Sean ‘Diddy‘ Combs will be sentenced on October 3rd. Just days before his sentencing, Judge Arun Subramanian rejected the rapper’s appeal for acquittal or a new trial.
Combs was found guilty of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution in July and faces a maximum of 20 years in prison.
Earlier in September, Combs’ lawyers asked the judge to reverse his Mann Act conviction. However, according to court documents obtained by People, he’s since been denied.
“The government proved its case many times over,” Subramanian wrote in his filing on September 30th. “That by itself might be enough to dispose of Combs’s challenge. Had the prejudice indeed been so great, one would expect a jury to convict on the most relevant counts before it could spill over and infect the others. A new trial is not warranted.”
Combs’ team recently asked the judge to sentence the rapper to no longer than 14 months, which would see him released this year.
“For decades, Mr Combs struggled with serious substance abuse issues, anger and anxiety, and other flaws that he did not properly or professionally address until his incarceration last year,” they said. “Like every addict, his behaviour while on painkillers was erratic and unpredictable, and often the reason behind any assaults discussed at the trial.”
Prosecutors have demanded an 11-year sentence, while the probation department is recommending no more than seven and a quarter years.
Combs was acquitted of the more serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering, but was denied bail following the end of the trial.
The rapper has been incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn since September 2024. His court appearance this week will be his first since the trial.