THE BIG STORY: After a verdict that cleared Sean “Diddy” Combs of sex trafficking but still left him facing a potential prison sentence for prostitution, the mogul’s team has been public about asking President Donald Trump to intervene. But is that even possible? What would the process look like?
Billboard’s Rachel Scharf dug into those questions last week, asking legal experts to break down potential mechanisms and arguments in Diddy’s pursuit of presidential intervention. As with many issues under the Trump administration, experts told her that clemency law is now in uncharted territory.
“The mechanism is falling apart,” one law professor said. “It’s fair to say many people are confused about what the process is now.” For more, go read Rachel’s full story here.
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Other top stories this week…
CARDI CLEARED – After a week-long trial, it took jurors only an hour of deliberations to reject a civil assault lawsuit against Cardi B that claimed she cut a security guard’s face with her nails during a 2018 altercation at a Los Angeles doctor’s office. After the verdict, the superstar had a warning for the filer of the next “frivolous lawsuit” against her: “I’m going to countersue, and I’m gonna make you pay because this is not okay,” she said. “Don’t you ever think that you gonna sue me, and I’m just gonna settle and just give you my money. It’s not gonna happen.”
BOOSIE’S BARGAIN – Federal prosecutors revealed the terms of rapper Boosie Badazz’s plea deal in his gun possession case, including his recommended prison sentence and new details about his alleged misconduct – like that he flew commercial with the two handguns on the same day he was arrested in San Diego.
DIDDY WINS AGAIN – Elsewhere in Diddy world, the hip-hop mogul won a ruling dismissing a civil lawsuit accusing him of drugging and sexually battering an unnamed 23-year-old man at a Los Angeles afterparty in 2015. Like in another civil case tossed out last month, the judge said the John Doe lawsuit was filed well after the statute of limitations had expired.
MELLY FIRES LAWYERS – Weeks after his double-murder trial was postponed until 2027, YNW Melly fired his team of lawyers – arguing that they now have a conflict of interest that makes it “impossible” for them to effectively represent him. To replace them, the rapper hired Drew Findling, a well-known criminal defense attorney who previously repped Cardi B and Gucci Mane and is currently defending Lil Durk, Lil Nas X and Glorilla.
COUNTERFEIT CRACKDOWN – It was a busy week for counterfeit merch lawsuits. Tate McRae’s supplier filed a lawsuit seeking to empower law enforcement to stop bootleggers from selling knockoff t-shirts and other gear during her Miss Possessive tour. Days later, Sony merch venture Ceremony of Roses filed another such case on behalf of Benson Boone, arguing that he’s facing a flood of counterfeit gear outside stops on his American Heart tour.
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SCOTUS MUSIC CASE – Cox Communications filed its opening brief at the U.S. Supreme Court urging the justices to strike down a billion-dollar piracy lawsuit filed by record labels, warning it “jeopardizes internet access for millions of users.” If a lower court ruling holding the company liable for copyright infringement is allowed to stand, Cox said ISPs across the country will be forced to take draconian measures, including “mass evictions from the internet.”
THICKE PICS – Robin Thicke reached a private settlement to resolve a lawsuit claiming he posted paparazzi pictures of himself on Instagram without paying to license the images. He was just the latest to face such claims, which have also targeted Jennifer Lopez, Miley Cyrus, Dua Lipa and Justin Bieber and others over similar posts.
PRAS HEALTH SCARE – Fugees rapper Pras Michel had emergency surgery for colon cancer removal, postponing a key court hearing following his conviction on illegal foreign lobbying and conspiracy charges. Pras had been due in court to decide how much much money he must forfeit to the government, but the cancer was revealed in a routine checkup. Michel is “recovering right now until he is in the clear,” a spokesperson said, and the court hearing was pushed back until October.
JOINT MOTION – Lawyers for Megan Thee Stallion claimed in court filings that a close ally of Tory Lanez should be punished for “utterly disrespectful, uncivil and antagonistic” conduct during a recent deposition. Megan’s attorneys say Ceasar McDowell engaged in “immature and childlike conduct,” including rolling and smoking what appeared to be a “marijuana cigarette” and calling one of the attorneys a “b—h”.
CASE CLOSED – A settlement was reached to end a lawsuit claiming Pitbull’s 2021 dance hit “I Feel Good” was copied from a track created more than 15 years earlier. The case, filed last year by a company called All Surface Publishing, claimed that Pitbull’s song infringed the copyright to a 2006 song called “Samir’s Theme” by copying numerous elements, including some that “appear to be almost identical.”
