, who has entered a not responsible plea.
Ventura’s testimony because the star witness for the prosecution is predicted to conclude tomorrow, given considerations that the singer, now eight months pregnant, may go into labor as early as this weekend.
Lawyer Anna Estevao cross-examines Casandra “Cassie” Ventura throughout Sean “Diddy” Combs’ intercourse trafficking trial in New York Metropolis, Could 15, 2025, on this courtroom sketch.
Jane Rosenberg/Reuters
Protection attorneys use textual content messages to point out mutual affection between Combs and Ventura
Ventura brazenly acknowledged in each her direct and cross-examinations that she cherished Combs for greater than a decade and hoped to construct a life with him. She informed jurors she fell in love with Combs shortly after they met, and jurors noticed messages from the beginning of their relationship.
“We have solely actually had one week of one another simply collectively and I can say that it has been the very best and worst,” Ventura wrote in 2007. “I am unhappy, mad, annoyed and damage that you just simply do not feel like I am the correct one.”
Jurors additionally noticed messages from August 2009, when the couple first went public with their relationship, and different messages from greater than two years into their relationship.
“I like you a lot it consumes my life,” she wrote in April 2010.
Ventura testified that whereas the messages appeared optimistic, she started to see a unique aspect of Combs as they spent extra time collectively – one which she mentioned was vulnerable to violence, jealousy and rage.
“The extra time I spent with him and acquired to know him, his actual character — or no less than what I assumed was his actual character — got here out,” Ventura testified.
Protection attorneys press Ventura about obvious willingness to interact in freak-offs
Throughout her direct examination, Ventura acknowledged she first agreed to take part in a freak-off to make Combs comfortable by indulging in his sexual fantasy. She mentioned she rapidly realized she didn’t benefit from the drug-fueled orgies that might go on for days and included her having sexual encounters with prostitutes and strangers.
To counter Ventura’s assertion she was coerced to plan and take part in freak-offs, protection attorneys offered a sequence of messages apparently displaying a unique perspective. “I am at all times able to freak off,” she wrote in August 2009.
Jurors additionally noticed textual content messages that recommended Combs expressed curiosity in Ventura’s needs, although she had beforehand testified these didn’t matter to Combs. The messages additionally appear to point out she tried to please Combs by getting ready for the freak-offs, together with by visiting a intercourse store prematurely of an orgy.
“Looking for one thing to impress you,” she wrote in a single message. A minimum of one of many jurors raised his eyebrows as an specific message was proven in courtroom.
Protection attorneys pressed Ventura about her causes for being reluctant to interact in freak-offs, suggesting she was annoyed not by the violence or coercion however reasonably as a result of she needed extra from the connection.
“After we used to freak off when had been so in love. There have been no questions requested, it felt proper, prefer it actually made sense for the subsequent step in our intercourse life collectively. I get nervous that I am simply changing into the girlfriend that you just get your fantasies off with and that is it. I do not get the opposite half,” Ventura wrote in a message to Combs from December 2009.
Throughout her first two days of testimony, Ventura testified at size a couple of 2016 episode when she mentioned she tried to go away a freak-off however was attacked by Combs – an assault that was captured on surveillance video and proven to jurors. On cross-examination, Ventura was proven textual content messages that recommended she was desperate to take part within the freak-off, and Combs’ violence might need been influenced by his drug use.
“The medicine that you just and Mr. Combs took that day had been a nasty batch of MDMA, proper?” Estevao mentioned.
“I don’t know,” Ventura requested.
Protection attorneys counsel relationship was outlined by mutual jealousy
Protection attorneys pressed Ventura concerning the flaws in her relationship with Combs, arguing the jealousy and infidelity went each methods for the couple.
Ventura admitted she “had some jealousy” of Kim Porter, the late mom of 4 of Combs’ kids, and was upset when Combs continued a relationship with one other lady.
“It was disappointing and hurtful to search out out you were not the principle girlfriend?” Estevao requested.
“Sure,” Ventura replied. “It did not pertain to each state of affairs, however I used to be positively jealous of sure conditions he was in.”
Jurors had been proven textual content messages displaying Combs and Ventura expressing anger about one another’s infidelity, with Combs seeing one other lady whereas Ventura was in a relationship with actor Michael B. Jordan. Ventura was requested about her relationship with Child Cudi – whose actual title is Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi, and who she beforehand testified she stopped seeing due to pressure with Combs – and the way she mentioned Combs “lunged” at her when he found their relationship throughout a freak-off.
“Did you are feeling justified in dishonest on him with Mr. Mescudi due to Mr. Combs’ infidelity?” Estevao requested.
“I may have, I do not know,” she answered.
