Which celebrities were mentioned so far during Diddy’s sex trafficking trial
Isabel Keane takes a look at who was mentioned — and why.
Oliver O’Connell7 May 2025 18:53
Judge wavers on Friday before agreeing to strikes then
Having finished today’s jury selection at lunchtime, Judge Subramanian proposes that they do peremptory strikes of jurors today.
There was concern from prosecutors that by striking now and then, having days in which jurors may try to get off the case, they may fall below the 18 people they require for the trial.
The judge countered that cold feet will happen no matter what.
Prosecutors said that there may be other work to be done beyond the peremptory challenges, and other arguments may be teed up for Friday.
Judge Subramanian conceded that 9 a.m. Friday was acceptable.
Oliver O’Connell7 May 2025 18:42
What do we know about today’s jury pool?
The pool of jurors being considered to be part of the jury and alternates in the Diddy trial is largely drawn from Manhattan, the Bronx, and Westchester counties (being part of the Southern District of New York — other city boroughs and Long Island fall into the Eastern District).
They variously list their jobs as teaching, nursing, finance, HR, law, window cleaning, maintenance, and unemployed.
One is a proud Trekkie, another a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, and another in the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.
They get their news from The New York Times, Fox News, Al-Jazeera, WFDU, and “every major news source,” while also reading GQ, Forbes, House & Garden, Wired, and magazines about video games and nursing.
For entertainment, they watch ESPN, Chicago PD, Bravo, Andor, Elsbeth, Wheel of Fortune, and science fiction. They listen to Caribbean music, rap, hip hop, jazz, metal, contemporary Christian, rock country, LoFi, and Korean band BTS.
As for hobbies, they are fans of cooking and baking, running, photography, gaming, pickleball, building models, and drones.
Judge Subramanian dismissed the pool for the day and warned them not to read or post anything online about the case.
Oliver O’Connell7 May 2025 18:35
Jury may not be finalized until Friday
The jury in the sex trafficking trial of music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs isn’t expected to be finalized until Friday, two days later than expected.
Judge Arun Subramanian granted a request by lawyers Wednesday for extra time to decide who they will eliminate from the list of prospective jurors. It’s the last step of a jury selection process that began when potential jurors filled out questionnaires last week.
For the past three days, the judge has been questioning prospective jurors one at a time to see who can be fair and unbiased. On Friday, lawyers on each side will be permitted to eliminate several individuals from the panel of jurors — for reasons they usually do not have to explain. That procedure, which typically takes an hour or less, produces the final jury of 12 plus alternates.
Then on Monday, opening statements are scheduled for a trial that is expected to last up to two months in federal court in Manhattan.
Oliver O’Connell7 May 2025 18:30
Today’s jury pool returns for group questions
The potential jurors still in the jury pool have been brought back into the court together for the group questioning, during which we find out more biographical details.
Oliver O’Connell7 May 2025 18:09
Diddy allowed to wear non-prison clothes at trial
Sean “Diddy” Combs, 55, has been held at a federal jail in Brooklyn since his September arrest. His formerly jet black hair is now almost completely gray because dye isn’t allowed at the detention center.
Combs, who had his own fashion line, has worn yellow jail uniforms in pretrial hearings.
However, for the trial, the judge said he can have up to five button-down shirts, five pairs of pants, five sweaters, five pairs of socks, and two pairs of shoes without laces.
Under federal court rules, no photos or video of the trial will be allowed. Courtroom sketches are permitted.
Oliver O’Connell7 May 2025 18:00
One more juror added to pool
Shortly before the court took a break, another female juror was added to the pool, having said that while she was shocked by the hotel hallway video, she could still be fair.
She added that her social media was mostly dogs and food.
That should put us on 43 jurors in the pool with a target of 45.
Oliver O’Connell7 May 2025 17:52
Laughter as potential juror says he works at Diddy’s prison
There was laughter when a male juror announced he works at Metropolitan Detention Center, Brooklyn — the prison where Diddy (and Luigi Mangione) is currently detained.
Oliver O’Connell7 May 2025 17:45
Debate over inclusion of UN worker
A woman is excluded for saying she had seen a lot of tweets about the case against Diddy and that it looks “pretty straightforward.”
A man who works at the UN was the subject of some back-and-forth between the judge and lawyers. While the prosecution didn’t oppose him, the defense took issue with some of his answers about his work, claiming they did not make sense.
Judge Subramanian said he would not strike the juror for cause but would question him more about his work.
Oliver O’Connell7 May 2025 17:43
Two more jurors added to pool
Two more jurors have joined the wider pool.
First, a woman who saw the video but believes she can be fair, saying there are two sides to everything.
Second, a Star Wars fan who has been binge-watching Andor, who gave somewhat meandering answers according to the prosecution.
The defence said he was light-hearted and opposed dismissing him for cause, which Judge Subramanian did not.
Oliver O’Connell7 May 2025 17:39