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Callarogus Shark Media. Good morning, I'm Read Carter, and welcome
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to Celebrity Trials, your daily source for the biggest courtroom
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dramas shaping our culture. Today is Thursday, July third, And
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if you thought yesterday was wild, you haven't seen anything yet.
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While the entire world was glued to the Sean Diddy
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Comb's verdict in Manhattan, another bombshell exploded in Idaho that
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nobody saw coming. But first, let's dive into the aftermath
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of what might be the most shocking mixed verdict in
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modern legal history. Twenty four hours ago, Sean Combs walked
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into a federal courthouse facing life in prison. He walked
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out guilty of two felonies, but having dodged every single
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charge that could have kept him behind bars until he died.
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And the reactions they've been absolutely explosive. Let me paint
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you the picture of what happened outside that Manhattan courthouse yesterday,
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because it was unlike anything I've ever seen. Comb's supporters
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celebrated with baby oil and apparent reference to supplies witnesses
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said were provided for freak offs. A woman in a
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bikini danced as a man drizzled baby oil on her
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from a nearby ledge. Yes, you heard that right, baby
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oil celebrations. I've covered trials for fifteen years and I
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have never seen anything like that. But the celebrity reactions,
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that's where this story gets really interesting. Fifty Cent, Combe's
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longtime rival posted on Instagram, Ditty beat the Rico. That
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boy a bad man. He liked the gay John Gottie.
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This is a reference to mob boss John Gotti, who
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similarly beat racketeering charges. Fifty Cent has been trolling Ditty
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throughout this entire trial, and he's clearly having a field
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day with this outcome. But not everyone was celebrating. Aubrey O'Day,
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former member of Ditty's group, Danity Kane, had a completely
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different reaction. She filmed herself watching CNN's live coverage and said,
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oh my god, not guilty on Cassie, Not guilty on Rico.
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No way that Jane is going to be guilty. This
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makes me physically ill. Cassie probably feels so horrible. I'm
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gonna vomit. Oday. Didn't stop there, she posted on Instagram.
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I'm still unpacking the magnitude of it all. The cultural
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weight of this decision is immeasurable. It is heartbreaking to
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witness how many lives have been impacted by their experience
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with Sean Combs, only for those stories to fall short
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in the eyes of the jury. Rosie O'Donnell waded in too,
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writing on Instagram, I guess a jury just never wants
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to believe that a woman stays because of power and coercion. Wow.
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Even Boozy Badass posted an Instagram video saying I'm tired
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of seeing us black moguls get took down like that,
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and I'm tired of seeing us black people go against
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us black moguls like that. The divide is clear. See
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this as a victory against prosecutorial overreach. Others see it
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as a failure of the justice system to protect women.
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But here's what's really important about yesterday's verdict. What Sean
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Combs is actually facing now. The jury found Comb's guilty
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on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution under
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the Man Act. That's the nineteen ten law originally called
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the White Slave Traffic Act, that prohibits transporting people across
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state lines for commercial sex. Each count carries a maximum
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of ten years, so Combs is looking it up to
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twenty years total. Prosecutor Marine Comy has said she will
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push for the full twenty years, a decade for each conviction.
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The judge denied bail, so Comb's remains locked up at
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the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn until his sentencing. When
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Combs was told he wouldn't be released, he turned to
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his family and said, I'm coming home, baby, But for
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now he's staying put. What this vertic really tells us
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is that this Manhattan jury wasn't buying the government's criminal
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enterprise theory. They looked at all the evidence, the thousand
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bottles of baby oil, the explicit videos, the testimony about
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freak offs, and said, yes, crimes were committed, but not
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the ones you're trying to prove. The acquittals on racketeering
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and sex trafficking are devastating for the prosecution. They spent
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seven weeks trying to convince this jury that Sean Combs
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was a criminal mastermind running a sex trafficking operation, and
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the jury essentially said, no, He's just a wealthy man
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who made terrible choices. But folks, this case is far
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from over. Tony Busby, a Texas lawyer, says he's representing
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more than one hundred women and men who have filed
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or intend to file lawsuits against Combs. Those civil cases
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have a much lower burden of proof, and they're going
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to keep coming. Cassie Ventura's lawyer, Douglas Wigdor said in
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a statement. Although the jury did not find Comb's Guts
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guilty of sex trafficking, Cassie beyond a reasonable doubt, she
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paved the way for a jury to find him guilty
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of transportation to engage in prostitution. By coming forward with
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her experience, Cassie has left an indelible mark on both
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the entertainment industry and the fight for justice. Now here's
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what really gets me fired up about this whole situation.
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While everyone was watching Diddy, another massive story was breaking
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that completely flew under the radar. And this one, this
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one is going to blow your mind. Welcome back to
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Celebrity Trials. I'm read Carter, and I need to tell
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you about the story that broke yesterday while everyone was
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focused on the Ditty verdict. Because if you thought that
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was shocking, wait until you hear this. Brian Koberger, the
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man accused of brutally murdering four University of Idaho stutudents
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in their sleep. Has suddenly, after nine hundred days of
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fighting these charges, agreed to plead guilty to everything. Let
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me repeat that. Brian Coburger, who has maintained his innocence
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for over two years, who was preparing for a death
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penalty trial that was supposed to start next month, pleaded
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guilty to murdering Kayley Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Zana Kernodle, and
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Ethan Chapin. This is the case that captivated the nation.
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Four college students stabbed to death in their off campus
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home in Moscow, Idaho, in November twenty twenty two. For weeks,
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police had no suspect, the community was terrorized. Then six
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weeks later they arrested Brian Coburger, a criminology PhD student
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from nearby Washington State University. The plea deal came together
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at the absolute last minute. Jury selection was supposed to
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start August fourth. Opening arguments were scheduled for August eighteen.
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Prosecutors were seeking the death penalty. But here's the kicker.
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The victims' families weren't even consulted. The Gonkalves family said
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they received an email with a letter attached on Sunday
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night about a deal that was already done. Steve Goncalves,
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Kayley's father, told CNN, you don't deal with terrorists, and
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you don't deal with people who kill your kids in
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their sleep, So we'll never see this as justice. The
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Goncalves family posted on Facebook, we are beyond furious at
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the State of Idaho. They have failed us. But here's
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what's really interesting about this plea deal. It happened right
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after the judge dealt Coberger's defense a crushing blow last week,
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Judge Stephen Hipler denied Coburger's request to present an alternate
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perpetrator theory. Basically, the defense wanted to point the finger
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at four other people as possible killers. The judge said
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the evidence against these alternate suspects was entirely irrelevant and
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amounted to wild speculation. That was a devastating loss for
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the defense. So what happened in that courtroom yesterday? Judge
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Hipler asked Coburger how he pleaded to each count of murder,
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naming each victim. Coburger quickly said guilty each time, showing
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no emotion. Then the judge asked if he killed and
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murdered each victim naming them individually. Coburger stoically responded yes
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each time. For the first time, we got the prosecution's
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timeline of exactly what happened that night. Prosecutor Bill Thompson
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said Coburger drove from his apartment in Washington to Moscow, Idaho,
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in his white Alantra, circling the victim's neighborhood. Just after
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four am, he entered through the kitchen sliding door, went
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to the third floor and fatally stabbed Mogan and Gonkalvi's
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first then went to the second floor and killed Kernodle
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and Chapin. The evidence against him was overwhelming. DNA matching
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Coburger's was found on a knife sheath left by one
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of the victims. Coburger had bought the same type of
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knife with the same type of sheath on Amazon. His
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phone data showed him in the area of the killings
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multiple times. Coburger will be sentenced to four consecutive life
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sentences on July twenty third, and he's waived all rights
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to appeal. But here's what's eating at me about this
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whole situation. Why now, Why after nine hundred days of fighting,
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after hiring a team of expensive lawyers after claiming innocence,
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does Brian Coburger suddenly decide to plead guilty just weeks
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before trial. Legal experts I've talked to say this could
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mean one of two things. Either the evidence was so
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overwhelming that his lawyers finally convinced him he had no chance,
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or there's something about this case that prosecutors didn't want
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to come out at trial. The timing is suspicious, the
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lack of family consultation is outrageous, and the fact that
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we'll never know what really happened that night, why he
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did it, whether he acted alone, where the murder weapon is,
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that's going to haunt these families forever. Kaylee's sister Aubrey wrote,
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Brian Coburger facing a life in prison means he would
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still get to speak, form relationships, and engage with the world. Meanwhile,
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our loved ones have been silenced forever. This plea deal
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might bring closure, but it doesn't bring justice, and it
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certainly doesn't bring answers. Now, when we come back, I'm
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going to tell you why these two cases, Diddy and Coburger,
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represents something bigger about our justice system and where we're
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taking celebrity trials next because folks, this is just the beginning.
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Welcome back to Celebrity Trials. I'm read Carter, and after
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yesterday's twin bombshells, the Diddy mixed verdict and the Coburger
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guilty plea, I need to talk to you about what
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this all means and where we're headed. In the span
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of twenty four hours, we witness two of the most
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shocking legal outcomes I've covered in my career. Sean Comb's
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facing life in prison, walks away with maybe twenty years.
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Brian Coburger, maintaining innocence for nine hundred days, suddenly pleads
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guilty and gets life without possibility of appeal. These cases
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represent everything that's both brilliant and broken about our justice system.
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In Manhattan, a jury carefully weighed evidence and rejected prosecutorial overreach.
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In Idaho, a secretive plea deal denied victim's families their
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day in court. But here's the thing, and this is
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why celebrity trials exists. These cases don't happen in a vacuum.
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They're part of a larger cultural conversation about power, justice, celebrity,
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and accountability, and that conversation is far from over. Starting tomorrow,
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Celebrity Trials is expanding our coverage beyond just the ditty case.
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We're becoming your daily source for all the biggest courtroom dramas,
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the trials that create celebrities, destroy reputations, and shape our culture.
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Coming up on Celebrity Trials next week, we're diving deep
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into the Blake Lively versus Justin Baldoni legal warfare. That
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trial isn't until March twenty twenty six, but the behind
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the scenes maneuvering is absolutely vicious. Will break down how
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a movie promotion turned into a four hundred million dollar
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legal slugfest. We'll also be covering the Menendez brothers' parole hearings.
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Remember they were just resentenced in May and are now
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eligible for release after thirty five years. Their first parole
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hearing could happen any day. And yes, we'll continue following
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every appeal, every civil case, every development in the Shawancombe saga,
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because this verdict doesn't end his legal troubles. It might
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just be the beginning. But here's what really excites me
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about where we're going. We're not just covering current trials.
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We're going back in time to revisit the cases that
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created the template from un celebrity justice, the trials that
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captivated America before social media, before twenty four hour news cycles,
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before everyone had an opinion. Think Oj Simpson, Think Lizzie Borden,
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think the Scope's Monkey Trial. These cases didn't just decide
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guilt or innocence. They reflected who we were as a society,
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what we believed about race, gender, power, and truth. That's
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what Celebrity Trials is about. We're not just court reporters.
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We're cultural archaeologists, digging into the cases that reveal the
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soul of America. Because here's the truth. Every generation gets
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the trials it deserves. The cases that obsess us say
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as much about us as they do about the defendants.
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Why are we fascinated by powerful men who fall? Why
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do we root for underdogs? Why do some victims get
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justice while others don't. These are the questions Celebrity Trials
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will explore every single day. We'll give you the facts,
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the analysis, and yes, my unfiltered opinions about what it
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all means. Sean Combs thought he was untouchable. A Manhattan
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jury said otherwise, sort of. Brian Koberger thought he could
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get away with murder. DNA evidence said otherwise. But the
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real verdict isn't decided in courtrooms. It's decided in the
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court of public opinion, in the conversations around dinner tables,
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in the cultural memory that decides which cases we remember
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and which we forget. That's Celebrity Trials. That's what we do.
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That's why you need to be here every single day. Tomorrow,
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we'll have the latest reactions to both the Diddy verdict
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and the Coburger plea. We'll also preview the upcoming Blake
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Lively trial and dive into some classic cases that shaped
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modern celebrity justice. Make sure you're subscribed and have those
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notifications turned on, because when the next bombshell drops, and
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trust me, there's always a next bombshell, you'll hear it
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here first. I'm read Carter. Justice isn't always fair, truth
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isn't always clear, but the stories, the stories are always riveting.
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We'll see you tomorrow on Celebrity Trials.