Key Facts

What Has Cassie Ventura’s Ex-Friend, Kerry Morgan, Testified?

Morgan, who says she was close friends with Ventura between 2001 and 2018, took the stand late Monday morning after Richard’s testimony concluded. Morgan testified she no longer speaks to Ventura and their friendship ended because Combs had allegedly hit Morgan in the head with a wooden hanger in 2018, after which she said Combs gave her $30,000 and had her sign a non-disclosure agreement. Morgan said she didn’t want to testify because she has “moved on,” but was subpoenaed, CNN reported. Morgan said she witnessed Combs attack Ventura on two occasions, one of which was at a Los Angeles hotel, where Morgan testified she saw Combs push Ventura and believed he hit her. Morgan testified she asked a bodyguard to intervene, who refused, NBC News reported. In another instance, Morgan testified she and Ventura were vacationing in Jamaica when Combs arrived halfway through their trip. At one point, Morgan testified Combs said Ventura was taking too long in the bathroom, and he went to find her, at which point Morgan said she heard “guttural, terrifying” screams from Ventura. “He was dragging her by her hair,” Morgan said, adding she saw him throw Ventura to the ground, hitting her head on a brick.

What Has Dawn Richard Testified?

Richard testified Monday she regularly witnessed Combs attacking Ventura, and she described numerous specific incidents on the stand. “He would punch her, choke her, drag her, slap her in the mouth,” Richard said, stating these alleged beatings could be random or provoked by Ventura “speaking up for herself,” NBC News reported. In one alleged incident, Richard testified she saw Combs punch Ventura in the face during an argument while Richard, Combs and their Diddy Dirty Money groupmate Kaleena Harper were getting ready for a Central Park performance in 2009, ABC News reported. Defense lawyers challenged Richard’s account of the alleged skillet attack, alleging her account has changed over time, citing her previous legal filings and interviews with prosecutors. In one account, Richard said she saw Combs throwing eggs, not the pan, at Ventura, while Richard’s lawyers wrote in a letter last year Richard heard a frying pan hit the wall, but did not witness the altercation, CNN reported. “I said the best that I could recall,” Richard told the cross-examiner. Richard also testified she erased some memories due to trauma: “It did not all come back immediately … the environment was traumatizing, so I tried to erase those things from my memory,” Richard said, according to NBC News.

How Do Analysts Think The Trial Is Going For The Prosecutors?

Rachel Maimin, a former federal prosecutor, told NBC News the hotel surveillance footage depicting Combs attacking Ventura in 2016 will stick in the jury’s mind, and Ventura “really was able to tell a story from start to finish” in her testimony. Former prosecutor Julie Grant told CNN the government is “well on their way to proving” Combs’ federal charges through Ventura’s testimony. Though the defense has tried to undercut Ventura’s credibility, Grant said the government “doesn’t need to have a perfect victim.” Grant said the government has established a basis for proving the sex trafficking charges, stating what constitutes sex trafficking is “someone providing somebody else for that commercial sex act, and when I say commercial, it means anything of value, not even necessarily money to be given by force or coercion.” Some analysts, though, questioned whether the prosecution has established whether Combs ran a “criminal enterprise,” as prosecutors said in their opening statement. “I don’t know that [Ventura]

got them all the way there,” Maimin said, citing the “complexity” of proving racketeering conspiracy. Joey Jackson, CNN analyst and criminal defense attorney, told CNN although testimony has indicated Combs had “horrific sexual proclivities,” he’s unsure the prosecution has proved “he built this empire so that he could abuse and degrade women.”

What Does Diddy Need To Do To Win His Defense?

To win the case, Combs’ legal team must convince the jury everything described in the case, including the “freak-offs,” were consensual, appellate lawyer Mark Zauderer told NBC News. Elie Honig, senior legal analyst for CNN, said he believes Combs’ lawyers proved Ventura and Combs’ freak-offs were “not coercive.” “This was consensual, and second of all, this doesn’t satisfy the technical legal requirements for operating a racketeering enterprise that Sean Combs is charged with,” Honig told CNN. Donna Rotunno, a defense lawyer who represented Harvey Weinstein, told the New York Times: “You can be guilty of sins and not crimes,” stating the testimony so far has indicated a pattern of violence, but has not proven his federal charges.

What Did Richard Allege In Her Lawsuit Against Diddy?

Richard sued Combs in September 2024 in New York federal court, accusing the music mogul of sexually harassing her on multiple occasions, overworking her and verbally abusing her. In her lawsuit, Richard said Combs “manipulated” her for nearly a decade while Danity Kane was signed to Combs’ Bad Boy Records and while a member of the musical trio, Diddy – Dirty Money, with Combs. Richard said Combs had sexually harassed her multiple times by entering her dressing room while she was changing and groping her bare butt and chest. Richard said Combs would regularly force her and her bandmates to record music and rehearse for 36 to 48 hours at a time, stating she lost a significant amount of weight, prompting Combs to call her “too skinny,” even though she said he denied her requests for food. Richard said Combs had an “uncontrollable anger,” stating she had witnessed Combs be violent toward Ventura. Whenever Richard would try to intervene between Combs and Ventura, Combs would threaten her life and tell her he makes people go “missing,” Richard alleged. Richard’s lawyer Lisa Bloom told the BBC Combs had a “vicious temper and [Richard] was absolutely terrified of him.” Combs’ lawyer denied Richard’s allegations, as well as all other allegations made in the dozens of lawsuits filed against him.

What Did Cassie Say During Testimony—including Freak-Offs And Alleged Rape?

Ventura, considered the government’s key witness in its case against Combs, testified from Tuesday through Friday last week. While on the stand, she said Combs would “too frequently” subject her to physical abuse: “He would smash me in my head, knock me over, drag me, kick me, stomp me in the head if I was down,” Ventura said. She described “freak-offs,” highly choreographed sexual encounters in which Combs watched Ventura have sex with a male escort, as drug-fueled nightmares that took large physical and emotional tolls. “I felt pretty horrible about myself. I felt disgusting. I felt humiliated,” Ventura said. Defense lawyers tried to paint Ventura as consenting to freak-offs, citing messages she had sent Combs, including one from 2009 that read, “I’m always ready for a freak-off lolol.” Ventura pushed back on some of the messages as “just words at that point,” while stating she viewed Combs as “sweet” and “attentive” early in their relationship. Ventura also testified Combs raped her in 2018, an allegation she made in her 2023 lawsuit against the music mogul. Defense lawyers questioned the credibility of the allegation, pointing out inconsistencies Ventura had given about the timeline of the alleged rape, as well as pointing to messages indicating she and Combs had consensual sex after the alleged incident. Ventura testified while nearly nine months pregnant, and judge Arun Subramanian sparred with Combs’ lawyers after they told him they may have needed her testimony to stretch into a second week. Subramanian urged both sides to wrap up Ventura’s testimony by Friday, as prosecutors voiced fears she could give birth before finishing testimony, risking a mistrial.

What Is Diddy Charged With?

Combs faces five federal charges: two counts of sex trafficking, two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution and one count of racketeering conspiracy. He pleaded not guilty to all charges and has denied all allegations made against him. Combs also faces dozens of civil lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault and sex trafficking.

Further Reading

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Trial: Cassie Testifies About Alleged 2018 Rape As Cross-Examination Wraps Up (Forbes)