President Donald Trump revealed on Monday that Sean “Diddy” Combs has reached out requesting a presidential pardon following his conviction and sentencing on prostitution-related charges, though the president gave no indication he plans to grant the request.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said “A lot of people have asked me for pardons. I call him Puff Daddy; he has asked me for a pardon.” The disclosure came as Trump fielded questions about potential pardons for various individuals.
U.S. District Court Judge Arun Subramanian sentenced Combs to 50 months in prison on Friday, October 3, after the music mogul was convicted on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. The sentence could see Combs released in less than three years after receiving credit for the time he has already spent locked up at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where he’s been held since his September 2024 arrest.
The sentencing followed a nearly two-month sex abuse and racketeering trial that ended in July with mixed results for Combs. The jury cleared him of the most serious charges, including sex trafficking and racketeering counts, but convicted him on the two prostitution-related transportation charges.
Combs’ legal team had requested a sentence of just 14 months with credit for time served, noting he has been incarcerated for over a year already. Prosecutors sought more than 11 years. The judge’s 50-month sentence split the difference, though it was four times longer than what defense attorneys had requested.
Lead attorney Teny Geragos told ABC News that they are considering an appeal, arguing the judge unfairly imposed a sentence based on unproven allegations not included in the conviction. “The jury made it very clear in their verdict that they acquitted him of the sex trafficking and the RICO counts. Not guilty means not guilty,” Geragos said.
This isn’t the first time Combs’ pardon request has surfaced. In August, sources confirmed that Combs’ legal team had been in contact with the Trump administration about the possibility of clemency. At that time, Trump indicated during a Newsmax interview that he was unlikely to grant the pardon, citing their deteriorating relationship.
“I was very friendly with him, I got along with him great and he seemed like a nice guy. I didn’t know him well. But when I ran for office, he was very hostile,” Trump said in that August interview. The president’s comments suggested personal politics might influence his clemency decisions, a pattern that has drawn criticism from legal observers.
According to a letter from his legal team, Combs has requested to serve his sentence at FCI Fort Dix, a low-security federal prison in New Jersey housing approximately 4,000 inmates. The facility offers a drug treatment program known as RDAP, the Residential Drug Abuse Program.
“In order to address drug abuse issues and to maximize family visitation and rehabilitative efforts, we request that the Court strongly recommend to the Bureau of Prisons that Mr. Combs be placed at FCI Fort Dix for RDAP purposes and any other available educational and occupational programs,” Geragos wrote in Monday’s letter.
At his sentencing hearing, Combs addressed his family members in the courtroom, saying “I love you, I’m sorry” to his children and mother, before adding “I’ll be OK” as he gathered his papers and left with federal marshals.
The trial and conviction marked a stunning fall for one of hip-hop’s most influential figures. Combs built a business empire spanning music production, fashion, and spirits, becoming one of the entertainment industry’s wealthiest personalities. His Bad Boy Records label helped define 1990s hip-hop and launched the careers of numerous artists.
The prostitution-related charges stemmed from allegations that Combs arranged for women to be transported for the purpose of engaging in prostitution. While prosecutors had pursued more serious charges including sex trafficking and racketeering, the jury’s partial acquittal suggested they found the evidence for those allegations insufficient.
In addition to the prison sentence, Combs must pay a $500,000 fine. The financial penalty represents a tiny fraction of his estimated net worth, though his business empire has suffered significant damage from the legal proceedings and negative publicity.
Presidential pardons have become increasingly controversial during Trump’s administration, with critics arguing that clemency decisions appear influenced by personal relationships and political considerations rather than traditional factors like evidence of rehabilitation or miscarriage of justice.
Trump has issued thousands of pardons during his current term, with some going to high-profile individuals who supported him politically or maintained personal relationships with him. The prospect of Combs receiving clemency, given Trump’s earlier comments about their strained relationship, appears uncertain at best.
For Combs, the pardon request represents one of several legal strategies his team is pursuing. Beyond seeking presidential clemency, his attorneys are actively considering an appeal of the conviction and sentence, arguing that the judge improperly considered uncharged conduct when determining the sentence length.
The case raises questions about how celebrities navigate the criminal justice system differently than ordinary defendants. While Combs has access to top-tier legal representation and can request presidential intervention, most convicted individuals lack such options and must serve their full sentences.
Whether Trump ultimately grants the pardon request remains unclear. The president’s Monday comments acknowledged the request but provided no signal about his intentions. Given Trump’s previous statements about feeling Combs was “hostile” during his political campaigns, clemency seems unlikely unless other factors intervene.
For now, Combs faces spending the next several years in federal prison, with his once-dominant position in the entertainment industry severely diminished by legal troubles that have dominated headlines for more than a year.
Source: newsghana.com.gh
