He was convicted in July of flying his girlfriends and male sex workers around the country to engage in drug-fueled sexual encounters, a practice that happened over many years and in different locations. However, he was acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering charges that could have put him behind bars for life.
“Why did it happen so long?” U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian asked as he handed down the sentence. “Because you had the power and the resources to keep it going, and because you weren’t caught.”
Combs showed no visible change of emotion as he learned his sentence, sitting in his chair and looking straight ahead as the judge spoke. He remained subdued afterward and appeared dejected, with none of the enthusiasm and smiles that accompanied his interactions with lawyers and his family earlier in the day. He said, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry” to his family right before leaving the courtroom.
In a final speech before sentencing, Combs made a plea for leniency.
“I ask your honor for a chance to be a father again,” Combs said, “a son again … a leader in my community again … for a chance to get the help that I desperately need to be a better person.” He apologized to the people he hurt physically and mentally with his “disgusting, shameful” actions, and said the domestic violence was a burden he would carry for the rest of his life.
Earlier, Combs wept as his defense lawyers played a video in court portraying his family life, career and philanthropy.
“It’s a case about a man who did horrible things to real people to satisfy his own sexual gratification,” she said. “He didn’t need the money. His currency was control.”
Combs was convicted under the Mann Act, which bans transporting people across state lines for prostitution. Defense attorney Jason Driscoll argued the law was misapplied.
Combs’ daughters Chance and D’Lila Combs cried as they spoke in court Friday, with D’Lila saying she feared losing her father after the death of their mother, Kim Porter, in 2018. Six of Combs’ seven children addressed the judge.
“Please, your honor, please,” D’Lila said through tears, “give our family the chance to heal together, to rebuild, to change, to move forward, not as a headline, but as human beings.”
Outside the courthouse, journalists and onlookers swarmed, echoing scenes from Combs’ trial.
Sade Bess, a Combs fan from Brooklyn, left the court’s overflow observation room looking both sad and relieved.
“It’s devastating to see a pioneer of the Black community’s legacy nearly diminished,” she said. “But the judge showed mercy by giving him a second chance, while still honoring the victims.”
