Sean Combs, popularly known as Diddy, has filed a new appeal challenging both his conviction and sentence, accusing the trial judge of exceeding his authority during sentencing.
In court documents submitted late Tuesday, Combs’ legal team asked an appellate court to overturn his conviction and order his release from prison or, alternatively, reduce his 50-month sentence. While several appeals have been filed since his sentencing, the latest motion focuses on the conduct of the presiding judge, Arun Subramanian, whom the defence claims acted as a “thirteenth juror” in the case.
According to the filing, lead counsel Alexandra Shapiro argued that Judge Subramanian imposed what she described as a “draconian” sentence by relying on allegations for which the jury had acquitted Combs, including racketeering and sex-trafficking charges.
The appeal alleges that the judge improperly stated during sentencing that he could consider conduct related to the more serious and violent charges, despite the jury returning not-guilty verdicts on those counts. Shapiro argued that such consideration violated Combs’ constitutional rights.
Combs’ legal team maintains that his sentence should be based solely on the two counts for which he was convicted—violations of the Mann Act involving the transportation of individuals for the purpose of prostitution.
In earlier appeals, the defence also argued that Combs did not personally arrange travel or make payments for male sex workers, contending that he therefore did not violate the Mann Act as alleged by prosecutors.
Federal prosecutors are expected to submit their response within the next two months, after which the appellate court will review the case.