“The Trial Of Sean Combs” Episode Thirty Three | Defense Closing Arguments

0:00 Welcome back to Exposed Scandalous Files of the Elite. I'm your host, Jim Chapman. More back with this thirty third episode of the Trial of Sean Combs, and today I'm going to cover the defense closing arguments. Now, I brought you the prosecutions closing arguments in the last episode, and in this one, I'm going to summarize those closing arguments. Just too long to cover word for word every single thing that was said during these closing arguments, but this is going to be eye opening. I'd love to know your opinion after I'm done with this one. Now, kicking off the closing arguments is Mark Agnafilo, and throughout this I'm just going to refer to him as Mark. Now, Mark starts it off by saying, quote, this has been a tale of two trials. First, there's the trial as told by the witnesses, the text messages in the videos.

0:59 The second trial, the trial as told by the mouths of prosecutors that I submit to you, is the false trial. This is an exaggerated trial that is not the real trial. Then he goes on to say, the trial of the evidence is about the lifestyle you want to call it, swingers. But whatever you want to call it, that's what it is, and that's what the evidence shows. Mark recounted positive things that Combe's former employees said about him. Quote, Let's talk for a second about what the evidence shows about Sean Combs. Shawn Combs has become something that is very, very hard to be, very hard to be. He is a self made, successful black entrepreneur. Combs has created wonderful, sophisticated real businesses that have stood the test of time. Did they always like him, No way, Let's not even go there. But they loved they didn't want to leave him. Marked them praise Shawn Comb's for the businesses that he built, businesses that he said focused on diversity. Mark said that Combs was practicing diversity, equity and inclusion known as DEEI before it was a mandated practice. Quote, he was doing this in nineteen ninety three as a twenty four year old all by himself. He went on to say, no witnesses said they were part of the racketeering conspiracy or worked

2:30 in the enterprise, And he balked at the idea that Shawoncombe's business was a racketeering enterprise. He said, no witnesses said they were part of a racketeering conspiracy or worked in the enterprise. Quote you don't hear that from the evidence, and you didn't hear that from any of the witnesses. Mark told the jury that six of Shawan Combe's seven kids are in the courtroom, along with Combe's mother, and he said the jury should know about Comb's character. Quote. The man takes care of his people. He said, this is evident through his relationship with Jane. Comes paid for her home where she could take care of her child.

3:13 I hope she's having a nice day, but you know what she's doing. She's in a house that he's paying for. And Mark sarcastically talked about the searches of Shawn Combe's homes by Homeland Security in Los Angeles and Miami Beach in twenty twenty four. Quote boxes of astroglide taking off the street. WHOA, I feel better already, artificial lubricant not for me. The streets of America are safe from astroglide, he went on to say. And they got the baby oil, and they found the personal use drugs. They did it. It's all worth it. Thank goodness for that response team.

3:55 They found the astroglide, they found the baby oil, and they found like five value pills. Way to go Fellas. Mark said that none of shawing Combe's alleged victims called law enforcement. Quote, they do call somebody though they call civil planet lawyers. That's who they call. This isn't about crime, It's about money. He went on to say, Cassie Ventura sued shawing Comb's for thirty million because Shawn Combs has thirty million. This very investigation came out of the civil case. No thirty million, no lawsuit, no thirty million, no lawsuit, no criminal case. But that's why we're here. We're here because of the money. He went on to say, we owned the domestic violence. We didn't run away from it or challenged the two ex girlfriends who testified against shawing Comb's Cassie or Jane about it. I don't think we asked her a single question to challenge anything she said about being hit, being kicked, or being dragged. And then Mark referenced the social media statement that Ventor made after singing In in twenty twenty four published that video of her getting a ship beat out of her quote, she was very precise and very clear about what the issue was for her. The issue for her was domestic violence.

5:10 When she says domestic violence is the issue, I'm asking you to believe her. Mark told the jury that between Combs and Ventura, the suit was settled the next day in Ventura won. He said the suit demanded thirty million, although he reminded the jury that Ventura testified it was settled for twenty million. Quote. If you had to pick a winner in this whole thing, it's not hard to pick Cassie. And then he pointed out that Combs is sitting in jail while waiting the outcome of this trial. He said Combs and Ventura were not part of a racketeering conspiracy. Quote. It's a real relationship, and they were in love. Cassie is no joke, and that's why he loved her. She matched Jim. He felt like she was like him. Mark called their relationship a in this shocked me quote a great modern love story, telling the jury they could cry at text messages that Combes and Ventur exchanged professing their love for each other. He said Ventur eventually made an adult choice to leave that relationship in twenty eighteen, and she felt no pushback from Combs. Quote, she was always free to leave. She chose to stay because she was in love with him. Mark then addressed Combes and Ventura's sex life, saying, quote, she's a woman who actually likes sex. Good for her. She's beautiful, she should she's intense, she's unafraid. They were the best selves when it came to sex. They fought when it came to other women. He went on to say, out of scores of text messages admitted into evidence in the trial,

6:44 you won't find one where she's like, I didn't like the sex. I'm not attracted to you. I don't like our sex life. It's not for me. He said. Ventur and Combs matched up when it comes to sex. Quote. I guess she could call them swingers. I guess she could call but a lifestyle. Mark also reminded the jury that kick Cutty confirmed that Cassie Ventura played him, saying quote, she played him good too. She played them both. He referenced the prosecution's argument that Ventura was scared of Combs, quote, she lied to him for a long time, over and over and over, as she had another relationship with another singer songwriter under his nose. She's not afraid of him.

7:26 Mark called Ventura a gangster, pointing to the burner frame that she used to stay in touch with kid Cuddy and saying she was trying to pull off lying to both men. Mark addressed the twenty twenty four kidnapping allegation made by Capricorn Clark. Now, if you'll remember, she said she was kidnapped in him for five days taking light detector test after Shawncombe's jewelry went messing. He said Clark is a little out there. She testified at the trial that she wanted her life back. The world Shawncomb's created and is at the center of. That's the life she wanted back. She said she couldn't work in the industry after leaving Comb's employment. She also acknowledged she reached out to Cones for work years later after she stopped working for him. Mark told the jury that Clark had a crush on Combs and wanted their platonic relationship to become more.

8:22 He recounted Clark's testimony about the law of detector testing when she set a large man five times her width, threatened to throw her in the East River if she didn't pass, and Mark also mocked the idea that prosecutors said the twenty twenty four kidnapping was an underlying act for the racketeering charge. Now, if you'll remember, each day, after hours of testing, Clark had said, one of comes security guards drove her home. So Mark liking this experience to the jury that spends long hours in the courthouse each day and then goes home. Quote, you're about as kidnapped as she was kidnapped. It's unsettling that it's the whole reason investigators use it. I have no doubt she was unsettled, but she was not kidnapped. Mark also said that Comes had a storing role in quote A Raisin in the Sun, which was a Broadway show y'all around the time that these light detector tests were given. Quote, he's starring on Broadway. He is involved in the middle of a very significant voter drive campaign called voter Dye, and he's running all these companies. Do you think he's waiting on the edge of his seat. How's that light detector test coming back? I can't wait to see if she passes. He couldn't care less. He had nothing to do with it, Mark said. Mark then recounted the kidnapping allegation that Capricorn Clark testified to who said that Comes came to her home with a gun and then brought her to rapper Keith Cutty's house in December of twenty eleven.

9:51 He said that Clark was probably so honored that Comes finally came to her house for the very first time, that if he asked her to take it trip to the moon, she'd go, and he knows that. He then pointed out that kid Cutty testified that Clark didn't mention a gun when she called them that day. Quote. Had Capricorn said gun, Cutty would have remembered gun, You're not gonna forget gun. Gun is one of the fear words in our language. Ki Cutty also didn't mention a gun to the responding officer, Mark said, and he added that the officer wrote up the incident as trespass. Mark also knocked Capricorn Clark's credibility in the validity of her story.

10:33 He said, Clark had to lie about the gun so it didn't seem like she was helping. Sean Combs quote. She doesn't want to give the impression that she's like part of this of her own volition. Mark acknowledged that Combe was at kid Cutty's home that day. He acknowledged that the responding officer caught the escalat license plate that was linked to Combe's company, and Mark said the incident showed that Combs as a fighter who would look to a good old fashion fistfight to confront Kick Cutting. So he had a character for Combs to plot a car bombing quote, there's no evidence that he had anything to do with that Porsche. He went on to say the blowing up the car of rapper kid Cutty would have been a coward's way to go out. Quote, He's gonna fight him, He's not going to blow up his car.

11:20 Mark said the investigation into the arson was a terrible investigation, and he asserted that the investigator didn't know what happened to fingerprints that were recovered. He underscored the investigator's testimony that partial DNA profile from the scene was consistent with a female. Mark said the instances of Sean Combe's offering Intercontinental Hotel personnel money following that twenty sixteen assault against Cassie was about preventing bad publicity and was not a bribe under relevant law because there was no law enforcement investigation, and Combs wasn't trying to hinder law enforcement. And we come on, now, Mark, we all know that is bullshit.

12:02 That was a fucking bribe. Mark said police were nowhere near the situation at the hotel, and Venturrea didn't want police involvement. He said law enforcement only came hours later to an apartment because Combs was banging on the door. Mark reference Comes repeated attempts to reach out to Ventura after she left that hotel. Quote, He's calling her and she's freezing him out, as she should. He's just trying to get her attention. Mark said Comes did not witness tamper in the case of Mia. In twenty twenty three and twenty twenty four, during the federal investigation, the defense attorney suggested the government misled the jury when it suggested d Rock was trying to give me a money to influence her. Mark showed the jury texts they had seen earlier in the trial from a conversation between Mia and d Rock. When she told him she was out of money, d Rock responded offering me a help if she needed it.

12:59 Mark then turned back to the topic of Mia. He said Mia testified with a false persona in court. He said the bubbly person in the birthday video that the jury watch that's me as true personality, and Mia falsely testified that Comes sexually assaulted her. Quote, this was not unwanted sexual contact unquote. Mark told the jury that Comes to Mia had consensual sexual contact and the jury should believe that because they saw a text from Comes to Mia when he threatened to tell Cassie about it. Quote Cassie doesn't know about it and Mia doesn't want Cassie to know about it. Mark question why comes with threatened to tell vinter about something he wrongfully did to Mia.

13:43 He referenced a positive social media post that Mia posted about Combs, asserting that was how she really felt. He showed the jury the scribe book Mia created for comes forty fifth birthday and called it an act of love. He then showed the jury a photo Mea posted of a group of people, including several of Combe's employees, and he said, think of a word or phrase that comes to mind, joy, family, home belonging. He asked, racketeering enterprise this, this is your racketeering enterprise, folks. While referencing that picture, Mark said, there's no evidence to support the government allegation that Shawn Combs and his enterprise conspired to distribute or possess with the intent to distribute a controlled substance. He said.

14:33 The jury has heard no allegation that Shawn Combs is selling drug and he acknowledged there's no doubt he had personal use drugs. He's obviously got a drug problem. He said. It's true the assistants picked up the drugs for Combs, but quote, the purpose of these businesses and enterprise had nothing nothing to do with getting him drugs. Quote. These are the things he did with his girlfriend, and they did them together. There's no indication that he's selling it to Cassie or Jane or somehow moving the drugs or distributing the drugs. He said. The sex life of Sean Comb's and Cassie was quote just not sex trafficking. It's his girlfriend. I suppose you get sex traffic your girlfriend if you sell her into prostitution, he said, adding there was no suggestion Comes was making any money off freak offs. Quote.

15:25 They're swingers, this is their lifestyle. Mark said the evidence was overwhelming that vent Tera wanted to participate in these freak offs, but he gave the jurors a hypothetical situation in which one partner liked the particular sex and the second partner didn't but knew the act made the first partner happy. He asked, do you still not want to do it? Where does that land on the I want to do it? I don't want to do it spectrum? Mark reiterated that this lifestyle choice was also Ventura's choice. Quote, she's ready to go, and God bless her she is. She's beautiful, sexy woman and that's what she deserves to be if that's what she wants to be, and that's what she wanted to be. Mark also knocked the government statement in its closing argument that not all the freak offs were non consensual. He then asked, how's he supposed to know? Mark them read a few sexually explicit messages Ventura sent Combs referencing the freak offs, and he said, quote, there was nothing that would say to him that that was against her will. Mark then went back to the March twenty sixteen incident at that hotel, and he said, quote, messages leading up to that incident showed Combes and Ventura were workshopping a freak off together, and that's how he termed it. Mark showed the jury parts of the surveillance video, but not the parts where Combs is being violent with Ventura.

16:52 He acknowledged those parts of the video were terrible. He also used the footage to argue that Combs was coming after Ventura to get a cell phone. He said that Ventura later went back into the room with Combs and the security officer because quote, the room was not a scary place. He suggested the drugs explain Combe's behavior in that video, saying, you're walking around in the middle of the day in a hotel with just a towel in socks on, so what do you think caused that. He also suggested that Cassie was never raped, saying, quote, she had plenty of time to change her story to say it happened. He then referenced a text in September after that rape supposedly happened that said, I had a lot of fun with you. Thanks for the night. I told myself I didn't want anything to happen, and I'm not tripping on it. I know you aren't either. Mark said her now husband, who she was dating at the time, facetimed her in the middle of the night when she was with Combs, and when her husband found out that she was with Combs, she lied and said she was raped.

17:59 He said, then and Terror changed her story because Come Center attacks, saying, quote, I know I look bad to you. I could tell I didn't turn you on yesterday. I fell off, but I'm about to get my shit together, and the government argued that that was an admission from Comes that she didn't want to have sex. Ventura also testified she later had consensual sex with Combs in October. Quote if there was really a rape, she would not have gone back and had consensual sex, so there's no rape, Mark said. Mark pointed to Cassie Ventura's answer when she was asked what kind of pain Comes put her through quote, I think bigger, more than anything, it was our own personal shame in having to carry things out that were shameful to him. He went on to say, in a sex trafficking case, the most painful thing for her was to unburden him of his shame and carry around his shame.

18:54 That was the answer. She could have answered that question any one of a million wayses. The reason it's beautiful is the only person who can answer this question that way is a person who's truly, truly in love with the other person, and all you need to know is that answer. He went on to say, both Cassie and Jane were saying this was an essential, vomnerable, deep part of himself, and he trusted me to go there with him, meaning the freak offs. He said, Jane answered a similar question in the same way, talking about how she felt the nights at the hotels with Combs or something special between them. Quote, she was basically saying, listen, I'm going to be very vulnerable, very special for you, and I'm doing it because I love you. He went on to describe how in exchange, Jane wanted to be treated special.

19:47 Quote that's a lot of things, but that's not sex trafficking. Mark said there's nothing to Cassie Ventura's claims that Seawan Combes held her back as an artist. He reminded the jury they heard from Cap Clark that Ventur got the line's share of resources and attention from the record label from two thousand and seven to twenty ten. He also reminded the jury that Clark said Ventur was a recording artist and had talent, but wasn't a natural star. He then moved on to Jane, and he said Jane was motivated by wanting nice things in trips that she posted on social media. He said, Jane love Combs, but she was focused on what she was going to get out of it that the world can see. And Mark reiterated the argument he made about comes sexual relationship with Cassie, saying, quote, the government said, they're not saying every single hotel night was a sex trafficking situation. Well, which ones were and how seawan Combe's supposed to know the difference. Mark also said Jane was used to moving in circles with celebrities like Combs, and he reminded the jury that they learned who her child's father is and what wrap she was with in Las Vegas of twenty twenty four. Quote. She's comfortable being in that sort of strata. That's just how she moves. He said, Comes took care of Jane and her child because the child's father quote dropped the ball.

21:15 And of course we've since found out the child's father is fifty cent so that's a shot at fidy right there. He described Comes paying rent for Jane's La house as a gesture of niceness that shouldn't be construed as a catalyst to sex trafficking. Mark said Jane is receiving pretty crappy child support, as he termed it, from the child's father fifty now. Jane testified at trial she receives about five thousand dollars per month in child support. Quote, guess who's giving her more? The one who has no responsibility for that child at all. He's picking up the ball for someone who seems to have dropped the ball for his own kid, and comes is still paying rent for Jane's house, even though Jane testified against him. They made a deal and he kept it good for him. He said Jane agreed to the knights with him at the time, regardless of the regret after the fact, and he reminded the jury that Jane never gave an explanation for slamming Combe's head during a twenty twenty four fight. He said Jane's account of that June eighteenth incident just didn't make sense, saying her violence towards Combs was odd and her timeline seemed off. He also questioned how much Combs actually hit her, but he did acknowledge that Combs was violent with her quote, there's obvious physical contact. He then suggested Jane may have been trying to set up Combs in that incident because she knew there was an ongoing federal investigation, saying she

22:46 might have picked a fight with Combs and then called that mail entertainer to come over so she could create a narrative. Mark mocked the government for calling to the witness stand only two men who said they had sex with Casting while Shawn Combs watched, saying the two men who were said to have had sex with Ventur during Freakoffs both testified that they aren't prostitutes and that they didn't travel across state lines to meet Ventur. In Combes, he's really reaching on this one. Both men actually did say during their testimony they receive money from Combs and Ventura after having sex with them. So Mark referred to an escort service that we talked about, alike cowboys for Angels, and they frequently provided these men for the freak Offs.

23:33 And he suggested the legality surrounding such an escort service as vague and that Shawn Combs would have assumed its operations were on the up and up. Quote, why is he supposed to know more than them if they're in the business and they're sending the escorts. Of course, talking about Cowboys for Angels, quote, people pay for an escort's time, if the two people meet and they choose to have sex, it looks to me like it's it's not illegal. There are all these companies around the world doing this, and Cowboys for Angels is just one of them. He added that their existence is evidence in Comb's mind that what they were doing was okay. He said, Cowboys for Angels still appears to be in business today. Come on, everybody knows that an escort service is illegal. He also argued that the videos of freak Ass were homemade porn. He said, in every poorn movie, I'm assuming the actors get paid to have sex. How is that not prostitution? I don't know, and you don't either. Mark also argued against racketeering conspiracy charges, noting no one was indicted with Combs. He alleged that the prosecution arranged testimony about Comb's guns to make the jury think he's a bad person, saying, quote, they brought out a big, nasty, scary gun to show you, for what purpose? To make you think he's a bad person who has big, scary guns. And if they're going to do that, don't you think they would have an obligation

25:03 to put a witness on the stand to tell you where they were. At what point do you stop trusting the government. And wrapping up his closing argument, Mark told the jury that it would take courage to acquit Seawan Combs, but he asked him to do the right thing and acquit him of all the charges against him. Quote, you should feel bold, You should feel the courage that you will need to call this as you see it. And I'm asking you to summon that courage and to do what needs to be done. He is not a racketeer. He is none of these things. He is innocent. He sits there innocent, and at that point he points directly to Combs, and then he says, quote, return him to his family and those who have been waiting for him.

25:50 And that was it for the defense and the prosecution had a short rebuttal Maureen Coombe said, quote, the defense just spent a whole lot of energy trying to blame his victims and the US government for his lies, his threats, and for his inexcusable behavior, tossing up excuse after excuse for his inexcusable behavior. But make no mistake, this trial was about how Sean Combs, in his world, no was never an option. She went on to say, he flew escorts across the country, watched them have sex while he masturbated, and then he handed him cash. His money is for sex, the sexual performance, not for time, and that is prostitution. Now, some of the men might have been willing to do these acts regardless of money, but when they got cash at the end of the night, they were getting paid for sex. It's irrelevant what the escorts thought about the interaction.

26:52 The law pertains to comb state of mind. When he transported the men for prostitution, Combs knew what he was doing. He knew it was illegal, because he said so in text messages to Ventura. Remember she needed to make sure the escorts were not undercover cops come. He also responded to the defense suggestion that Seawan Combs couldn't have had an enterprise because its purpose wasn't illegal activity, saying, quote an enterprise could have lawful and unlawful purposes quote. Prosecutors aren't claiming comes companies themselves were illegal, but that they used some of the money to further those companies. She said Christina Korm and d Rock were friendly with then Comeb's girlfriend Cassie because it helped them get her back to Combs and do what he wanted. Quote, they were playing both sides. She then revisited testimony about Combs going to after kid Cuddy and Eddie Garcia, who was the guy that took that bribe for the twenty sixteen hotel video, and she again reiterated that Combs couldn't have done his dirty work without the help of his inner circle. She pushed back on the suggestion that the accusers enjoyed freak offs in hotel night, saying vent Turn didn't have a financial incentive to lie on the stand. She had already secured thirty million in settlements from Combs in the Intercontinental Hotel even before testifying at the trial, and she reminded jurors that Jane performed hotel nights out of obligation by

28:26 twenty twenty three, when Combs was paying her rent. She also said during this rebuttal that quote, being a domestic abuser is not a defense to sex trafficking if part of the abuse is making your partner participate in a commercial sex act. You're guilty of sex trafficking. She again reminded the jury that if just one freak off or hotel night out of all these freak affs was sex trafficking, then that's enough to convict Combs for sex trafficking. All of them don't have to be the same situation. And in her own version of a mic drop if you will come, he may have had the quote of the trial when she said this quote for twenty years, the defendant has gotten away with his crimes. That ends in this courtroom. The defendant is not God, he is a person, and in this courtroom he stands equal before the law.

29:30 Overwhelming evidence proves his guilt. It is time to hold him accountable, find him guilty. And I could not agree with that more. That's what all of this has been about. That is why I put out over sixty five episodes covering this trial in the civil lawsuits before us fucked shown Combs. And with that, eight weeks of trial ended and the jury was dismissed. And today when you're hearing this, I'm recording this on Sunday, but you're gonna hear it. On Monday, the judge will issue instructions on deliberating to the jury, and we're gonna get a verdict in short order.

30:16 I have a feeling within a couple of days. That's my prediction. And I have to say this, the defense they did a lot of victim blaming today as it relates to Cassie especially, and I find that personally despicable. It's disgusting and I do not think that that will farewell with the jury. But we'll see. Thank you so much for listening. Check out the Patreon. I need your support on that Patreon because I did so many episodes of Seawan Combs. I think some of my patreon members were thinking I wasn't going to go back to my regular shit, and quite honestly, a few people dropped off.

31:00 But I had to do this, y'all. This was a personal thing to me. It was something I have covered since the beginning. I don't want to say I broke this story of Sean Combs, because I didn't. That lawsuit that Cassie put out in November of twenty twenty three broke this thing, but I was the first one that I'm aware of that really covered it in detail. Even before NBC Singing In and every other freaking person that has jumped on this bandwagon. I covered this because it was that shocking to me, and I cared that this girl got justice in more than just monetary justice. So that's why I did it. Thank you so much for listening again and until next time for exposed scandalous files of the Elite, I'm your host, Jim Chapman. Much love,