David James, a former assistant to Sean “Diddy” Combs, is an important prosecution witness for his ability to tell jurors what it was like in the music mogul’s inner circle, according to CNN legal analyst and criminal defense attorney Joey Jackson.
“He takes you into the enterprise,” Jackson said.
“Remember about the overall charges, you’re looking at RICO,” continued Jackson.
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known as RICO, is used to describe 35 offenses, including kidnapping, murder, bribery, arson and extortion.
Prosecutors have said Combs ran a criminal racketeering enterprise in which he and some in his inner circle coerced women into participating in drug-fueled sex performances he called “Freak Offs.”
“So what prosecutors are doing is getting to this bad behavior, not just to dirty Diddy up, which they’re doing effectively,” Jackson said. “But also to get you to that RICO issue: This was a bad guy running a criminal enterprise.”
James, an assistant for Combs from 2007 to 2009, also said he recalled a conversation he had with Combs’ ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura where she said to him, “Man, this lifestyle is crazy.” He said he agreed and suggested she leave, he testified. “I can’t. I can’t get out,” Ventura told him, according to James.
“That means coercion…” Jackson said. “This is the government’s theory that she had no real choice but to do what she was doing. That’s what they’re saying. The defense obviously vehemently objects to that, denies it.”
Over four days last week, Ventura testified she endured physical and sexual abuse from Combs and detailed how he orchestrated the “Freak Offs.”
Combs has pleaded not guilty to charges that include racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.
