June 26, 2025

Thursday 6/26. Bonus Episode: "From Victims to Voices, The Brave Women Who Took Down a Mogul"

Thursday 6/26. Bonus Episode: "From Victims to Voices, The Brave Women Who Took Down a Mogul"

Both sides rested yesterday in preparation for today's closing arguments, so while there is no new news, Nate Oliver takes you deeper into one of the most compelling aspects of this entire trial: the courage it took for witnesses to step forward and speak their truth in one of the most watched courtrooms in America.

From "Jane's" four days of gut-wrenching testimony while eight months pregnant, to Cassie Ventura's decision to relive her trauma despite a $20 million settlement, these survivors risked everything to speak their truth. We explore the psychology behind delayed disclosure, the cost of breaking silence against powerful figures, and why these witnesses chose justice over privacy. Featuring insights into trauma bonds, moral injury, and the ripple effects of high-profile testimony that gives other survivors permission to speak up.

To become a premium subscriber (no ads and no feed drops) visit caloroga.com/plus.   For Apple users, hit the banner on your Apple podcasts app which seays UNINTERRUPTED LISTENING. For Spotify or other players, visit caloroga.com/plus. You also get 25+ other shows on the network ad-free!   Go to Caloroga.com for all our shows!

Join the Celebrity Trials community on social media! We're building a passionate group of true crime enthusiasts who love diving deep into the most shocking cases in America.

Follow us on Facebook and Instagram by searching "Celebrity Trials Podcast" on either platform. You'll get exclusive behind-the-scenes content, breaking news updates on cases we're covering, and early alerts when new episodes drop. Our social media is where Reid Carter's hottest takes live, including reactions that don't make it into the show.


But more importantly, it's where YOU come in. Share your theories, debate the verdicts, and connect with fellow listeners who are just as obsessed with justice as you are. Did the jury get it right? What questions do you still have? Your comments and insights often shape future episodes.


We cover the trials that matter, but our community makes the conversation unforgettable. Come for Reid's signature cynical commentary, stay for the incredible discussions with thousands of true crime fans who get it.


WEBVTT

1
00:00:03.200 --> 00:00:13.480
Calaruga Shark Media. Welcome back to a special bonus episode

2
00:00:13.480 --> 00:00:16.399
of Did He Do It? I'm Nate Oliver. Both sides

3
00:00:16.440 --> 00:00:20.120
rested yesterday in preparation for today's closing arguments, So while

4
00:00:20.120 --> 00:00:22.039
there is no new news, I want to take you

5
00:00:22.120 --> 00:00:24.440
deeper into one of the most compelling aspects of this

6
00:00:24.640 --> 00:00:27.800
entire trial, the courage it took for witnesses to step

7
00:00:27.839 --> 00:00:30.359
forward and speak their truth in one of the most

8
00:00:30.440 --> 00:00:34.799
watched courtrooms in America. Over the past six weeks, we've

9
00:00:34.840 --> 00:00:38.960
heard from more than thirty witnesses, but today I want

10
00:00:38.960 --> 00:00:42.479
to focus on the most vulnerable among them, the alleged

11
00:00:42.560 --> 00:00:45.439
victims who risked everything to testify against one of the

12
00:00:45.439 --> 00:00:49.840
most powerful men in entertainment. These aren't just names in

13
00:00:49.920 --> 00:00:53.079
a legal document. These are real people who made the

14
00:00:53.119 --> 00:00:57.039
agonizing decision to relive their trauma in public, knowing their

15
00:00:57.079 --> 00:01:01.000
words would be dissected by defense attorneys, splash across tabloids,

16
00:01:01.479 --> 00:01:06.439
and debated on social media by millions of strangers. Let's

17
00:01:06.439 --> 00:01:10.159
start with the woman the court knows only as Jane.

18
00:01:10.200 --> 00:01:13.120
For four grueling days, she sat in that witness chair,

19
00:01:13.599 --> 00:01:18.920
eight months pregnant, and described a decade of alleged sexual coercion, violence,

20
00:01:18.959 --> 00:01:23.200
and psychological control. Jane testified that about ninety percent of

21
00:01:23.239 --> 00:01:27.519
her sexual encounters with Ditty involved another man, usually a

22
00:01:27.519 --> 00:01:31.400
male escort, and that these marathon sessions, which she called

23
00:01:31.400 --> 00:01:35.280
her full time job, left her feeling broken and desperate.

24
00:01:36.239 --> 00:01:39.439
But here's what struck me most about Jane's testimony her

25
00:01:39.480 --> 00:01:43.680
honesty about the complexity of her feelings. She didn't present

26
00:01:43.719 --> 00:01:47.680
herself as a perfect victim. She admitted to loving Ditty

27
00:01:47.719 --> 00:01:52.079
at times, to participating in arrangements she later regretted, to

28
00:01:52.120 --> 00:01:55.840
staying far longer than outsiders might think reasonable. When the

29
00:01:55.879 --> 00:01:59.519
defense pressed her about affectionate text messages she'd sent, calling

30
00:01:59.560 --> 00:02:03.120
the free COF's fun or expressing love for Ditty, she

31
00:02:03.159 --> 00:02:07.439
didn't deny it. Instead, she explained something that trauma experts

32
00:02:07.480 --> 00:02:11.719
know well but the public often struggles to understand. Loving

33
00:02:11.759 --> 00:02:14.960
freak offs were just words. At that point, I said

34
00:02:14.960 --> 00:02:19.360
what I needed to say to get through it. That authenticity,

35
00:02:19.599 --> 00:02:23.680
that willingness to admit contradiction and complexity, actually made her

36
00:02:23.719 --> 00:02:28.680
testimony more powerful, not less. Real trauma isn't neat, Real

37
00:02:28.759 --> 00:02:31.759
victims don't always behave the way movies and TV shows

38
00:02:31.800 --> 00:02:35.319
tell us they should. Jane's courage wasn't just in speaking up,

39
00:02:35.879 --> 00:02:39.439
It wasn't speaking truthfully, even when the truth was messy

40
00:02:39.479 --> 00:02:44.319
and uncomfortable. Then there's Cassie Ventura, the prosecution star witness

41
00:02:44.879 --> 00:02:48.039
and perhaps the most high profile victim to take the stand.

42
00:02:49.199 --> 00:02:52.439
Cassie had already reached a twenty million dollar settlement with Ditty,

43
00:02:53.000 --> 00:02:55.960
had moved on with her life, married and started a family.

44
00:02:56.800 --> 00:03:00.719
She had every reason to stay silent, but she spent

45
00:03:00.800 --> 00:03:04.360
four days in that courtroom describing in graphic detail the

46
00:03:04.400 --> 00:03:07.960
alleged years of abuse, the freak offs she was forced

47
00:03:07.960 --> 00:03:11.439
to participate in, and the violence she endured. The defense

48
00:03:11.520 --> 00:03:14.800
tried to paint Cassie as motivated by money, pointing to

49
00:03:14.879 --> 00:03:19.000
her settlement and suggesting revenge was her motive. But here's

50
00:03:19.039 --> 00:03:22.840
what they couldn't explain away. Why would someone who had

51
00:03:22.879 --> 00:03:27.360
already been paid millions risk perjury charges, public humiliation, and

52
00:03:27.520 --> 00:03:31.759
opening old wounds just for revenge. The answer, trauma experts

53
00:03:31.759 --> 00:03:35.560
tell us is that money doesn't heal trauma, and for

54
00:03:35.680 --> 00:03:40.199
many survivors, seeing their abuser held accountable becomes more important

55
00:03:40.240 --> 00:03:44.719
than personal comfort or privacy. Cassie's decision to testify wasn't

56
00:03:44.759 --> 00:03:47.840
just about her own justice. It was about validating the

57
00:03:47.919 --> 00:03:51.360
experiences of other women who might never have the platform

58
00:03:51.680 --> 00:03:55.000
or resources to speak up. When she told the jury,

59
00:03:55.520 --> 00:03:58.599
I can't carry this anymore. I can't carry the shame,

60
00:03:59.240 --> 00:04:02.960
the guilt, she was speaking for countless survivors who struggle

61
00:04:03.039 --> 00:04:06.879
with the burden of keeping secrets about powerful men. But

62
00:04:06.960 --> 00:04:11.039
let's talk about the witnesses who testified under pseudonyms like Mia.

63
00:04:11.599 --> 00:04:15.319
This former employee described eight years of alleged sexual assault,

64
00:04:15.639 --> 00:04:20.680
sleep deprivation, and psychological torment. She testified that she received

65
00:04:20.720 --> 00:04:24.959
a four hundred thousand dollars severance payment after leaving Ditty's employment,

66
00:04:25.480 --> 00:04:29.319
but never mentioned the alleged sexual assaults during settlement negotiations

67
00:04:29.360 --> 00:04:34.240
because she was terrified of retaliation. Think about that for

68
00:04:34.279 --> 00:04:37.800
a moment. Here's a woman who endured years of alleged abuse,

69
00:04:38.439 --> 00:04:42.839
finally escaped, got a financial settlement, and could have disappeared

70
00:04:42.879 --> 00:04:47.639
into anonymity. Instead, she chose to come forward and testify

71
00:04:47.759 --> 00:04:52.160
under immunity, knowing that her story would become public, knowing

72
00:04:52.199 --> 00:04:56.040
she'd be cross examined by skilled defense attorneys, knowing that

73
00:04:56.079 --> 00:04:59.360
Ditty's supporters would question her motives and attack her credibility.

74
00:05:00.480 --> 00:05:04.360
Why do that? Why put yourself through that ordeal? The

75
00:05:04.399 --> 00:05:09.199
answer lies in something psychologists call moral injury, the psychological

76
00:05:09.240 --> 00:05:12.120
wound that occurs when you witness or experience something that

77
00:05:12.240 --> 00:05:15.480
violates your fundamental beliefs about right and wrong, and you

78
00:05:15.560 --> 00:05:18.720
feel powerless to stop it. For many of these witnesses,

79
00:05:18.720 --> 00:05:23.519
staying silent had become its own form of trauma. Speaking

80
00:05:23.639 --> 00:05:26.319
up wasn't just about seeking justice, It was about healing.

81
00:05:27.199 --> 00:05:30.240
Doctor Don Hughes, the forensic psychologist who testified as an

82
00:05:30.240 --> 00:05:34.120
expert witness, explained to the jury why victims often stay

83
00:05:34.120 --> 00:05:37.959
in abusive relationships, why they delayed disclosure, and why their

84
00:05:38.000 --> 00:05:41.480
memories might be fragmented. But she also explained to something

85
00:05:41.480 --> 00:05:45.199
else the incredible strength it takes to break free from

86
00:05:45.199 --> 00:05:49.319
what she called trauma bonds with abusers. These women didn't

87
00:05:49.360 --> 00:05:51.160
just wake up one day and decide to take down

88
00:05:51.160 --> 00:05:56.000
a billionaire. They went through years of psychological manipulation designed

89
00:05:56.000 --> 00:06:00.920
to make them feel complicit, ashamed, and powerless. They were

90
00:06:00.920 --> 00:06:04.279
told no one would believe them. They were threatened with

91
00:06:04.360 --> 00:06:09.079
financial ruin and career destruction. They watched other women disappear

92
00:06:09.079 --> 00:06:12.959
from Ditty's circle and understood the message stay silent or

93
00:06:13.000 --> 00:06:16.879
be erased. Breaking that silence required a kind of courage

94
00:06:16.879 --> 00:06:19.600
that most of us will never have to summon. It

95
00:06:19.680 --> 00:06:22.720
required believing that their truth mattered more than their safety,

96
00:06:23.319 --> 00:06:27.120
their privacy, or their peace of mind. And let's not

97
00:06:27.199 --> 00:06:31.519
forget the male witnesses who testified, men like Daniel Phillip,

98
00:06:32.040 --> 00:06:35.319
the former exotic dancer who described being paid to participate

99
00:06:35.360 --> 00:06:39.680
in freak offs while Ditty watched and filmed. These men

100
00:06:39.759 --> 00:06:44.120
faced their own unique challenges in coming forward. Our society

101
00:06:44.160 --> 00:06:47.439
still struggles to recognize men as victims of sexual exploitation,

102
00:06:48.199 --> 00:06:50.959
and the stigma around male survivors can be even more

103
00:06:51.000 --> 00:06:55.199
intense than what women face. Philip testified that he witnessed

104
00:06:55.199 --> 00:07:00.079
Didty physically abuse Cassie, but never intervened. I was afraid,

105
00:07:00.199 --> 00:07:03.600
he admitted, I'd seen what happened to people who crossed him.

106
00:07:04.160 --> 00:07:08.199
That admission of fear, of complicity through inaction takes a

107
00:07:08.240 --> 00:07:11.759
different kind of courage. It's one thing to testify about

108
00:07:11.759 --> 00:07:14.480
what happened to you. It's another to admit you stood

109
00:07:14.480 --> 00:07:18.000
by while it happened to someone else. But here's what's

110
00:07:18.120 --> 00:07:23.160
remarkable about these witnesses. They didn't just survive trauma. They

111
00:07:23.199 --> 00:07:27.480
transformed it into testimony. They took their private pain and

112
00:07:27.519 --> 00:07:32.360
made it public evidence. They allowed themselves to be cross examined, challenged,

113
00:07:32.399 --> 00:07:36.120
and questioned, all in service of a larger truth. More

114
00:07:36.120 --> 00:07:49.480
in a moment, the defense did what defense attorneys are

115
00:07:49.519 --> 00:07:55.720
supposed to do. They attacked credibility, questioned motives, and highlighted inconsistencies.

116
00:07:56.439 --> 00:08:01.160
They pointed to financial settlements, delayed reporting, and continued contact

117
00:08:01.160 --> 00:08:04.920
with Ditty after alleged abuse. But what they couldn't explain

118
00:08:04.959 --> 00:08:08.560
away was the consistency of the stories across multiple witnesses,

119
00:08:09.240 --> 00:08:12.199
the corroborating evidence, and the sheer courage it took for

120
00:08:12.279 --> 00:08:16.759
these individuals to come forward. Consider this, every single one

121
00:08:16.800 --> 00:08:19.279
of these witnesses had more to lose than to gain

122
00:08:19.319 --> 00:08:23.480
by testifying. Jane was already receiving financial support and could

123
00:08:23.519 --> 00:08:27.879
have stayed silent. Cassie had her settlement and her new life.

124
00:08:27.920 --> 00:08:30.959
Mia had escaped and built a new career. The male

125
00:08:31.000 --> 00:08:35.240
witnesses had their own reputations and privacy to protect. None

126
00:08:35.279 --> 00:08:37.720
of them needed to be in that courtroom, but they

127
00:08:37.799 --> 00:08:41.240
chose to be there because, as Mia testified, it's the

128
00:08:41.360 --> 00:08:44.639
right thing to do. They chose to be there because,

129
00:08:44.679 --> 00:08:48.480
as Jane said, she couldn't carry the shame and guilt anymore.

130
00:08:49.360 --> 00:08:52.279
They chose to be there because sometimes the only way

131
00:08:52.320 --> 00:08:54.720
to heal from trauma is to transform it into truth.

132
00:08:55.600 --> 00:08:59.120
The ripple effects of their courage extend far beyond this courtroom.

133
00:08:59.559 --> 00:09:02.039
Every time I'M a high profile case like this plays out,

134
00:09:02.480 --> 00:09:06.200
it gives other survivors permission to speak up. It normalizes

135
00:09:06.240 --> 00:09:09.679
the idea that powerful men aren't untouchable, that money and

136
00:09:09.720 --> 00:09:12.240
fame don't put someone above the law, and that victims'

137
00:09:12.320 --> 00:09:15.799
voices matter. But we also have to acknowledge the cost.

138
00:09:16.720 --> 00:09:20.600
These witnesses will never have their privacy back. Their stories

139
00:09:20.639 --> 00:09:23.799
are now part of the public record, their faces sketched

140
00:09:23.799 --> 00:09:27.360
in courtroom drawings, their words quoted in headlines around the world.

141
00:09:28.000 --> 00:09:32.320
They've opened themselves up to public scrutiny, online harassment, and

142
00:09:32.639 --> 00:09:36.679
years of appeals if Ditty is convicted. That's the paradox

143
00:09:36.720 --> 00:09:40.360
of high profile testimony. The platform that makes their voices

144
00:09:40.480 --> 00:09:44.960
heard also makes them targets. The visibility that validates other

145
00:09:45.000 --> 00:09:49.000
survivors also exposes them to attack. The courage that brings

146
00:09:49.120 --> 00:09:52.600
justice also comes with consequence. As we wait for the

147
00:09:52.639 --> 00:09:56.120
jury to deliberate, we should remember that, regardless of the verdict,

148
00:09:56.720 --> 00:10:01.200
these witnesses have already achieved something remarkable. They've broken the

149
00:10:01.240 --> 00:10:05.480
silence that enabled alleged abuse to continue. They've shown other

150
00:10:05.519 --> 00:10:09.399
survivors that speaking up is possible, and they've forced all

151
00:10:09.440 --> 00:10:13.399
of us to confront uncomfortable truths about power, privilege, and

152
00:10:13.480 --> 00:10:17.320
the price of staying silent. The jury will decide Diddy's

153
00:10:17.360 --> 00:10:21.120
legal fate, but these witnesses have already decided their own.

154
00:10:21.879 --> 00:10:26.240
They've chosen courage over comfort, truth over silence, and justice

155
00:10:26.320 --> 00:10:30.080
over peace. In a world where powerful men have historically

156
00:10:30.120 --> 00:10:34.759
faced few consequences for their actions, that choice that courage

157
00:10:35.159 --> 00:10:39.039
might be the most important verdict of all. Tomorrow, we'll

158
00:10:39.080 --> 00:10:41.559
be back with another special episode as we continue our

159
00:10:41.600 --> 00:10:45.240
deep dive into this historic trial. I'm Nate Oliver, and

160
00:10:45.320 --> 00:10:46.519
this is did he Do It?