Gerrard Kaonga
Sean Combs’ legal team hope that the music mogul could be free much sooner than expected.
It has been over a year since Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs was arrested at the Park Hyatt hotel in Manhattan, New York, after a grand jury indicted him.
Earlier this year, Combs’ sex trafficking trial began and in July he was found guilty on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution.
Most notably, he was acquitted on the more serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering.
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The rapper and producer pleaded not guilty and is expected to appeal his conviction.
While the charges could see him face a maximum of 20 years in prison, Comb’s legal team hope his sentencing could see him face considerably less time than that.
In a court filing from 22 September, his team urged the judge to impose a lesser sentence of 14 months followed by supervised release with mandatory drug treatment, therapy, and group counseling, arguing it would be ‘sufficient, but not greater than necessary’.
Due to the time he has already served in police custody since his arrest, he could be released at or not long after the judge makes a decision
Prosecutors have until September 29 to recommend a sentence and have said that a ‘substantial’ prison term is warranted however they have also acknowledged that federal sentencing guidelines appear to recommend no more than just over 5 years.
U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian is expected to sentence Combs on October 3.
In the written submission to the judge, the legal team included 70 letters of support from Combs’ inner circle, including from his family members.
The filing also revealed Combs has sobered up in prison following years of drug and alcohol abuse.
The letter also argued that Combs’ 84 year-old mother Janice and seven of his children rely on him.
Janice also pleaded with the judge that she wants to spend her last remaining years with her son and conceded that he ‘has made some terrible mistakes’.
The filing also claimed, that while incarcerated, he had an ‘incident free record’, according to a Mail Online report.
His lawyers wrote: “In the past two years, Mr. Combs's career and reputation have been destroyed. He has served over a year in one of the most notorious jails in America - yet has made the most of that punishment.
“Put simply, the jury has spoken. Its verdict represents an `affirmative indication of innocence.
“It is time for Mr. Combs to go home to his family, so he can continue his treatment and try to make the most of the next chapter of his extraordinary life…It is the only just and fair sentence that could be imposed.”