Sean "Diddy" Combs Trial Closing Arguments Begins

Tensions run high between the courtroom walls as the high-profile sex trafficking trial of Sean "Diddy" Combs enters its seventh week, marking the end game closing arguments are underway. Following several weeks of powerful prosecution testimony, the government formally closed its case with a detailed review by Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent Joseph Cerciello.

Cerciello wasn't directly involved in the events in question, but his casting a wide net in the case by reviewing bank records, cell logs, and travel records independently of prosecutors stood as a significant part of the prosecution's case. Unlike the prosecution's deliberate and time-consuming approach, which called 34 witnesses, the defense chose to keep its case remarkably concise. A defense motion for direct orders of acquittal was heard, with defense attorney Teny Garagos resting the case after taking less than 20 minutes by submitting documents and stipulations agreed upon by both sides but calling no witnesses. The defense also said it would not call the 50-year-old Combs to the stand. 

Read More: Tanner Martin Announces To The Internet His Own Death At 30

In a rare quote from a defendant, addressed directly to the presiding judge Arun Subramanian, Combs said his decision not to testify was made "solely" by him following "serious consultation." Closing arguments are now expected to be heard on June 26, with both sides planning for a marathon day in court. Garagos told the judge that the government and the defense planned to take "a minimum of four hours each" to give their closings a clear indication of the heft and complexity of the issues at play.

It's a significant swing from weeks of witness testimony to a rapid defense, and now to hear the closing arguments in a trial and an attention-grabbing case that few people in the country likely missed. With both sides' lawyers set to sum up their stories and reiterate their arguments to the jury, the action has shifted to the courtroom. As the trial enters its final turn, the world waits to see whom the jury will believe: a prosecution that believes it has shown in exhaustive detail how George Floyd was killed or a defense that says it is perfectly willing to bet George Floyd's life in silence. The fate of Sean "Diddy" Combs now rests with the jury, that much is certain.