Diddy Trial: Cassie’s Cross Examination Breakdown With CBS News’ Jericka Duncan

Diddy Trial: Cassie’s Cross Examination Breakdown With CBS News’ Jericka Duncan

Drian, let’s talk about the defense strategy. Why is it important for the defense to prove or suggest that Cassie was a willing participant in all of this? I think the defense naturally is trying to poke holes sort of in some of the earlier testimony that Shawn Combmes was always the person in control and that Cassie Ventura was forced into these situations. So, the defense all day have really been laying out a lot of text messages and a lot of emails that tell the story of a very complicated relationship from the very beginning. In fact, in 2007, uh they showed the jurors an email where Ventura basically says after two months of um having a kiss with Combmes and saying that’s when their relation started after her 21st birthday. After their relation started, two months later, juror saw an email where she basically says, “I love you. I’m so excited to be a part of this relationship with you. Uh how she had plans of a future with him. So, they’re laying out somebody that was excited about the idea of being with Shawn Combmes at 21 years old and her future plans. Um but also a little bit of jealousy. In that same email, she makes reference to wondering if maybe Comb should have went after her friend Carrie and then said, “Maybe you should have went with Carrie because she could help you or you know do the things that you want her to do or something to that effect.” But she also said, which I thought was really interesting in that email, Rachel, is I want to be the woman that you want me to be. Like almost this idea of teach me what it is I need to be to keep you happy. And that was two months into the relationship. She’s having to read these emails and these text messages out loud in court. What is her demeanor like? Her voice is low at times. The defense did tell her if it’s too much, I can read them. But there were many times early on this morning where she read some of those explicit details where she is clearly excited about a freakoff and talks about entertaining other people in the bedroom. And what has Diddy’s what has Diddy’s demeanor been in this cross-examination as well? There was a moment where Shawn Combmes was nodding in agreement when they brought up a message that he sent her where he said, “You know, one of my favorite times of the freakoffs is when we’re able to make love after.” And then she responds, “That’s the same for me.” Now, what’s interesting here is that that does match what she told prosecutors or what she’s been telling the jury all along, which is she did this and she said, but she really wanted to spend time with him after the fact. So, he was shaking his head at this message where he’s almost, I guess, agreeing that he did say without him saying it, um, he enjoyed having the freakoffs and then having sex with her after the fact and her saying, “I agree with you. I love having sex with you after, too. What has been the response from jurors today? Um, jurors are paying attention. You know, they have their notebooks in their hand. Um, they’re coming in. They’re very alert. And I think this is one of those testimonies where you have no choice but to pay attention and almost be flabbergasted obviously at some of what you’re hearing because it’s not only uh just insight into somebody’s sex life. Um but the details are disturbing at times, especially during that prosecution testimony when we saw some of the alleged abuse or we saw pictures of her after an uh a beating of some kind according to her. Um but the jurors are definitely paying attention. And I don’t see anyone that’s not keeping their focus on Cassie Ventur. And also, I noticed them taking notes a lot of times. And the children, as they were exiting court yesterday, two of the girls were seen crying. How emotional have they been in court? Again, I cannot imagine if that was my father or somebody close to me up there and having to hear details of their sex life. Um, those are young women. Uh, they lost their mother, uh, one of them, the the twins. So, no one can probably quite understand what it is that they’re going through, but I think that’s something that you think about on on both sides. You know, to look at Alex Fine, which is uh Cassie Ventura’s husband and think about him having to listen to all that’s being said about the type of woman that Cassie Ventur was versus the person that’s expecting, you know, their third child together now. So whether it’s Colmes’s family or Vento’s family that’s there to support her, her brother uh and her husband Alex Fine, I think it’s it’s difficult on both sides. I I’d read I’m hearing at one point in time, you have acknowledged this as well, that as uh Diddy was listening to the cross-examination, he was nodding his I know, can’t avoid it. I And we see this throughout um the trial, people running by or rolling by, if you will, with music playing. I’ve heard uh the me and you song by Cassie Ventur which kind of made her famous and we just heard one of Diddy’s songs as we’re doing this interview. You had previously said that Diddy was nodding in agreeance to some of the text messages that Cassie was reading out loud. I’ve also heard that Diddy was taking notes. Oh yes. As well at what point was he taking notes? I’ve seen him taking notes uh from the beginning. I see him put his glasses on. He gets very close to the screen when they’re reading some of those text messages. So he’s paying attention. Interesting. Now, Ventura confirmed that she and Combmes had conversations about a swinger’s lifestyle, but that the freakoffs, they were very different. Yeah. So, she talked about this idea where I guess Combmes wanted her to watch him have sex with another woman. She said that happened two or three times, but that he mentioned it frequently. Kim Porter came up today in testimony. What was the significance there? The defense said early on that this case would be about infidelity, love, and jealousy. And this is where they brought that up today. when they brought up Kim Porter’s name, she asked the defense asked Cassie Ventur, “Are you jealous or were you jealous of Kim Porter?” And Ventur sort of contemplated but did get to this moment where she said knowing that Comb spent holidays with his family, which meant with Porter, uh did bother her and she um admitted that. Uh they also pointed out that there were there was testimony where she talked about being insanely jealous overall as a as a girlfriend. So, yeah, we’re hearing the judge wants Cassie off the stand tomorrow. Will the prosecution and the vets get equal time? Yeah, as long as there aren’t any additional motions, I think that is the goal to have her off the stand by tomorrow. Why do you think that? What’s the reasoning behind wanting her off the stand tomorrow? In the very beginning, Rachel, they told us that she would likely be on that stand 2 to three days. So, here we are. Tomorrow, we’ll make that third day.

CBS News’ Jericka Duncan shares updates with ET’s Rachel Smith from inside Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ sex trafficking and racketeering trial in New York City. Diddy maintains his innocence against all charges brought against him, as he sits and listens to day three of ex Cassie Ventura’s testimony.

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