Defense strategy for Shaun “Diddy” comb in his sex crime trial
Legal experts are discussing the strategies Sean “Diddy” Comb’s defense attorney will use in federal sex crime trials.
Sean “Diddy” Combs is being tested in a New York court for assault and sex trafficking. Will that daily drama disappear soon if President Donald Trump mercilessly relents on the suffering rapper?
“Yes, you can do that,” says Brian Cult, a law professor at Michigan State University’s Faculty of Law, whose focus is on legal issues and presidency.
According to the cult, Trump appears to be in the middle of his pardon, but is within the scope of his presidential rights and expands his preemptive pardon to fellow New Yorker Combs.
“These are federal accusations, so that’s the main limitation. The issue is the federal government, it has to be criminal versus civil and it relates to what’s already happening,” says the cult. “But the person still doesn’t need to be charged or even convicted. The Supreme Court said that preemptive pardons are fine.”
Usually, one of the final gestures from a resigning president is pardon. In President Joe Biden’s final days in office, he is famously convicted of his famous son, Hunter, on federal gun felony and federal tax charges. At the end of Trump’s first term, he was found lenient with political allies such as Roger Stone, and was found guilty of obstructing Congress’ investigation into Russian interference in crimes related to 2016 elections.
But the pardon could take place during the president’s term, cult says. Rights were established in Article 2, Article 2 and Article 1, Article 1 of the Constitution. This gives the President, among other things, the “power to grant reprieve and pardon for crimes against the United States, except in the case of ammo each.”
The cult says that the power of pardon comes from the historical rights of British monarchs, and the perception that criminal law is often too harsh, and that it is important to have a safety valve. “The president was the perfect person to become that safety valve for his political accountability,” he says.
But that’s where things get blurred, he added, and that Republican lawmakers “don’t want the president to be held accountable.” In contrast, President Gerald Ford’s disgraceful President Richard Nixon’s controversial forgiveness probably cost Ford’s reelection in 1976,” the Cult says.
In just 100 days after taking office, Trump has issued pardons to a wide range of characters. They include Todd and Julie Chrisley, the stars of reality show Chrisley Knose Best, who were convicted of fraudulent $36 million from Atlanta banks in 2022 and being tax evasionists, and rapper NBA Young Boy, who was sentenced to two years in prison for possessing a weapon in 2024. He also forgives former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich, who was convicted of wire fraud and fear tor, and “Bob’s Burger” actor Jay Johnston, a January 6th attendee.
The reason many presidents issue pardons at the end of the terms is precisely to avoid political fallout, says Cult. In that sense, Trump’s rude approach suggests he has no concern about such impacts.
“I don’t agree with these pardons about their merits, but the fact that he did when he was politically accountable rather than destroying the door adds some legitimacy to them in that sense,” he says. “If you pardon, you don’t need Congress. You waving your magic wand and that happens. You can see the appeal of a president, especially like Trump.”
Also, we can see the charm of comb-like people, where Trump’s “staff” waving his way.
